Federal Funding Cuts

Updating you on how they impact survivors

Rachel Scott, CEO: A Note About What’s Happening

Friends,

There is a lot to update you on right now. I wish it was better news, but the reality is serious. 

Here’s what’s happening:

  1. The federal government is shut down.
  2. New, drastic federal cuts are threatening survivors’ safety.
    1. Housing grants we rely on from the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are being slashed, with a plan to eliminate domestic violence housing entirely.
    2. The Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funds essential safety measures, but federal cuts threaten its survival—putting families in life-threatening danger.

In short, this means:

  • The government shutdown has blocked our access to critical survivor safety and housing funds.
  • Beyond the shutdown, the new cuts planned at HUD and VOCA could wipe-out domestic violence programs altogether. All the while, abuse remains the #1 cause of homelessness for women.

I want you to know that Coburn Place is still here, still open. But survivors need us to act.

Here’s the hard truth: if these cuts happen, families who’ve just found safety will become homeless again. We cannot allow that to happen.

Families led by women just trying to keep their children safe. Women like:

  • Vanessa. Pregnant with twins, she spent months in an abandoned house hiding from her abuser.
  • Joanne. After being shot, she tried to attend her housing match appointment while being prepped for surgery. She was determined to create safety for her infant daughter.

Imagine holding your baby, finally in a safe home, relief washing over you. Then told that promised funding is now gone, and you and your baby are homeless again.

I know you agree: this is not the Hoosier way. No mother should have to hide in an abandoned house with her children to survive.

Survivors need you. Will you join me?

Yours in partnership,

 

 

Count me in - I want to help!

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Use your voice to educate about the importance of protecting this funding for survivors.

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FAQs about Coburn Place and federal dollars

Learn more about how Coburn Place receives and uses federal dollars.

How does Coburn Place get federal funding?

Our public funding comes from three different federal departments.

Some of the funding is administered directly by the federal government; others are passed down to us through the state on behalf of the federal government.

Are the dollars that you receive from public sources monitored?

Yes. Every public dollar that Coburn Place spends must be reasonable, allowable and allocable.

When do you receive funding after being awarded it?

A common misconception about federal dollars is that the entire grant is awarded upfront to an organization. In reality, Coburn Place doesn’t receive a dollar until after we’ve done the work, proven it, and met every requirement from the funder.

That means that Coburn Place has to front the money to do the work, and then the government reimburses us.

How does Coburn Place use federal funding?

In the domestic violence field, federal dollars are used to fund mission-centric work, allowing donor dollars to aid in stability, capacity building, innovation and survivor-care enhancements.

The current 2025 budget at Coburn Place is made up of 47% federal dollars.

These funds provide rent and utilities for survivors who have just escaped homelessness and choose to live in the community,  as well as the setup and maintenance of the rent- and utility- free units in our transitional housing facility. They fund critical safety measures and staff roles to ensure security for families, as well as support for the survivor-facing staff who lead in safety planning, housing searches, legal advocacy and other self-efficacy supports.

These dollars are used to keep the lights on, answer emergency calls, and fund the backbone of life-saving work for survivors.

How is VOCA different from other funding sources?

Rather than being a Congressional appropriation, VOCA is funded through financial penalties on criminals. Because prosecutions were down for some years leading up the pandemic, the fees and fines going into the fund have been drained. A partial fix was made in 2021, but without a further fix, this fund is unsustainable. Many state legislatures have made up the difference. Indiana is not one of those states.

How are federal funding cuts impacting domestic violence survivors?

These cuts will do real harm to real people. Hundreds of survivors are homeless right now. 1 in 5 are pregnant. These are moms who are trying to make through every day. The offerings we’ve built will be largely inaccessible. All areas of our services will be jeopardized.

Consider that so far in 2025, 100% of all families have exited Coburn Place to permanent, safe housing. The program here works. But these cuts put all those critical services in jeopardy.

Not only that, thousands more will likely become homeless through these cuts, which will exacerbate the precarious system of support currently in place.