Protecting Critical Funding for Survivors
When someone experiencing domestic or sexual abuse reaches out for help, services need to be there.
Across the country, thousands of organizations provide survivors with shelter, counseling, advocacy, legal support, and other critical services. A major source of funding that helps make these services possible is the Crime Victims Fund.
The Crime Victims Fund supports nearly 6,500 organizations and helps provide services to more than six million victims of crime each year. The fund does not rely on taxpayer dollars. Instead, it relies largely on fines and penalties collected in federal criminal cases.
However, deposits have declined significantly, leaving the balance of the CVF dangerously low.
Why is the Funding at Risk
In recent years, less money has been going into the Crime Victims Fund. That has led to major cuts in the funding available to organizations that help survivors.
Between 2022 and 2024, programs funded through the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) saw funding drop by 40%. Across the country, some organizations have had to reduce services, lay off staff, or even close. Rural and underserved communities have been especially impacted.
What Can Be Done?
The Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act is a bipartisan bill designed to help address the funding shortage. It would temporarily direct additional non-taxpayer funds into the Crime Victims Fund while Congress works toward a longer-term solution. It would also require an audit to better understand the funding decline.
The House has already passed the legislation. Advocates are now calling for the Senate to take action.
Why Does This Matter
Behind every funding number is a person who may need a safe place to stay, someone to talk to, help understanding their options, or support rebuilding their life.
Organizations like Safe Monroe depend on strong, reliable funding to keep providing services to survivors in our communities.
Survivors deserve to know that when they reach out for help and that someone will be there to answer.
How You Can Help
We are calling for all advocates to allow their voice to be heard and to join us in our efforts to continue providing our support and services to survivors in our community.
Contact Your Senator
Find your senator at senate.gov/senators/contact
You can contact your Senators by phone; call the US Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 or find their phone numbers on their websites.
To contact your Senators by email, go to their website and click the ‘contact us’ link. If you know someone in their office, contact them directly. See here for a staff contact list.
Before you reach out, find out whether your Senator has already cosponsored the CVFSA. If they are, that’s great! Thank them for their support and press the urgency of getting this bill to the floor. If they aren’t, you can add this to your ask. The more cosponsors the bill has, the more pressure Senate leadership will feel to take action on the legislation.
You can find out if your Senator is a cosponsor at: congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1892/cosponsors.
Call Script
Call script shared by NNEDV
Hello, my name is [your name], and I’m a constituent from [your city and state/territory and, if applicable, your organization].
Option 1: [If they aren’t a cosponsor:] I’m calling to urge Senator [Senator’s name] to sign on as a cosponsor to the bipartisan Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act and follow the House’s lead and pass this bipartisan legislation.
Option 2: [If they are a cosponsor:] I’m calling to thank Senator [Senator’s name] for signing on as a cosponsor of the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act and urge them to follow the House’s lead and pass this bipartisan legislation.
The Crime Victims Fund, or CVF, is made up of non-taxpayer dollars and funds Victims of Crime Act grants that support more than six million victims of crime nationwide each year, and is the primary source of funding for services that support survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, child sexual abuse, trafficking, and other crimes.
Deposits into the CVF have declined considerably in recent years, resulting in substantial cuts to victim services funding and putting critical, lifesaving services and victims’ lives at risk.
[Explain how these cuts have impacted your community. Ex: survivors of sexual violence now wait an average of 12 weeks to receive services. It was previously 6.]
The Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act offers a bipartisan, commonsense solution to stabilize the CVF using non-taxpayer dollars, ensuring continuity of services while Congress works toward a long-term fix.
I urge [Senator’s name] to take action now,
Option 1: [if they aren’t a cosponsor:] by signing on as a cosponsor and passing the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act as soon as possible.
Option 2: [If they are a cosponsor:] and pass the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act as soon as possible.
Email Script
Email script shared by NNEDV
Dear Senator [Senator’s name],
My name is [your name], and I am a constituent from [your city, state/territory, and, if applicable, organization].
Option 1: [If they aren’t a cosponsor:] I’m writing to urge Senator [Senator’s name] to sign on as a cosponsor to the bipartisan Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act and follow the House’s lead and pass this bipartisan legislation.
Option 2: [If they are a cosponsor:] I’m writing to thank Senator [Senator’s name] for signing on as a cosponsor of the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act and urge them to follow the House’s lead and pass this bipartisan legislation.
The Crime Victims Fund (CVF), is made up of non-taxpayer dollars and funds Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grants that support more than six million victims of crime each year, through nearly 6,500 direct service organizations, including domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, and child advocacy centers. This funding is a critical support for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, child sexual abuse, trafficking, and other crimes.
Deposits into the CVF have declined considerably in recent years, resulting in substantial cuts to victim services funding and putting critical, lifesaving services and victims’ lives at risk. Following a nearly 40% cut in VOCA funding in Fiscal Year 2024, combined with increasing need, programs and communities are continuing to feel the impacts. Programs have been forced to reduce services, lay off staff, and, in some cases, close their doors entirely. Without immediate action, communities will feel less safe, and more victims and survivors will be left without the support they need to heal, rebuild their lives, and get back to work.
The Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act offers a bipartisan, commonsense solution to help stabilize the CVF using non-taxpayer dollars, ensuring continuity of services while Congress works toward a long-term fix.
I urge the Senator to take action now,
Option 1: [if they aren’t a cosponsor:] by signing on as a cosponsor and passing the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act as soon as possible.
Option 2: [If they are a cosponsor:] and pass the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act as soon as possible.
Victims and survivors cannot afford to wait!
Thank you for your attention to this urgent issue. I look forward to your continued support.