Update from the 132nd Maine Legislature

The 132nd Maine Legislature adjourned on April 14, 2026. In this short session, we focused much of our advocacy on critical funding needs, both for survivor services and for the programs that seek to change the behavior of those who abuse.

“An Act to Prevent DV by Providing Adequate Funding Support for Court-ordered Certified DV Intervention Programs” (LD 666) received $500,000 in one-time funding. This is the first ever general fund investment in the operations of Maine’s Certified Domestic Violence Intervention Programs, and we are celebrating! CDVIPs are named in Maine statute as the best response to people who abuse, but they operate on budgets so tight that multiple programs have closed. We are grateful that Maine is leaning in both to hold people who use abuse accountable and to encourage them to change.

The outcome of funding for survivor services was more complex. The State has continued to ensure that funds will be available to backfill gaps in federal Victims Of Crime Act funding, but we end the 132nd Legislative Session without an ongoing increase in funds dedicated to domestic violence services.

“An Act To Fund Essential Services for Victims of Domestic Violence” (LD 875) proposed an additional $4 million of ongoing general funds to stabilize domestic violence services statewide. The State of Maine’s contract for domestic violence services pays for 27% fewer staff than it did six years ago, and advocates cannot keep up with the requests for their help.

In the end, the Legislature allocated $2 million in one-year funding for these services. We are grateful and will gladly use this worthy investment. Unfortunately, one-time funding cannot address the substantive issues facing Domestic Violence Resource Centers that are limiting their abilities to serve survivors. Only sustained, predictable funding can increase staffing levels and offset the increasing gaps between community demand and organizational capacity.

We emerge from this legislative session being both grateful and apprehensive. Grateful that in a tough budget year, the Legislature recognized the importance of our movement’s work and decided to invest in it. Apprehensive because short-term money cannot address long-term structural problems. The ongoing challenges related to advocate turnover amidst historically high demand for services are not going anywhere. And neither are we. In the coming months, MCEDV will consider our next steps in addressing long-term sustainability of our membership and our movement.