* This has popped up on my feed a few times…

* So, I finally clicked the link…

Just six months ago while signing into law critical domestic violence legislation, the Governor spoke of being on a journey to end domestic violence. Yet domestic violence was the only essential service that lacked a significant investment in the Governor’s proposed budget. The minimal proposed increase will lead to a further depleted community of advocates and more survivors without access to services. The gender-based violence community maintains its request for an allocation of $50 million to address survivor needs.

The majority of Domestic Violence Advocates earn less than $40k annually while providing critical crisis intervention services with more hours and higher caseloads. As a result, Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline staff worked over 2,024 hours of overtime in the last two years.

Domestic violence programs remained open throughout the pandemic-providing a critical safety net for survivors. With limited funding, service providers are unable to provide the necessary wage to maintain an adequate and equipped staff. Investing in service providers means sustaining and increasing the capacity of domestic violence organizations to continue providing essential, quality services.

In 2021, the Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline received contacts from more than 32,000 individuals seeking assistance. This is over an eight percent increase in contacts from 2020, which was already a record-breaking year. Hotline texts saw a drastic increase of 42% from 2020 to 2021.

Throughout the pandemic, over 50% of surveyed providers reported receiving increased requests for services. Between pre-pandemic 2019 and 2021 service needs increased: shelter (4%), legal advocacy (123%), and counseling (26%). Regions in the state experienced over 2 months without domestic violence shelter beds, cribs, or bed and cribs in 2021.

Every year thousands of survivors are turned away from services as providers do not have the capacity to meet the need. Service providers have substantial waitlists that continue to grow. Programs are unable to provide critical legal and counseling services due to increased need and loss of staff capacity. With a lack of substantial investment in services and continuing increase in needs, more survivors will continue to be turned away or added to waitlists. One survivor was even murdered by the person causing them harm while on a service provider waitlist.

Survivors are also experiencing increased forms of violence as reflected by the drastically increasing rates of domestic violence homicides and shootings[8]. The number of these homicides and shootings in Chicago is already on track to outpace 2021 rates which were already 29% and 130% higher than pre-pandemic 2019, respectively. Law enforcement officials have said on record that the only way to reduce domestic violence shootings and violence is to increase services.

From what I could gather, nobody came forward during the governor’s budget drafting process to request significantly more money, so it wasn’t included. But that could change.

* I asked the governor’s office for a response. Here’s Jordan Abudayyeh…

The Governor supports the critical work of addressing domestic violence and we look forward to working with advocates and legislators to continue supporting their efforts to keep families safe and healthy.