Harrisburg – Yesterday, members of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), took action to approve $40 million in a variety of grants to support services for victims of crime including funding for county victim/witness offices, victim service providers, and children’s advocacy centers (CACs) as well as provide supports for county adult probation and parole services and the formation of new regional police departments.
“Investing in victim services is essential to supporting survivors and strengthening our communities, and today’s actions by the Commission demonstrate our commitment to justice, dignity, and resilience,” said Mike Pennington, PCCD Executive Director. “As we close out 2024, I am proud of our collective efforts to make Pennsylvania’s communities safer, including through the millions of dollars in funding we’ve invested in Pennsylvania’s juvenile and criminal justice systems, victims’ services, school safety, community organizations, and beyond.”
Today’s approved $19 million in funding for supporting crime victims includes:
- $1 million total across five statewide and four local federal STOP Violence Against Women grants to provide training and technical assistance across the Commonwealth and identify and meaningfully address barriers to service for culturally specific populations in Pennsylvania;
- $12 million to support local services for victims of adult and juvenile offenders;
- $453,000 for a Statewide Victim Witness Training Project;
- $915,000 for supporting victims in the aftermath of the mass shooting that occurred in Philadelphia in July 2023, through the federal Antiterrorism and Emergency Assistance Program (AEAP); and
- $5.8 million in State Endowment Act and Children’s Advocacy Center funds to support operating costs of CACs throughout the state, technical assistance and training, and a child sexual abuse prevention initiative.
The Commission also approved over $16 million in state funding to support the Continuing County Adult Probation and Parole Grant program. This state funding is provided to 65 Pennsylvania counties with adult probation and parole staff to cover costs associated with the supervision of adult offenders, including staff salaries and benefits, evidence-based programming, pretrial supervision, training, and more.
Additionally, $300,000 in federal Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) funds under the Regional Policing Assistance Program solicitation was approved to enhance coordination and resource sharing through the formation or expansion of regional police departments.
In 2024 alone, PCCD has:
- Provided $10 million in funding through the Nonprofit Security Grant Fund Program to 208 organizations;
- Awarded nearly $290 million in funding to over 1,000 public and nonpublic schools to make schools a safer place to learn by addressing both physical security enhancements and behavioral health supports;
- Invested more than $40 million in state and federal funds to support gun violence prevention and reduction strategies through Violence Intervention and Prevention grants and Byrne State Crisis Intervention Program funding;
- Launched Pennsylvania’s first-ever Indigent Defense Grant Program and drove much-needed money out to all 67 counties; and
- Provided $8 million in funding for law enforcement recruitment and hiring of officers and to modernize and enhance crime reporting.