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Warren County DA seeks permission to apply for Crime Victim Assistance grant
Summary
The Warren County district attorney asked the committee to authorize applying for the Crime Victim Assistance Grant and to accept funds if awarded. The committee approved the request. The grant requires a small local match equal to 5% of the victim program director's salary, county officials said.
The Warren County district attorney asked the Public Safety & Emergency Services Committee on Jan. 21 to authorize applying for the Crime Victim Assistance Grant and to accept the award if it is granted.
The request matters because the grant has funded the county's crime victim program for years, county officials said; losing the funding would reduce support services for people affected by violent and other serious crimes. The DA told the committee the grant covers nearly all program costs but requires a small local match.
The district attorney said the program currently employs a director and a senior specialist (Manoa Fonito and Mikaela Chapa) who "have contact with crime victims every single day." He told the committee, "there is a small match that I know is required, which is 5% of the salary of the director, [that] can't be covered by the grant." He added the grant has "done a terrific job" funding services and that in past cycles the county met other matching rules by crediting office space at a per-square-foot value.
Supervisor Strainer asked, "The match, is that in your budget?" The district attorney answered that the 5% match is typically handled through past practice and space valuation rather than new cash outlays, and that historically the county has not needed to add other local money beyond the 5% director match. Supervisor Conover asked about the size of the grant; the district attorney said the county received roughly $160,000 in the prior year and that 5% of a director's salary would amount to a few thousand dollars.
After discussion the committee approved the request to apply for the grant and to accept it if awarded. The recorded motion was to "authorize application for the Crime Victim Assistance Grant and to receive the award if granted," moved by Supervisor Conover and seconded by Supervisor Mayday.
The committee did not set aside additional specific cash in the meeting beyond the existing practice of accounting for the 5% director match if needed. County staff said they could not predict future matching rules beyond the current 5% requirement.
