Witnesses and analysts urge restoring victim-service funding as GOCAP budget advances

Madeline Miller, the Department of Legislative Services analyst, told the Public Safety and Administration Subcommittee that the governor’s office of crime prevention and policy (GOCAP) would have a fiscal 2027 allowance of about $347.7 million but that the agency’s true spending power is lower after accounting for special‑fund double‑counting. Miller said grant programs dominate the agency’s work and flagged several recommended deletions to the allowance because of the state’s fiscal condition, including $2.5 million proposed for a group violence reduction strategy and a $47.1 million enhancement to the state aid for police (SAP) program.

The review drew immediate public testimony from victim-service providers and statewide coalitions who said cuts would hurt already strained front-line programs. “Now is not the time to cut state funding,” said Laurie…