Jeff Bingaman United States Senator from New Mexico

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman today announced that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has awarded the New Mexico Crime Victims Reparations Commission a total of $3.43 million to assist victims of crime.

The New Mexico Crime Victims Reparation Commission will use $2.66 million to provide grants to organizations throughout the state to enhance, expand, and develop new programs to serve victims of crime. These services include counseling, providing shelter, assistance in filing compensation applications, crisis intervention services, assistance in court proceedings, and assistance in filing elderly abuse petitions or restraint orders.

The commission will use $772,000 to enhance state victim compensation payments to eligible crime victims.

"This funding will help expand services that assist victims of crime and their families," Bingaman said.

The grant comes from DOJ's Crime Victims Fund, which collects federal fines, penalty assessments, and forfeited appearance bonds and uses them to compensate victims of crime.