(MURFREESBORO)  The Child Advocacy Center fears that federal funding for the The Victims of Crime Act is in jeopardy, and they urge the public to write our legislators in Washington. 

Child Advocacy Center director Sharon De Boer said, “The Child Advocacy Center has relied on this federal funding for the last 20 years to provide critically needed services to over 24,000 child abuse victims, child sexual abuse victims, drug endangered children, and families in Rutherford and Cannon Counties.”  

The Child Advocacy Center was notified by the National Children’s Alliance that there will be a 40 per cent cut in VOCA funding next year.  That would be a $130,600 cut in funds.  That translates into loosing 3 employees who provide critically needed services to child abuse victims. 

The Child Advocacy Center of Rutherford County, Inc. was established in Rutherford County in September of 2000 and in Cannon County in October of 2008 utilizing funding from the federal Victims of Crime Act grant.  The Victims of Crime Act funding supports 43% of the Child Advocacy Center’s annual budget.  The grant funds six employees that provide forensic interviews of child abuse and child sexual abuse victims and family advocacy to help families rebuild their shattered lives. 

De Boer continued, “The Child Advocacy Center is not the only Rutherford County and Cannon County agency that is funded by the Victims of Crime Act funding.  The Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Center, Cannon County SAVE, and the District Attorney’s Office Victim Witness Program are all critically needed programs in our community that will be impacted by the VOCA grant funding cuts."

The VOCA fund was established in 1984 by the Reagan Administration.  These funds have been used to assist crime victims across the nation for 36 years.  The VOCA grant funds are not taxpayer funded.  VOCA is funded by monetary penalties from federal crime convictions.  Grants for victims’ services were cut 25 per cent last year, and victim service providers are facing further potentially catastrophic cuts in their VOCA grants in the coming year. 

De Boer is asking the public,  "Please send an email to your Senators and Representative.  Urge them to support services for crime victims.  It is a simple process that takes less than 5 minutes.  Click the links in this press release to email our Tennessee Senators.  Click the other link and enter your zip code to find your Representative.  Go to their online email page, cut and paste the information in the next paragraph, and sign your name."   

She explained, "Your Letter to Legislators might include wording like:  I am your constituent and I am writing to you about the VOCA grant fund.  Services to crime victims are important to me.  I urge the Senate and House appropriators to release as much funding as possible from the Crime Victims Fund in 2021.  I also support the VOCA Fix that seeks to put VOCA grants on a more sustainable path.  The VOCA Fix redirects monetary penalties from deferred and non-prosecution agreements to the VOCA fund."