Public Awareness
Now Online: 2022 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Resource Guide
2022 National Crime Victims' Rights Week (NCVRW) Resource Guide
National Crime Victims' Rights Week YWCA Run with the Badges 5K/10K Community Awareness Event
Rock Springs, WY
Successful Approaches to Working with Social Media for Human Trafficking Outreach and Awareness
Role of America's Law Enforcement in Labor Trafficking Identification
Now Available: 2022 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Theme Artwork
Funding Opportunity: 2022 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Community Awareness Projects
Honoring a Human Trafficking Survivor’s Unique Experience is Vital to Providing Appropriate Services
OVC FY 2021 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Community Awareness Projects (2022)
It’s National Crime Victims’ Rights Week
2021 National Crime Victims' Rights Week (NCVRW) Resource Guide
Now Online: 2021 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Resource Guide
Crime Victims Fund
Crime Victims Fund
The Crime Victims Fund (the Fund), established by the Victims of Crime Act of 1984, supports services for victims of crime throughout the Nation. OVC is charged by Congress with administering the Fund, which is composed primarily of fines, special assessments, and bond forfeitures from convicted federal offenders, making it a self-sufficient source of compensation and assistance that does not rely...
Research & Evaluation
Research and Evaluation
Data on Crime Victimization
In FYs 2019 and 2020, OVC funded two partner agencies—the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)—in their endeavors to generate, collect, and analyze quantitative and qualitative data on victimization, victim services, and related topics critical to the field.
OVC continued an interagency agreement with NIJ to support research for the field, including...
Support for Law Enforcement
Support for Law Enforcement
OVC supports partnerships with law enforcement agencies at the state, tribal, and local levels to combat crime, promote safer neighborhoods, and establish collaborations between police and the communities they protect. Through discretionary grant programs, OVC grantees help agencies provide effective, trauma-informed law enforcement practices to better serve all victims. OVC also funds national-scope discretionary programs to provide comprehensive services to victims...
OVC Discretionary Funding
OVC Discretionary Funding
OVC provides discretionary grants for national-scope demonstration projects and training and technical assistance (TTA) to enhance the professional expertise of victim service providers. These grants are competitively awarded to states, local government agencies, tribal governments, educational institutions, private nonprofit organizations, and individuals. Programs identify and implement promising practices, models, and initiatives; address gaps and needs in TTA; and fund demonstration programs that...
Formula Grants: VOCA Compensation and Assistance
Formula Grants: VOCA Compensation and Assistance
OVC administers two Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) formula grant programs that support crime victim compensation and assistance—the foundation of support for victims throughout the Nation. These formula grants account for approximately 95 percent of the VOCA funds that OVC disburses each year.
- The VOCA Victim Compensation Grant Program provides funding to supplement state compensation programs that reimburse victims...
Innovative Practices
Innovative Practices
According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, only 8 percent of victims of violent crimes received help from a victim service agency in 2019—a decline of 11 percent from 2018. To improve this reality, the victim services field must diversify and expand existing strategies for providing victim assistance and create vital links to other fields that come into contact with victims of crime...
Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation
Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation
Older adults are especially vulnerable to violent crime, neglect, and exploitation, including financial fraud. The effects of these crimes can be devastating, and older adults may be targeted at rates that outpace the services available to help the growing number of victims. Not surprisingly, elder abuse results in a wide range of negative health impacts, including the increased likelihood of...
Antiterrorism Emergency Reserve
Antiterrorism Emergency Reserve
Following the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, Congress amended VOCA to authorize OVC to allocate up to $50 million per year from the Crime Victims Fund to establish the Antiterrorism Emergency Reserve (Reserve). The Reserve provides help primarily through funding for immediate and direct services for victims of terrorism and criminal mass violence within the United States and abroad, supplemental funding provided directly...
VOCA Compensation Highlights
VOCA Compensation Highlights
OVC’s VOCA Compensation Formula Grant Program reimburses victims for financial losses resulting from their victimization. OVC disburses these funds to supplement state programs that provide financial assistance and reimbursement to victims for crime-related expenses, including medical and dental care, counseling, funeral and burial expenses, and lost wages. Compensation programs may also reimburse victims for other types of expenses related to their victimization...