VOCA

VOCA Program Guidelines establish eligibility criteria that must be met by all organizations that receive VOCA funds. These funds are to be awarded to subrecipients only for providing direct services to victims of crime. Each subrecipient organization shall meet the following requirements:

1. Record of Effective Services and Financial Support. Organizations must demonstrate a record of providing effective services to crime victims. This includes having the support and approval of its services by the community, a history of providing direct services in a cost-effective manner, and financial support from sources other than the Crime Victims Fund (VOCA). If an organization cannot demonstrate a record of providing effective services to crime victims, it must show that 25% or more of its funding comes from sources other than the Crime Victims Fund (VOCA).

2. Volunteers. Subrecipients must use volunteers unless the State determines there is a compelling reason to waive this requirement. The volunteers are not required to provide direct services to victims. A VOCA waiver request can be found here and should be completed and attached in the “Attachment” section of application.

3. Coordination. Subrecipients must promote, with the community, coordinated public and private efforts to aid crime victims. Coordination may include, but is not limited to, serving on state, federal, local, or Native American task forces, commissions, working groups, coalitions and/or multi-disciplinary teams. Coordination efforts also include developing written agreements that contribute work to improve and provide more comprehensive services to crime victims. Coordination efforts qualify an organization to receive VOCA victim assistance funds but are not activities that can be supported with VOCA Victim Assistance funds.

4. Victim Compensation. Subrecipients must provide assistance to potential recipients of crime victim compensation benefits. Such assistance may include identifying and notifying crime victims of the availability of compensation, assisting them with application forms and procedures, obtaining necessary documentation, and/or checking on a claim’s status. Additional information on compensation can be found at Indiana Crime Victim Compensation or Victim Compensation Training for VOCA Recipients Webinar.

5. No Charge. Services must be provided to victims at no charge through any VOCA funded program. Any deviation from this requires prior approval by the state. The purpose of the VOCA Victim Assistance Formula Grant Program is to provide services to all crime victims regardless of their ability to pay for services rendered or availability of insurance or third-party payment resources.

The activities listed below are allowable activities under this funding.

