The White House’s decision to freeze critically important federal funding—including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)—to New York and several other states will result in untold numbers of families, children, victims, and survivors being left without access to safety and care. In New York, TANF not only provides a crucial lifeline to victims and survivors on public assistance, but is also the primary funding source for the network of emergency domestic violence shelters across the state. Without this funding, many, if not all, of these shelters will be forced to close their doors, leaving survivors and their families at heightened risk of continued violence and homelessness.

By freezing this funding, the White House is neither increasing public safety nor making our country great. It is a blatant use of retaliation and withholding tactics against Democratic-led states. We demand the Trump Administration immediately reverse course and help ensure that survivors can quickly seek safety and care in emergency domestic violence shelters across our state.