ST. PAUL 鈥� Victim services across the state said Monday afternoon that federal funds from President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration are being cut, warning they may need to cut services, staff or dissolve altogether.
Groups supporting victims of assault, abuse and other crimes in the state said at a press conference Monday, Feb. 24, that federal funds are still being frozen, grants are being stalled and funding portals are being taken down, an order to pause federal funds.
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The groups 鈥� the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Minnesota Indian Women鈥檚 Sexual Assault Coalition, Violence Free Minnesota, Mending the Sacred Hoop, Minnesota Alliance on Crime and Minnesota Children鈥檚 Alliance 鈥� said they will soon have to start cutting services, staff or dissolve altogether.
Marcia Milliken, executive director of Minnesota鈥檚 Children鈥檚 Alliance, which supports children who are victims of abuse, said the organization is 90% federally funded and that its 13 centers across the state are projected to lose $4.5 million in the next fiscal year from federal funding cuts.
Artika Roller, executive director of Cornerstone Advocacy Service, which provides support for assault and trafficking victims in Bloomington, said Cornerstone was notified Monday that federal funds would be cut and the next day at 5 p.m. they had been cut off.
Guadalupe Lopez, executive director of Violence-Free Minnesota, which focuses on victims of domestic abuse, said the organization is around 80% federally funded, and if it loses funds, it will dissolve completely.
On Jan. 27, Trump asked for a freeze in federal funds to evaluate if almost $3 trillion of those funds align with his priorities. The two-page memo from the White House Office of Management and Budget states that federal agencies must temporarily pause all activities related to 鈥渇oreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the Green New Deal.鈥�
The following day, a federal the freeze, and on Jan. 31, a separate federal to the freeze. Despite these court orders, the Minnesota advocacy groups said Monday that funds are still being halted.
Rep. Kelly Moller, DFL-Shoreview, said funds are being threatened under the Violence Against Women Act, the executive order to repeal DEI efforts, the Victims of Crime Act and the Victims of Child Abuse Act.
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Moller said the VOCA funds had already seen a 42% cut in funds from the federal government from 2023 to 2024, and officials are now expecting a larger one. On Feb. 6, the Department of Justice鈥檚 advised organizations to halt applications for federal grants and removed information on existing grants.
鈥淪o what we鈥檙e finding is that even though the federal judge has blocked the freeze, in some cases, the money鈥檚 still not coming in, they鈥檙e canceling grants 鈥� sometimes portals are broken,鈥� Sen. Erin Maye Quade, DFL-Apple Valley, said after the press conference.
Minnesota lawmakers say they will push for passage of and , which would allocate state grants for funding services that work with victims of crime. Moller, the chief author of the bill in the House, said she expects the bill to be bipartisan but doesn鈥檛 believe Republicans are taking the federal fund cuts seriously.
鈥淚 think there is a view that we鈥檙e overreacting or hysterical about this. We鈥檙e not overreacting. This is serious. Programs have already started to make changes,鈥� Moller said. 鈥淚 know my colleagues on the other side do tell me they care about victim services 鈥� my bill is bipartisan 鈥� but when we do bring up the cuts from the federal level, we鈥檙e met with laughter.鈥�
Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson, R-East Grand Forks, said on Monday that Democrats created a problem with crime when they passed things like the which eases eligibility for early release based on how 鈥渢ime is spent鈥� in jail not 鈥渉ow much time served.鈥�
鈥淲e continue to see Democrats try to blame President Trump for problems they created themselves,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淭hey spent the $18 billion surplus, raised taxes by $10 billion, and left us with a $5 billion deficit. We have major issues to address at home because of Democrat policies, and Democrats would rather do anything than talk about them.鈥�
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