Federal Agency Resources

• ADA.gov
  From answers to common questions to official legal documents, ADA.gov has everything you need to understand your rights and responsibilities under the ADA.
• Federal Trade Commission
  The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) protects consumers by stopping unfair, deceptive or fraudulent practices in the marketplace. The FTC conducts investigations, sues companies and people that violate the law, develops rules to ensure a vibrant marketplace, and educates consumers and businesses about their rights and responsibilities.
• IdentityTheft.gov
  IdentityTheft.gov is the federal government's one-stop resource for identity theft victims and provides streamlined checklists and sample letters to guide victims through the recovery process.
• Office of Justice Programs
  Since 1984 the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) has provided federal leadership in developing the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime, improve the criminal and juvenile justice systems, increase knowledge about crime and related issues, and assist crime victims. OJP's senior management team - comprised of the Assistant Attorney General (AAG), the Deputy Assistant Attorney General (DAAG), and the five bureau heads - works together with dedicated managers and line staff to carry out this mission.
• Office for Victims of Crime
  The Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) was established by the 1984 Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) to oversee diverse programs that benefit victims of crime. OVC provides substantial funding to state victim assistance and compensation programs-the lifeline services that help victims to heal. The agency supports trainings designed to educate criminal justice and allied professionals regarding the rights and needs of crime victims. OVC also sponsors an annual event in April to commemorate National Crime Victims Rights Week (NCVRW). OVC is one of five bureaus and four offices with grant-making authority within the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.
• Office on Violence Against Women
  Since its inception in 1995, the Violence Against Women Office, now the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), has provided federal leadership in developing the Nation's capacity to reduce violence against women and administer justice for and strengthen services to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.

National Organization Resources

• ADA National Network
  The guide on Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals provides an overview of how major federal civil rights laws govern the rights of a person requiring a service animal.
• American Indian Development Associates
  American Indian Development Associates (AIDA) is a comprehensive resource for tribal, state, & federal agencies, service providers, and community members seeking information related to juvenile crime, violence and victimization issues in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. AIDA staff and consultants provide training and technical assistance in support of local, tribal, state and federal agencies including community-based organizations and private and non-profit organizations in a variety of areas.
• American Jail Association
  The American Jail Association (AJA) offers on-site training and technical assistance. Onsite technical assistance is designed to help with finding solutions to various operational problems. Staffing, security, and policy and procedure development are just some of the issues that can be addressed. Onsite trainings are customized for almost any issue, including crisis intervention, hostage negotiations, emergency preparedness, medical issues, jail security, investigations, and court testimony.
• American Probation & Parole Association
  The American Probation and Parole Association (APPA) is the only professional organization devoted solely to the needs of probation, parole and community corrections professionals. The primary avenues for obtaining training and technical assistance include the APPA Training Institutes as well as the APPA professional development and training opportunities.
• Child Abuse Training & Technical Assistance Centers
  Child Abuse Training & Technical Assistance Centers (CATTA) provides training and technical assistance to child abuse prevention councils; multi-disciplinary interview centers or teams; child abuse prevention, intervention and treatment service providers; community-based family resource and support centers; family preservation programs; and the State Children's Trust Fund projects. CATTA has established and supports eight Regional Resource Consortiums to build the capacity of the local communities to address issues of child maltreatment.
• End Violence Against Women International Online Training Institute
  End Violence Against Women International (EVAWI) has developed an Online Training Institute to bring state-of-the art training on the topic of criminal justice response to sexual assault. This Online Training Institute provides the opportunity for professionals to expand their knowledge of cutting edge developments in the criminal justice and community response to sexual assault, with particular emphasis on those crimes committed by someone who is known to the victim.
• Identity Theft Resource Center
  The Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) is a non-profit organization established to support victims of identity theft in resolving their cases, and to broaden public education and awareness in the understanding of identity theft, data breaches, cyber security, scams/fraud and privacy issues. The ITRC conducts training and presentations on best practices and risk reduction for both businesses and consumers.
• International Association of Chiefs of Police
  The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) offers in-depth training programs covering a wide range of issues; contract training, creating programs to specific needs; and grant-funded/low-cost technical assistance programs for law enforcement.
• National Adult Protective Services Association
  The National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) is a national non-profit with members in all fifty states, the District of Columbia, and Guam. It was formed in 1989 to provide state Adult Protective Services program administrators and staff with a forum for sharing information, solving problems, and improving the quality of services for victims of elder and vulnerable adult abuse. The mission of NAPSA is to improve the quality and availability of protective services for disabled adults and elderly persons who are abused, neglected, or exploited and are unable to protect their own interests.
• National Association of Counsel for Children
  The National Association of Counsel for Children (NACC) is a membership organization whose primary objective is the provision of training services and technical assistance to its attorney and multidisciplinary membership. To help its members be effective advocates, the NACC offers the annual national children's law conference each fall, the annual trial skills training each spring, a training and speakers bureau, publications, and a national child advocacy resource center.
• National Association of Crime Victim Compensation Boards
  The National Association of Crime Victim Compensation Boards (NACVB) promotes an exchange of information and ideas through a nationwide network of victim compensation programs. It advances better methods for serving crime victims through various training and technical assistance activities, helping its members establish sound administrative practices, achieve fiscal stability, and engage in effective outreach, communication and advocacy.
• National Association of VOCA Assistance Administrators
  The National Association of VOCA Assistance Administrators' mission is to advance education, research, and public service to assure quality services for crime victims nationwide, to strengthen exchange of information and communication among its members, and to provide its members with training and technical assistance to effectively respond to the issues and challenges of supporting those services.
• The National Center for Victims of Crime
  The National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC) is an advocate for crime victims. Dedicated to serving individuals, families, and communities harmed by crime, NCVC provides direct services and resources and advocates for law and policies that create resources and secure rights and protections for crime victims. It also delivers training and technical assistance to victim service organizations, counselors, attorneys, criminal justice agencies, and allied professionals.
• National Center on Elder Abuse
  The National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) serves as a national resource center dedicated to the prevention of elder mistreatment. The NCEA disseminates elder abuse information to professionals and the public, and provides technical assistance and training to states and to community-based organizations.
• National Criminal Justice Reference Service
  The National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS), created in 1972, is a federally funded resource offering justice and substance abuse information to further support research, policy, and program development worldwide.
• National Organization for Victim Assistance
  The National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA) is a private, nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization of victim and witness assistance programs and practitioners, criminal justice agencies and professionals, mental health professionals, researchers, former victims and survivors, and others committed to the recognition and implementation of victim rights and services. Founded in 1975, NOVA is the oldest national group of its kind in the worldwide victims’ movement. NOVA’s mission is to promote rights and services for victims of crime and crisis everywhere.
• New Mexico Coalition Against Domestic Violence
  The Model Guidelines: Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals in Domestic Violence Programs and Shelters explains the rights and regulations that apply to clients with service animals and emotional support animals in domestic violence programs and shelters.
• Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network
  The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) is the Nation's largest anti-sexual assault organization. RAINN created and operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline (800-656-HOPE and hotline.rainn.org/online) in partnership with more than 1,100 local rape crisis centers across the country and operates the DoD Safe Helpline for the Department of Defense. RAINN also carries out programs to prevent sexual violence, help victims and ensure that rapists are brought to justice.