Citizen Portal
Sign In

Advocates urge permanent VOCA backfill; committee approves $2M ongoing

Health and Human Services Committee · March 4, 2026

Loading...

AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

After testimony from advocates about sustained turnover and the need to preserve advocate salaries, the committee approved adding $2 million ongoing to the supplemental budget as a VOCA backfill; committee members noted uncertainty about the federal VOCA allocation and prioritized making VOCA funding whole first.

The Health and Human Services Committee voted to include $2,000,000 ongoing in the supplemental budget to backfill a shortfall in VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) funding for victim services advocates.

Elizabeth Ward Sachs, speaking for advocacy organizations, described a prior legislative amendment that divided available one‑time VOCA backfill between providers and used a portion to raise advocate salaries. "We went from a high, as you may recall, of 60% turnover for sexual‑assault advocates to now below 20%," she said, adding that in some areas turnover is as low as 10%. Sachs urged the committee to make ongoing funding a priority and finish what had been started in prior sessions.

Committee members and staff acknowledged ongoing uncertainty about the federal VOCA allocation and emphasized that the committee's practice has been to prioritize making VOCA funds whole before allocating leftover federal funds to other uses. A motion to make $2,000,000 ongoing (rather than the originally proposed $3,000,000 ongoing) was made and seconded; the committee approved the motion by voice vote. The transcript records the committee's decision but does not include a recorded roll‑call tally.

Members also noted that some VOCA decisions had been carried out late in previous sessions when federal allocations arrived after adjournment; they asked staff to provide further information about expected federal receipts so the committee can confirm whether an ongoing state appropriation remains necessary.

The committee's action advances the request for ongoing state support while preserving the committee practice of prioritizing VOCA backfill as federal receipts are clarified.