Congress, don’t cut VOCA

There is a troubling status quo in this country: More victims come forward for lifesaving services than we are able to help. In a single 24-hour period last year, 67,646 victims were helped by 1,697 domestic violence shelters and programs in this country. But on that same day, advocates had to say, “So sorry we can’t help,” 10,871 times to victims who finally had the courage to ask. In 2014, over 40 percent of the nation’s rape crisis centers were forced to reduce staffing because of funding levels and over 1/3 of rape crisis centers (39 percent) have a waiting list for services, with victims waiting most often for counseling. That is a devastating reality.

Despite those numbers, Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding may be cut from last year’s $2.36 billion to less than half of that. If Congress doesn’t preserve funding, victim service providers across the country are at risk of losing crucial resources, which will necessarily mean fewer services for victims.

{mosads}Some may try to justify these cuts by saying that crime has declined nationally over the past couple of decades. But crime still exists, and for a person who has been beaten, raped, stalked, abused, kidnapped or threatened with death, and has nowhere to turn because the shelter is full – those shrinking crime rates don’t mean a thing. With more than 10,000 domestic violence turnaways in a single day, and unacceptable waiting lists for rape victims in crisis, we need increased funds for victim services, not less.

Each year in this nation 12 million people are frightened, traumatized, controlled, injured and harmed by a current or former intimate partner, and 1 in 5 women become the victim of sexual assault. 

Just last year, our country woke up to the scourge of domestic violence when we watched Ray Rice knock out his fiancée in an elevator. In the wake of that assault, calls to the National Domestic Violence Hotline spiked and have not gone back down since. Related calls and referrals to local hotlines and programs also spiked. Callers were reaching out for help for themselves, their friends, siblings, children and others. 

As a nation, we are just now confronting the alarming rates of sexual violence. It is challenging to have an accurate picture of whether the rate of sexual violence is actually in decline since the majority of survivors have never reported their experiences, and as systems improve we would actually expect to see reporting rates increase. Campuses, the military, prisons, and churches are in the spotlight, and as these institutions have begun to improve their responses, more victims are coming forward. Those survivors need rape crisis victim services, but advocates are struggling to meet the need with bare bones, underpaid staff providing the frontline response to these crimes. 

Communities across the country are also developing homicide reduction initiatives. When police officers at the scene understand to complete a risk assessment and help the victim comprehend that she is in lethal danger, they can refer her to victim services. Healthcare providers and home visitors are similarly being trained on how to screen for domestic violence. They then can make referrals to victim services. When a rape kit is tested, we should be able to connect the survivor to an advocate at a victim services program. 

As we improve the responses to domestic and sexual violence, the need for victim services goes up. This is exactly what VOCA funds – non-tax dollars, coming entirely from criminal fines and penalties – were meant to support. 

Victims who flee in the middle of the night or come forward after a traumatizing assault need support, a safe place to stay while in crisis, vital legal services and much more. Yes, it’s good news that crime is down. But let’s not forget those that are still experiencing crime and need help. There couldn’t be a better time to invest aptly-named Victims of Crime Act funds, so that not one more desperate victim will be turned away.

Harden is senior vice president of Strategic Initiatives and Membership at the YWCA USA. Hostler is president of the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence. McLaughlin is deputy director for Policy at the National Network to End Domestic Violence.