• Civil Legal Services for Victims. This is allowable when the need for such services arises as a direct result of the victimization. The following are illustrative examples of some circumstances where civil legal services may be appropriate: protective and restraining orders against a stalker or abuser; campus administrative protection or stay away order proceedings; family, custody, contract, housing, and dependency matters for victims of intimate partner violence, child abuse, sexual assault, and elder abuse; immigration assistance for victims of human trafficking and domestic abuse victims; intervention with creditors, law enforcement (e.g., to obtain police reports), and other entities on behalf of victims of identity theft and financial fraud; intervention with administrative agencies, schools/colleges, tribal entities, and other circumstances where legal advice or intervention would assist in addressing the consequences of a person's victimization.
• Facilitation of participation in criminal justice and other public proceedings arising from the crime. The provision of services and payment of costs that help victims participate in the criminal justice system and in other public proceedings arising from the crime (e.g., juvenile justice hearings, civil commitment proceedings), including, but not limited to:
  • Advocacy on behalf of a victim;
  • Accompanying a victim to offices and court;
  • Transportation, meals, and lodging to allow a victim who is not a witness to participate in a proceeding;
  • Interpreting for a non-witness victim who is deaf or hard of hearing, or with limited English proficiency;
  • Providing childcare and respite care to enable a victim who is a caregiver to attend activities related to the proceeding;
  • Notification to victims regarding key proceeding dates (e.g., trial dates, case disposition, incarceration, and parole hearings);
  • Assistance with Victim Impact Statements;
  • Assistance in recovering property that was retained as evidence; and
  • Assistance with restitution advocacy on behalf of crime victims.
• Legal Assistance for Victims. Legal assistance services (including, but not limited to, those provided on an emergency basis), when reasonable and when the need for such services arises as a direct result of the victimization. Such services include, but are not limited to:
  • Those (other than criminal defense) that help victims assert their rights as victims in a criminal proceeding directly related to the victimization, or otherwise protect their safety, privacy, or other interests as victims in such a proceeding;
  • Motions to vacate or expunge a conviction, or similar actions, where the jurisdiction permits such a legal action based on a person’s being a crime victim; and
  • Those actions (other than tort actions) that, in the civil context, are reasonably necessary as a direct result of the victimization.
• Mental Health Counseling and Care. Mental health counseling and care, including, but not limited to, outpatient therapy/counseling (including, but not limited to, substance abuse treatment so long as the treatment is directly related to the victimization) provided by a person who meets professional standards to provide these services in the jurisdiction in which the care is administered.
• Peer Support. Peer-support including, but not limited to, activities that provide opportunities for victims to meet other victims, share experiences, and provide self-help, information, and emotional support.
• Immediate Emotional, Psychological and Physical Health and Safety. Services that respond to immediate needs of crime victims include, but are not limited to:
  • Crisis intervention services;
  • Accompanying victims to hospitals for medical examinations;
  • Hotline counseling;
  • Safety planning;
  • Emergency food, shelter, clothing, and transportation;
  • Short-term (up to 45 days) in-home care and supervision services for children and adults who remain in their own homes when the offender/caregiver is removed;
  • Short-term (up to 45 days) nursing home, adult foster care, or group-home placement for adults for whom no other safe, short-term residence is available;
  • Window, door, or lock replacement or repair, and other repairs necessary to ensure a victim’s safety.
  • Costs of the following, on an emergency basis (i.e., when the State’s compensation program, the victim’s [or in the case of a minor child, the victim’s parent’s or guardian’s] health insurance plan, Medicaid, or other health care funding source, is not reasonably expected to be available quickly enough to meet the emergency needs of a victim [typically within 48 hours of the crime]:
    • Non-prescription and prescription medicine;
    • Prophylactic or other treatment to prevent HIV/AIDS infection or other infectious disease;
    • Durable medical equipment (such as wheelchairs, crutches, hearing aids, eyeglasses); and
    • Other healthcare items are allowed.
  • Emergency legal assistance, such as filing for restraining or protective orders, and obtaining emergency custody orders and visitation rights.
• Legal Assistance for Victims. Legal assistance services (including, but not limited to, those provided on an emergency basis), when reasonable and when the need for such services arises as a direct result of the victimization. Such services include, but are not limited to:
  • Those (other than criminal defense) that help victims assert their rights as victims in a criminal proceeding directly related to the victimization, or otherwise protect their safety, privacy, or other interests as victims in such a proceeding;
  • Motions to vacate or expunge a conviction, or similar actions, where the jurisdiction permits such a legal action based on a person’s being a crime victim; and
  • Those actions (other than tort actions) that, in the civil context, are reasonably necessary as a direct result of the victimization.
• Mental Health Counseling and Care. Mental health counseling and care, including, but not limited to, outpatient therapy/counseling (including, but not limited to, substance abuse treatment so long as the treatment is directly related to the victimization) provided by a person who meets professional standards to provide these services in the jurisdiction in which the care is administered.
• Peer Support. Peer-support including, but not limited to, activities that provide opportunities for victims to meet other victims, share experiences, and provide self-help, information, and emotional support.
• Personal Advocacy and Emotional Support. Personal advocacy and emotional support, including, but not limited to:
  • Working with a victim to assess the impact of the crime;
  • Identification of a victim’s needs;
  • Case management;
  • Management of practical problems created by the victimization;
  • Identification of resources available to the victim;
  • Provision of information, referrals, advocacy, and follow-up contact for continued services, as needed; and
  • Traditional, cultural, and/or alternative therapy/healing (e.g., art therapy, yoga).

Personal advocacy may include services to assist crime victims with managing practical problems created by the victimization, such as acting on behalf of the victim with other service providers, creditors, or employers; assisting the victim to recover property that is retained as evidence; assisting in filing for compensation benefits; and helping to apply for public assistance.

• Relocation Expenses. Generally, relocation is appropriate where needed for the safety and well-being of a victim, including, but not limited to:
  • Reasonable moving expenses;
  • Security deposits on housing;
  • Rental expenses;
  • Utility startup; and
  • Arrears for utilities, if the cost was incurred during the grant period.

Programs approved to provide relocation services to crime victims must submit agency policies with their application that identify the criteria that must be met for a victim to be eligible for relocation assistance.

• Services to Incarcerated Individuals. Victim service providers may provide services to incarcerated individuals, but the services must address issues directly arising from the victimization and not the crime for which that individual was incarcerated. The rule does not mandate that states make funding available for services to incarcerated victims, but rather, it merely permits them to do so; therefore, the ICJI will make a determination regarding the appropriate delegation of responsibility (and fiscal burden) between victim service agencies/organizations and detention/correctional facilities with regard to caring for this victim population
• Transitional Housing. Transitional housing is generally allowed for those who have a particular need for such housing, and who cannot safely return to their previous housing, due to the circumstances of their victimization. Transitional housing may include travel expenses, rental assistance, security deposits, utilities, and other costs incidental to the relocation to such housing, as well as voluntary support services such as childcare and counseling.
  • Transitional housing will be viewed as appropriate for victims of domestic violence and their dependents, victims of human trafficking, victims with disabilities abused by caretakers, and other victims who have a particular need for transitional housing, and who cannot (or should not) return to their previous housing situation due to the circumstances of their victimization. Programs applying for transitional housing must submit agency policies with their application that identify the criteria that must be met for a victim to be eligible for transitional housing assistance.
• Transportation. Transportation is allowable for victims to receive services and to participate in criminal justice proceedings.

