Governor Newsom and CA Legislature provide one-time funding for crime victims

Governor Gavin Newsom and the California State Legislature recently allocated $103 million to cover federal funding cuts to crime victims' services.

For the local organizations that offer these services, it’s a temporary sigh of relief.

“Firstly, we were very happy to hear about this funding because without it, these cuts really would have been devastating,” said Clementine Ellis, Lumina Alliance Director of Communications and Outreach.

However, Ellis says it is only one-time funding and will not provide a long-term solution.

According to Ellis, the cuts will impact mostly competitive grants, including one that the San Luis Obispo Legal Assistance Foundation (SLOLAF) relies on for 40% of its budget.

SLOLAF Executive Director Donna Jones says that means dozens of survivors of intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and stalking may not be served.

For Lumina Alliance and other services, the one-time funding is helpful but Ellis says it pails in comparison to what’s needed with intimate partner violence costing the state of California alone $73.7 billion.

“It's a very expensive and costly public health issue, o these are really drops in the bucket when we're talking about funding these programs that address this urgent public health need,” Ellis said.

San Luis Obispo County resources:

• Victims of Crime County Services
• Lumina Alliance
• SLO CASA