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Southern Valley Alliance warns funding cuts could hobble domestic-violence services in Scott County
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Summary
Southern Valley Alliance told county officials it faces shrinking federal and state grant opportunities that could reduce shelter beds and transitional housing; presenters cited program metrics and asked for continued coordination and local support.
Christy Larson, who identified herself as executive director of Southern Valley Alliance, told the Scott County board that the domestic-violence nonprofit faces a squeeze in federal and state grants that support transitional housing and operations.
"Without a source for these funds, we are at risk of losing critical services that we provide to Scott County residents," Larson said during the presentation.
Larson gave a data snapshot: the organization’s expense budget was "almost $1,000,000" this year; it served more than 1,200 individuals in the last fiscal year, answered the crisis line more than 2,000 times, provided 74 nights of emergency hotel stays, 54 instances of direct financial assistance and more than $65,000 in client assistance. For Scott County specifically the presenter reported 536 direct services last fiscal year (county-specific fiscal year July–June).
Larson said one federal funding source that supported the transitional housing program — a grant from the Office for Violence Against Women — has paused new solicitations, and the state Office of Justice Programs funding faces a reported 20 percent reduction. She said those forces are already prompting service reductions in similar agencies and could shrink transitional-housing units and shelter beds across the region.
Local partnership and LHPA funds: Larson described a partnership with Scott County’s Local Homeless Prevention Aid (LHPA) program, saying PATH-like partners had used about $43,226 from LHPA funds since July 2023 (quarterly updates to come) to help survivors with deposits, first month’s rent and application fees. She said that local support has been important to stabilizing families in immediate housing crisis.
County reaction and possible moves: Commissioners and county staff discussed ways to support nonprofits through coordination, new nonprofit vehicles for fundraising, and local grants. The Scott County attorney’s office emphasized that financial stability for survivors can be critical to pursuing prosecutions in domestic-abuse cases. Participants also asked about volunteer capacity, data-sharing for metrics and connections to other programs such as Hope's Portage.
Next step: Southern Valley Alliance asked county officials to continue partnering on funding strategies and suggested the board help connect local fundraising and volunteer resources to preserve prevention and crisis services.
