Two volunteers from the Fannin County Children’s Center joined other child advocates from Texas at the Texas Capitol to speak up about the need to fund CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) programs despite shortfalls in the funds designated to help victims of crime, including children CASA serves.  Gary and JoAnne Duncan traveled from Fannin County to Austin to attend hearings at the Capitol.

The Crime Victim Compensation Fund that funds victim services organizations like CASA and Children’s Advocacy Centers is expected to have $60 million less available for appropriations for fiscal year 2014/2015 than it did last legislative session.  This is due to increasing appropriations from the fund and decreasing collections of fines and fees that make up the fund.

More than 40 volunteers, staff and board members from 10 CASA programs around Texas attended hearings to stand behind Texas CASA Chief Executive Officer Vicki Spriggs who testified in hearings before the House and Senate about the devastating impact cuts to CASA programs would have.  Spriggs testified that, even with CASA’s tremendous growth in volunteers and children served over the years, the rate of children coming into the foster care system has increased so that only half of the children in foster care currently have a CASA volunteer.

(L-R) Gary Duncan, Texas CASA CEO Vicki Spriggs, JoAnne Duncan and Texas CASA Director of Public Policy Andrea Sparks.  The Duncans are CASA Volunteers in Fannin County who recently went to the state Capitol to advocate for the need to fund CASA programs across the state.

CASA volunteers are appointed by judges to act as the voice for children in state care. Before CASA began receiving Crime Victim Compensation funds in 1998, there were 44 programs serving 7,027 children in 95 counties. Since 1998, CASA has expanded to 69 programs in 206 counties. The Children’s Center is a member of Texas CASA a network of local, independent CASA programs that served more than 22,000 children with more than 7,000 volunteers.
 
For more information about the Children's Center, go to www.fanninccc.org.

For more about Texas CASA, go to www.texascasa.org.