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Representatives Debbie Dingell (MI-06) and Rashida Tlaib (MI-12) today joined District Victim Service Providers (VSPs) to highlight the impacts the Trump Administration’s sweeping federal funding cuts have had on these organizations. Organizations in attendance include Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence (MCEDSV), First Step, SafeHouse, Avalon Healing Center, and ACCESS. 

In January, the Trump Administration issued an Executive Order to halt the distribution of significant portions of federal funding, causing fear and confusion for many federal grantees. While this order was rescinded, uncertainty remains among VSPs and domestic violence shelters, and many are still not able to access much of their funding or understand what their future funding will look like.

Grants have been frozen, funding streams remain unclear, and online portals are closed. Grants that were due in February are still inaccessible. Future funding is at risk and confusing.  As an example, the opening of a facility in Detroit, which has long needed a domestic violence shelter, has been delayed by a year. Domestic violence shelters, crisis centers, Crime Victim Stabilization Funds, and transitional housing are in limbo, jeopardizing their stability and impacting those who rely on them. 

As President Trump and his Administration continue to slash the size of the federal workforce and propose significant funding cuts, the future of funding from programs like the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA), and Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) is in jeopardy.

“Victim service organizations depend on federal funds to provide critical support for survivors of domestic and sexual violence, child abuse, stalking and other crimes,” said Rep. Dingell. “Without these funds, survivor service providers are limited in their ability, and in many cases unable, to carry out programs that support survivors, their families, and communities to both respond to and prevent violence. Any funding interruption may embolden domestic and sexual perpetrators as the legal system will be unable to respond to crises – making our communities less safe. We cannot stand by and allow this to happen.”

“One in three women will experience some form of physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. We know that the efforts of community-based organizations to prevent and respond to domestic violence are incredibly important. We need to make sure that our communities have the funding necessary to address domestic violence and the trauma it leaves behind. We must ensure that survivors and their children have safe and stable housing, as well counseling, legal, and financial assistance. These federal funding grants save lives,” said Rep. Tlaib.

"The uncertainty Michigan domestic and sexual violence agencies are facing is deeply concerning.  If the Federal Government does not prioritize distribution of essential funds to states, the survival of local domestic violence shelters is at stake.  This underscores the truth that 'all politics are local.' Often people think that what happens on a federal level is removed from them personally, it's something that just happens in D.C., but the reality is stark:  over 50% of the funding for local domestic violence shelters and sexual assault agencies comes directly from the federal government," said Johanna Kononen the Director of Law and Policy at the Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence. "We are committed to working with Michigan's entire delegation to advocate for and emphasize the life-saving work done by domestic and sexual violence program."