Commerce grants $8.4 million to Washington State tribes for crime victim services
Sixteen Washington State tribes awarded Federal Victims of Crime Act funds from the Office of Crime Victims Advocacy
OLYMPIA, WA – The Washington State Department of Commerce awarded $8,450,105 to 16 tribes to serve victims of crime. Funding for the grants comes from the U.S. Department of Justice, which administers the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Crime Victims Fund. The Office of Crime Victims Advocacy in the Department of Commerce administers VOCA funds in Washington State. VOCA is a major funding source for victim services throughout Washington.
Commerce set aside these funds to expand and enhance access to crime victim services in tribal communities, which are disproportionately affected by crime. A study funded by the National Institute of Justice found that American Indian and Alaska Native women and men suffer violence at an alarmingly high rate. More than 4 in 5 American Indian and Alaska Native women and men (84.3 percent and 81.6 percent, respectively) have experienced violence in their lifetime.
The programs supported by this funding focus on effective, accessible and culturally relevant victim services, such as traditional art therapy. These grants will enhance current services, improve coordination of child and youth programs, and add parenting support services. Services also will expand for elder and vulnerable adult victims of crime.
“This funding addresses critical needs in tribal communities and reflects significant progress in our combined efforts to improve coordination between tribes and state government,” said Commerce Director Brian Bonlender. “We were pleased that so many tribes applied for this funding.”
Sixteen tribes will receive funding through this effort:
- Chehalis Confederated Tribes – $231,245
- Cowlitz Indian Tribe – $1,544,759
- Hoh Indian Tribe of the Hoh Indian Reservation – $609,112
- Kalispel Tribe of Indians – $255,374
- Lummi Nation – $554,695
- Nisqually Indian Tribe – $416,794
- Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe – $535,168
- Puyallup Tribe – $1,092,315
- Quileute Tribe – $628,674
- Quinault Indian Nation – $161,682
- Samish Indian Nation – $832,464
- Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe – $317,483
- Squaxin Island Tribe – $272,125
- The Suquamish Tribe – $171,903
- Tulalip Tribes of Washington – $278,458
- Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation – $547,854
For information about grants and funding available through the Office of Crime Victims Advocacy, please visit ocva.wa.gov.
Contacts:
Penny Thomas, Commerce Communications, 206-256-6106
Richard Torrance, Office of Crime Victims Advocacy, 360-725-2905