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Rape crisis centers and other victim
service agencies will face considerable funding cuts next year
if provisions of the Senate Appropriations bill, S.2778 become
law. S.2778 caps the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) fund at $566.5
million—a decrease of $58.7 million for fiscal year 2003,
according to an alert from the National Center for Victims of
Crime (NCVC). With Congress scheduled to adjourn October 4th,
time is running out for action.
This drop in funding results from last year’s congressional
change to the VOCA formula, which increased the amount of funds
available to victim compensation. Unless the cap is raised, this
increase of funding for victim compensation decreases the amount
left for VOCA assistance—the funding for programs. (More
information about this is available at
http://www.ncvc.org/law/
in_congress/in_congress_fundingappropriations.htm.)
With congressional appropriators drafting spending bills right
now--and Congress scheduled to adjourn in one month--now is the
time to act. Advocates are not the only ones who can make an
impact. If you are a criminalist, forensic examiner, police officer
or prosecutor, you know how important rape crisis advocates are
to your work. Your voice will add considerable weight on Capitol
Hill.
Since the Senate bill has already passed out of committee,
proponents of lifting the VOCA cap are focusing efforts on House
Appropriations members. Your voice is especially important right
now if you live in the districts of one of the 65 Appropriations
committee members (link to
http://www.house.gov/
appropriations/members.htm), particularly the Subcommittee
on Commerce, Justice and State (CJS), the current focal point of
activity. CJS members include
Rep. Frank
R. Wolf (R-VA),
Harold
Rogers (R-KY),
Jim Kolbe
(R-AZ),
Charles H. Taylor (R-NC),
Ralph
Regula (R-OH),
Tom
Latham (R-IA),
Dan
Miller (R-FL),
David Vitter
(R-LA),
Jose E. Serrano (D-NY),
Alan B.
Mollohan (D-WV),
Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA),
Robert E.
“Bud” Cramer, Jr. (D-AL) or
Patrick J. Kennedy (D-RI).
We strongly suggest phone calls or faxes vs. mail or email. Mail
delivery on Capitol Hill is still problematic due to the anthrax
screening. Emails may go unread. Get on the phone, and let your
voice be heard. Keep in mind that they should be more responsive
to you since elections are so close. If you are unable to phone,
send a fax instead.
Here are some talking points about VOCA:
- Describe how your agency uses
VOCA funds, and what services you would have to cut. Quantify
wherever possible. How many victims did you serve annually for
the past two years, how long is your waiting list, how many
victims are likely to be impacted?
- VOCA funding does not come
from taxpayers. It is specifically collected from fines and
other criminal penalties in federal criminal cases.
- If the VOCA cap is not raised,
funding for victim services will decrease, at a time when the
need has increased and state funds are shrinking. Reference,
if you can, how your community has seen more demands for
services. You might mention your outreach to underserved
populations, e.g. non-english speaking victims, the disabled,
teens and others.
- VOCA was created to help our
nation meet the needs of victims of crime. The money is
already in-hand and earmarked for victims. Congress must
release additional VOCA funds now, to be used for the intended
purposes, which are so great at this point in time.
- Let them know that you, your
agency, and the victims it serves will be watching this issue
closely, and that you will remember their support (or lack
thereof) when you vote in November.
To find the contact information
for your representative, go to
http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.html. If you do not
know who your representative is, this page will help direct you
by simply entering your zip code.
Please drop a line at deblandrew@aol.com and let us know which office you
contacted, and what they said. We will continue to send out
action alerts, but intelligence from your contact will help us
develop the next contact strategy.
Sources:
Senate Bill S.2778, go to
http://thomas.loc.gov and search on bill number S.2778.
"Federal Victim Assistance to Drop 15% Unless Congress Acts”,
National Center for Victims of Crime
Testimony by National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC) before
Approps, CJS,
www.ncvc.org/law/in_congress/in_congress_fundingappropriations.htm |
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