After leading a multi-state lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today announced that the DOJ will remove illegal conditions on over $1.3 billion in Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grants. Earlier this year, the Trump Administration, disregarding the clear letter of the law and intent of Congress, has declared that States will be unable to access these funds – used to support victims and survivors of crimes – unless they accede to the Trump Administration’s demands that States assist in federal immigration enforcement.
“When the Trump Administration recklessly attempted to mistreat victims of crime in New Jersey and across the country, we took action and led a 20 Attorney General coalition to ensure continued funding under the Victims of Crime Act,” said Attorney General Platkin. “Now the Trump Department of Justice has agreed to drop illegal conditions on this critical funding, which will ensure that advocacy services, sexual assault forensic exams, medical and funeral expenses, and other critical resources for victims of crimes will continue to be available. While this fight over DOJ’s unlawful and politicized use of grant conditions is not yet over, I am glad to have achieved this significant victory for our residents alongside our coalition.”
The Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) was enacted in 1984 by President Ronald Reagan, creating a series of grant programs to enable States to provide critical resources and services to victims and survivors of crime as they try to restore normalcy in their lives: victim and witness advocacy services, emergency shelter, medical, funeral, and burial expenses, crime scene cleanup, sexual assault forensic exams, and much more. These funding streams—totaling more than a billion dollars a year nationwide—have long ensured that States could fulfill their most fundamental duties: to protect public safety and redress harm to their residents. States use these funds to assist nearly 9 million crime victims per year and to provide compensation for more than 200,000 victims’ claims per year. Congress has required the distribution of nearly all VOCA funding to States based on fixed statutory formulas and has repeatedly acted to ensure sufficient funding for crime victims, including after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
However, the Trump Administration, through the DOJ, previously declared that States, along with the victims and survivors they serve, would be blocked from these funds unless they comply with the Administration’s political agenda – namely its immigration enforcement priorities. In order to receive these funds, States were told that they must assist the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with civil immigration enforcement efforts – a federal, not state, government responsibility.
Following the lawsuit brought forward by the coalition, the DOJ has abandoned its plans to impose these conditions on $178 million in VOCA Victim Assistance grants and $1.2 billion in VOCA Victim Compensation grants. These grants will continue to be provided to states with no requirement that States assist DHS in immigration enforcement.
In addition to New Jersey, this lawsuit is being co-led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, and Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha. It is joined by the Attorneys General of Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
