Victims of Crime Act, 1984

The Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (VOCA) provides funding for victim assistance, victim compensation, and training and technical assistance for victim service providers across the nation, with priority consideration to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse and underserved victims. Victims of drunk driving, surviving family members of homicide victims, and victims of physical assault, elder abuse, robbery, hate crime, arson, and financial fraud are generally considered underserved.

VOCA is funded by fines, penalties, bond forfeitures, and special assessments collected from offenders convicted of federal crimes by U.S. Attorneys' Offices, federal U.S. courts, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Congress established the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) to distribute funding to states and U.S. territories. The majority of VOCA funding is distributed ...