Domestic Violence Shelters Make Plea for State Budget Resolution
A group of domestic violence shelter representatives and other human services advocates gathered at Mutual Ground’s headquarters in Aurora Wednesday morning to again make a plea for a resolution on the state’s budget crisis and to call attention to two bills designed to fully fund such organizations.
The Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence organized the event, which featured speakers from Mutual Ground and the Community Crisis Center in Elgin, as well as state Sen. Linda Holmes, D-Aurora, who was the only state legislator invited who attended the event. A dozen elected officials were contacted and invited to the event, according to Mutual Ground officials.
Michelle Meyer, Mutual Ground’s executive director, said the organization will be $510,000 short in state funds by the end of the fiscal year in June.
Meyer said Mutual Ground entered into a contract with the state last July for $489,000 in funding. The state last sent a payment on that contract in August, she said. To date, the state has only sent the organization $116,000, and that was federal pass-through funds, she said. The organization also entered into an agreement with the Coalition, which entered into an agreement with the state, for $194,000 in funds but has only received $56,500 of those funds, Meyer said.
Mutual Ground is one of several rape crisis centers suing Gov. Bruce Rauner for breach of contract, Meyer said.
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Mutual Ground’s Website -seems to be currently down —wondering if it is a budget issue?