Attorney General John Formella told the Senate Budget Committee that a House back‑of‑budget reduction could force removal of grants the Department of Justice uses to fund victim services and child protection operations.

Formella identified four grant areas that would be at risk under the House’s back‑of‑budget reduction totaling about $14.7 million over the biennium: Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task‑force funding, grants to child advocacy centers, VOCA victim‑services gap funding and a smaller human‑trafficking grant. “This is a really important function for the state,” Formella said of the ICAC program, noting the task force’s recent caseload and its coordination role.

The nuts and bolts: the governor’s budget included general‑fund support for those programs (for example, ICAC had $650,000 per year in the governor’s proposal); the House left a large general‑fund back‑of‑budget cut that the attorney general said could only be achieved in practice by reducing or eliminating those grant lines because the DOJ’s operating budget is not large enough to absorb the cut without undermining core functions.

On victim‑service grants, Formella noted that child advocacy centers used state funds to hire mental‑health staff and to reduce deferred maintenance; he said those centers now provide immediate trauma‑informed services that would be jeopardized if the grants ended. On VOCA — the federal Victims of Crime Act program — the attorney general said the governor sought partial state general‑fund replacement for a falling federal VOCA stream to avoid service disruptions.

Opioid abatement funds: senators asked about a House provision shifting liquor‑funded substance‑use treatment lines to opioid‑abatement dollars and a separate $3.5 million transfer for a law‑enforcement initiative. Formella, who also chairs the Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission, said the commission raised concerns: opioid‑settlement monies must meet a nexus requirement (they fund opioid‑related abatement), so diverting opioid funds to cover alcohol and other‑drug programs or broad drug‑enforcement efforts risks violating settlement terms and undermining the state’s overall funding for substance‑use treatment.

Ending: Formella asked the committee to consider the practical impact of a large back‑of‑budget cut and suggested that removing the grant support would have immediate consequences for kids and victims who currently rely on ICAC, child advocacy centers and VOCA‑funded services.