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Grantsville hears victim-advocate update as VOCA funding tightens
Summary
City staff and the Grantsville victim advocate reported service metrics and warned of funding uncertainty for the VOCA-funded victim services program. The advocate said caseloads are rising with limited staff; council members thanked staff and encouraged volunteer recruitment.
Grantsville's victim-services program updated the City Council on Jan. 15, reporting service volume, program accomplishments and a looming federal funding cut that could affect staffing.
Shelby (program leadership) said the program began Nov. 1, 2021 with federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funds and that the two-year grant cycle most recently extended through 2025. The city re-applied for the 2026—27 VOCA cycle but received notice VOCA allocations are likely to shrink again; the presenter said prior cycles included a roughly 40% funding decrease and that future awards are not guaranteed.
Delia Cook, the city's victim advocate, described front-line workload and staffing needs. "With more reporting, the continuous cases are not getting the full capacity of what I have to offer because now I have to pay more attention to the new cases," she said. "If we had another advocate I could hand off cases and reduce the continual on-call strain." Cook described work across crime categories including domestic violence, assaults, child abuse and stalking, and she said domestic-violence related cases are the largest share of her caseload.
Staff reported outcomes and goals for the recent reporting period (July 1—Dec. 30): the advocate helped 80 new or continuing victims and provided 1,516 service actions across categories such as informational referrals, safety/planning support and criminal/civil justice assistance. Program goal-achievement rates reported to the grantor were above target in informational referrals (reported at about 33% above goal), at 50% for emotional-support and safety services, and 18% of goal for criminal/civil justice-system assistance; staff said the rates show services are increasing.
Program leadership said volunteers are essential to sustain operations and that two volunteers moved into paid advocacy roles elsewhere after receiving experience in Grantsville; staff encouraged interested, qualified volunteers to contact the program. Council members thanked the advocate for the work and praised collaboration with county and regional victim-service providers.
Why it matters: The VOCA-funded victim advocate provides confidential advocacy, court accompaniment and referral services that local victims rely on. A further federal funding reduction would leave the program with fewer paid staff and greater reliance on volunteers, staff said.
What's next: Staff will include the funding uncertainty in upcoming budget discussions and continue volunteer recruitment; the advocate and program leadership will report back at the next semiannual update.
