Jan Lutz: Child crime victims are at high risk of losing support

Children are our most vulnerable population, and as director of the Indiana Chapter of NCA, it has been my duty to help child victims of crime and abuse reach safety and achieve justice. Each year, our Children’s Advocacy Centers serve more than 10,000 children and their families annually impacted by abuse and violence in Indiana, a state where the rate is two times higher than the national average.

For decades, child crime victims and their families have depended on the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) and the Crime Victims Fund (CVF) to help navigate through the healing process. Every child who walks through the doors of one of the 26 centers in Indiana receives invaluable help and resources thanks to the tireless efforts of countless victim services professionals working there.

Since its inception, Victims of Crime Act and the Crime Victims Fund have supported millions of crime, sexual assault and domestic abuse victims across the country. Over time, the act and fund have faced numerous, significant cuts, destabilizing the system relied upon by countless victims.

This year, the act’s recipients are preparing for a $600 million cut, which could force advocacy centers to downsize or, at worst, to close their operations completely. This could mean less financial support for victims of violent crimes and sexual assault, depleted legal resources in the pursuit of justice and fewer victims’ rights advocates.

For Indiana centers, a cut of that magnitude would mean much more.

If federal funding were to disappear, Indiana’s 26 centers would be left struggling to employ staff who provide forensic interviews, victim advocacy, and more. That’s in part because 20% to 50% of local center funding comes from the Victims of Crime Act.

Because resources provided by the state are extremely limited, a cut risks leaving countless families without the support they desperately need. The loss of victim advocacy and long-term support after abuse puts kids at a significantly higher risk of further trauma, mental illness and a costly cycle of becoming future abusers themselves.

The impact on our community would be twofold: The cuts will jeopardize the progress we’ve made in protecting and assisting these vulnerable children and families and will drop a burden on Hoosier taxpayers. Indiana saves approximately $12.4 million by utilizing advocacy centers for child abuse investigations.

Before we can tackle the central issues of the Crime Victims Fund, we need to first address the harm caused by these cuts. That is what Reps. Ann Wagner, R-Missouri.; Nathaniel Moran, R-Texas; Debbie Dingell, D-Mississippi; Stephanie Bice, R-Oklahoma; and Jim Costa, D-California, propose to do with the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act of 2024.

This critical bill will bridge the gap for the Crime Victims Fund, throwing a lifeline to all of those resources that rely on the act. Until a more permanent solution is found, we need to lend our voices to these young victims, speak up to our congressional leaders and do our part to ensure this bill makes it to our communities.

Closing doors to young crime victims would mean abandoning them in their already impossible journey. We owe it to these victims to provide the support they need.

We are committed to offering the highest level of service to victims and their families, but now we turn to Congress to quickly pass the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act of 2024, ensuring continued assistance for those in urgent need, both now and in the years to come.•

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Lutz is the founding director of the Indiana Chapter of National Children’s Alliance.