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Children’s Justice Center requests small training and therapy budget adjustments as caseloads climb
Summary
At a Davis County Budget Committee meeting, the Children’s Justice Center director requested modest budget changes: a $671 increase for training and a $2,900 VOCA grant award to fund therapy. Staff warned rising caseloads (610 served in 2024; 392 through Aug. 2025) strain interview capacity and raise burnout concerns.
The Davis County Children’s Justice Center asked the county’s budget committee on Friday to incorporate two modest changes into its 2026 budget: a $671 increase to fund additional trainings and an added $2,900 award from VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) earmarked for therapy.
The CJC director (identified as Julie in the transcript; last name not provided) told the committee the training funds are needed so staff and the victim coordinator can attend out-of-state and national conferences required by accreditation and grant conditions. "In 2024, we helped 610," the director said, adding that through August 2025 the center had already served 392 children.
The director said VOCA funds for the center are structured as a two-year grant running July 2025–June 2027 and are awarded in annual slices; the center received less than it requested. She asked the budget be adjusted to reflect the $2,900 VOCA award that will be used to pay for therapy when families’ insurance or Office of Victims of Crime funds are exhausted. The center maintains linkage agreements with six county counseling providers to obtain discounted therapy for families.
Committee members praised the CJC’s work and described how the center’s interviews support prosecutions. One attendee said the center’s interviews are often admissible in court and that the quality of those interviews has helped the county obtain convictions and pleas: "What happens in that building is leading to direct quantifiable public safety in Davis County," the committee speaker said.
Presenters also raised workforce concerns: two forensic interviewers, named in the transcript as Jill and Carrie, carry roughly 90–95% of interview duties, a load the director warned risks secondary trauma and burnout. The director noted the county’s "Friends" fundraising board covers registration and hotel for members of the multidisciplinary team to attend the state Children’s Justice Symposium, and that community partnerships and past donations (a late‑2023 donation from Clarefield High) continue to subsidize therapy costs.
There was discussion and appreciation from the committee but no formal motion or vote recorded in the provided transcript. Committee members said they would discuss rollovers and related line items in subsequent budget review sessions.
The committee concluded the presentation with thanks to the CJC staff and no immediate action recorded on the requested adjustments.
