At the 2021 National Joint Conference for VOCA Victim Assistance and Compensation Administrators, Acting Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon, Office of Justice Programs, announced more than $1.2 billion in Fiscal Year 2021 Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding. In her remarks, Ms. Solomon states,
“Victim assistance and compensation programs are lifelines to millions of crime survivors, giving them the emotional and material support and the financial means to begin the path to healing.”
These OVC awards include over $1 billion in victim assistance funds, $186 million to supplement state victim compensation programs, and over $3 million to implement statewide technology programs and support the annual training event for state victim assistance and compensation administrators.
In the coming weeks OVC also anticipates making the following awards to enhance victim services:
- $27 million to support:
- elder abuse and hate crime victims,
- survivors of female genital mutilation and cutting,
- technology innovations to serve crime victims,
- increased trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve, and
- programs to serve victims in hospitals and marginalized communities.
- $90.3 million in Tribal Victim Services Set-Aside funds designated by law from the Crime Victims Fund to support the provision of services to crime victims in American Indian/Alaska Native communities.
- $6.8 million in Tribal set-aside funds to support Tribal grantees with capacity building, training, and technical assistance.
- $200,000 to update the Tribal Resource Tool which maps the availability of victim services in Tribal communities.
- $2.9 million to Tribes under the Children’s Justice Act Partnership to enhance the handling cases of criminal child abuse and neglect.
VOCA administrators can use this customizable press release template to announce FY 2021 Victim Assistance and Victim Compensation awards to their communities.