TRENTON – Senators Nia H. Gill (D-Essex) and M. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex/Union) today said the failure of Senate Republicans to support the restoration of funding to a program that provides services to children who have suffered sexual and physical abuse was a stunning action that places critical treatment and counseling services in jeopardy.
The Senators expressed their dismay after a failed attempt by the Senate to override a $537,000 cut to the Wynona Lipman Child Advocacy Center, which the governor vetoed from the FY 2012 budget. Officials at the facility have said the loss of funding will force the center to close.
“This is not about politics. This is about real life for thousands of children who have suffered traumatic abuse, often times at the hands of someone they know. Wynona�s House provides critical medical and counseling services to these young people, and does so in a unique way that seeks to minimize the trauma they experience in the aftermath of abuse. They do this by bringing together service providers to treat and counsel children in a compassionate manner. This approach allows officials to conduct a single interview of an abused child, as opposed to having the victim go through the details of their ordeal over and over again with numerous agencies,” said Senator Gill (D-Essex). “That the Republican Party could not find it in their hearts to support such a program is appalling. This was a stunning act. By abdicating their legislative responsibility, Republicans allowed the governor to cross a dangerous line unchecked.”