New York domestic violence agencies say state funding falls short as need for help grows
Providers say they’re serving more victims while tentative state funding awards fail to keep pace with the growing demand for potentially lifesaving services
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Domestic violence cases have repeatedly made headlines across New York state as agencies that help victims report a growing need for their services. Now, some of those providers say the state funding they rely on to help victims isn’t keeping pace.
Hope’s Door, a Westchester County nonprofit serving victims of domestic violence and human trafficking, says it served 1,426 domestic violence victims last year — a 51% increase from 944 the previous year. But Executive Director CarlLa Horton says the organization’s latest tentative funding award through the New York State Office of Victim Services increased by just seven-tenths of 1%.
“We were devastated. We were devastated,” Horton said.
Hope’s Door helps as many as 1,800 people a year and reaches another 10,000 middle and high school students through education programs focused on healthy relationships. The organization provides emergency shelter, legal services, counseling and support groups. “Everything we do is potentially lifesaving,” Horton said.
Fearless! Hudson Valley in Orange County says it is facing an even steeper funding challenge. Executive Director Kellyann Kostyal-Larrier says the organization’s tentative OVS award represents an approximately 30% cut — or about $500,000 annually.
At the same time, Fearless! says its overall services are up 20% so far this year compared with the same period last year. Hotline services are up 16% and shelter services are up 9%. Kostyal-Larrier says Fearless! has already surpassed its total hotline services from all of 2025. The organization worked with more than 8,000 people last year and answered more than 12,000 hotline calls.
Kostyal-Larrier says cuts to organizations like hers could have consequences well beyond the individual agencies receiving the awards.
“There’s no way for other organizations to fill the gap when they themselves are also facing catastrophic-level cuts,” she said.
Both Hope’s Door and Fearless! say OVS is one of their largest funders.
The concerns come as serious domestic violence cases continue to make headlines. Three notable cases unfolded in Orange County on the same day last Thursday: A domestic incident between a father and son in Warwick led to an hourslong police standoff; 70-year-old Robert Ryan was found dead following a house fire in Greenville, with state police identifying his son as the suspect in the homicide investigation; and in New Windsor, police say a man broke into his ex-girlfriend’s home and violently attacked her while a child was present. He was later charged with attempted murder and other offenses.
News 12 has also covered a series of deadly alleged domestic violence cases elsewhere in New York, including recent cases in the Bronx and Brooklyn.
Horton says the increase in people seeking help may be driven by several factors. It may reflect the number of domestic violence incidents, she says, but also years of outreach and education that have made more victims — and the people around them — recognize abuse and know where to turn for help.
“The more they know, the more they hear, the more inclined they are to reach out either for themselves or for someone that they know,” Horton said.
Providers say meeting that demand becomes increasingly difficult when funding can change significantly from one grant cycle to another. Kostyal-Larrier says the problem goes beyond this year’s tentative awards and believes the way victim-service organizations are funded needs to change.
“You cannot pit local programs from other counties against each other like the Hunger Games when, in reality, these have to be sustainable funding streams so that victims and survivors have the human beings they need to help them access the services,” Kostyal-Larrier said.
The New York State Office of Victim Services says it received a record number of applications for its latest Victims of Crime Act Victim Assistance Grant Program. OVS says 316 applicants sought $313.1 million annually — more than twice the $126.5 million available each year.
OVS says the grants are awarded through a competitive process and the agency cannot consider whether an organization already receives OVS funding when reviewing applications. Existing providers are not guaranteed another award or the same level of funding they currently receive.
The awards are not yet final. Organizations were notified of their tentative awards last month, but the New York State Comptroller is still conducting its required review. The current funding competition follows an earlier OVS procurement in 2025, when tentative awards were rescinded after the Comptroller did not approve the procurement, requiring organizations to compete again in 2026.
For Horton, that uncertainty compounds an already difficult job.
“The work is hard enough,” Horton said. “We should be able to focus on the needs of victims without playing whack-a-mole every month.”
Horton, who has been at Hope’s Door for nearly 30 years, says the current uncertainty is the worst she has experienced during her time there.
“New York really needs to step up and put the lives of victims center and front,” Horton said.
News 12 has reached out to state lawmakers and Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office about the providers’ concerns.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or abuse, help is available:
Hope’s Door 24-hour confidential bilingual hotline: 888-438-8700
Fearless! Hudson Valley 24-hour hotline: 845-562-5340
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788
