April 29, 2020
A Copy of an Email Sent by Kathrina S. Peterson, OVC Deputy Director, on April 20, 2020
Good Afternoon VOCA Administrators,
This email contains information about the Compensation and Assistance applications and related required attachments; the FY 2020 Training and Technical Assistance Solicitation for Administrators and Subrecipients; and the recently launched DOJ National Elder Fraud hotline.
Compensation and Assistance Applications: As you know, the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Victim Compensation and Victim Assistance solicitations and the allocation table. The Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) is currently accepting applications for these formula grant programs, with the deadline for application submissions being 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on Monday, June 1, 2020. These, and other OVC funding opportunities can be found on the OVC website at https://ovc.ojp.gov/funding/current-funding-opportunities.
Please remember that all applicants must register in OJP’s Grants Management System (GMS) before submitting an application for any funding opportunity. Registration is required for all applicants, even those that have previously registered in GMS. For assistance in understanding how to register for your grant in GMS, please visit OJP’s GMS Computer-Based Training Module at www.ojp.gov/gmscbt/. You can also contact the GMS Support Hotline by phone at 888-549-9901, or email to [email protected] for additional support.
Compensation and Assistance Application Attachments:
- For victim compensation programs, the State Certification Form must be submitted online, and it is available via GMS. A step-by-step instructional guide to completing the form is attached to this message.
- Also attached are files titled, Required Files for 2020 Victim Compensation and Required Files for 2020 Victim Assistance. These guides will be helpful as you gather and complete all of the required attachments for application submission.
FY 2020 Training and Technical Assistance Solicitation for Administrators and Subrecipients: We are very excited that the targeted, peer-to-peer training and technical assistance for administrators and subrecipients solicitation, OVC FY 2020 Targeted Training and Technical Assistance for VOCA Victim Assistance and Compensation Administrators solicitation has posted. The deadline for application submission is 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on Monday, June 1, 2020. You can find it at https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=326370.
DOJ National Elder Fraud Hotline: In March 2020, the Department launched the National Elder Fraud Hotline [1–833–FRAUD–11 (1–833–372–8311)] – https://ovc.ojp.gov/program/stop-elder-fraud/providing-help-restoring-hope, managed by OVC. The hotline provides free services to all adults aged 60 and older who may be victims of financial fraud.
Experienced case managers staff the hotline 7 days a week offering personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim, and identifying appropriate next steps. When appropriate, case managers will complete a complaint form with the Federal Bureau of Investigation Internet Crime Complaint Center for Internet-facilitated crimes and submit a consumer complaint to the Federal Trade Commission on behalf of the caller.
Hotline staff also provide resources and referrals to other applicable services, as needed. Please feel free to share this valuable resource with your programs. We also would like to hear about resources and referrals in your state that can be shared with callers. If your state is funding relevant resources, please let your program specialist know.
If you have any questions or need additional assistance, please contact your OVC victim justice program specialist, or me.
Many thanks to all of you for your continued work to support survivors. We are grateful for your efforts, and look forward to receiving your FY 2020 VOCA applications.
Well wishes to you and your loved ones,
Kate
Kathrina S. Peterson
Deputy Director
State Compensation and Assistance Division
Office for Victims of Crime