Statewide Iowa — Iowa organizations working to support victims of crime will have access to more federal funding as President Biden has signed the VOCA Fix Act into law.
Under the previous administration, dollars were directed away from the crime victims fund. Alta Medea-Peters, director of community engagement for Iowa’s Domestic Violence Intervention Program, says survivor support organizations still need to recover from those cuts before they can focus on the increased funding that’s coming.
The bill received bipartisan support including from Iowa’s Republican Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst. Medea-Peters says they’re thankful to have access to more federal funding, but it won’t be available for two more years.
Medea-Peters says before they can apply for funding, the program will see a 35-percent cut in federal funding from the previous administration. Leadership will focus on how to fill those gaps before planning use for the future funding options.