Due to a reduction in available funds, ICJI is prioritizing costs related to direct service of victims. The following costs will be eligible for this opportunity:

• Personnel and Benefit Costs. Costs directly related to providing direct services, such as staff salaries and employee benefits. Overtime and on-call pay are allowable expenses but must be on a separate line item in the budget that includes the rate of pay.
• Costs Necessary to Providing Direct Service. This includes prorated costs of rent, telephone services, and local travel expenses for direct service providers.
• Skills Training for Staff. Developing the skills of direct services providers so that they are better able to offer quality services to crime victims. VOCA funds can be used for training both VOCA-funded and non-VOCA funded service providers who work within a VOCA subrecipient organization and provide VOCA allowable services. Volunteers can be included in VOCA-supported training.
• Repair and/or Replacement of Essential Items. Repair or replacement “of items that contribute to maintaining a healthy and/or safe environment for crime victims, such as a furnace in a shelter.” The cost of the repair or replacement must be prorated among all sources of revenue.
• Public Presentations and Awareness. Presentations in public forums, such as schools and community centers that are designed to identify crime victims and refer them to needed services. Costs for food, gifts, give away trinkets or honorariums are not allowable expenses under VOCA.
• Administrative Time. Administrative time to complete VOCA-required time and attendance sheets and programmatic documentation, reports, and required statistics; administrative time to collect and maintain crime victims’ satisfaction surveys and needs assessments used to improve victim services delivery within the VOCA-funded project; and the prorated share of audit costs. Administrative costs cannot exceed 10% of the total award amount.
• Professional Fees for Direct Service. Contracted direct services such as mental health counseling or legal services when reasonable and when the need for such services arises as a direct result of the victimization.
• Supervision of Direct Service Providers. Supervision of direct service providers when it is “necessary and essential to providing direct services to crime victims”.

The following activities are outside of the program scope and will not be funded.

• Any program or activity that, directly or indirectly, violates (or promotes or facilitates the violation of) federal immigration law (including 8 U.S.C. § 1373) or impedes or hinders the enforcement of federal immigration law—including by failing to comply with 8 U.S.C. § 1373, give access to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents, or honor DHS requests and provide requested notice to DHS agents.
• Any program or activity that violates any applicable Federal civil rights or nondiscrimination law. This includes violations that (1) indirectly violate the law, including by promoting or facilitating violations, or (2) unlawfully favor individuals in any race or protected group, including on a majority or minority, or privileged or unprivileged, basis, within a given area, population, or sector.
• Any use of VOCA funds to initiate, maintain, or support legal action directly or indirectly against the United States, State of Indiana, and any respective agency or entity thereof.

Unallowable Costs

The following activities listed below are out of the program scope and will not be funded.

• Alcohol, food (except emergency food for victims), and entertainment costs.
• Bonuses or commissions.
• Construction, capital improvement, or land acquisition (purchase of real property).
• Costs associated with Boards including insurance and fees.
• Direct cash assistance to victims.
• Legal fees of applicant.
• Most medical costs (including nursing home care, in-patient treatment, hospital, and non-emergency medical or dental treatment).
• Property loss such as replacement of stolen or damaged property.

Unallowable Activities

• Activities that assist in prosecution of perpetrators.
• Fundraising (including financial campaigns, endowment drives, solicitation of gifts and bequests, and similar expenses incurred solely to raise capital or obtain contributions) and time spent procuring funding including completing federal and state funding applications.
• Inherently (or explicitly) religious activities.
• Lobbying.
• Management or administrative training.
• Needs assessments, surveys, research projects, and studies.
• Perpetrator rehabilitation.
• Prevention of crime activities.
• Substance abuse counseling for victims when not related to their victimization.

• Total Agency Budget: Complete and upload the Total Agency Budget form. Non-profit applicants will complete tab labeled “non-profit agencies” and government entities will complete tab labeled “governmental agencies”. The form can be found on the ICJI website here.
• Indirect Cost Rate: If the applicant agency has a federally approved indirect cost rate, ICJI will accept this rate. You must provide ICJI with a copy of the federally Indirect Cost Rate agreement showing the rate and effective date. If the applicant elects to use the de minimis rate of 15% of modified total direct costs (MTDC), then it must provide a list of indirect costs and the calculation used to determine the amount charged.
• Letters of Endorsement: Please attach at least one letter of endorsement evidencing community support for the applicant’s program.
• Miscellaneous:
  • Completed and signed Certification of Advance Determination of Suitability for Individuals Interacting with Participating Minors form.
  • Completed and signed Lobbying Certification form and Disclosure to Report Lobbying form.
  • If applying for funds for personnel costs, attach the relevant job descriptions for personnel (grant and match funded) and volunteers.
  • If applicable, Match Waiver Request form.
  • If applicable, Volunteer Waiver Request form.