Every day in Maine, children who have experienced sexual abuse walk through the doors of a Children’s Advocacy Center. These centers are warm, welcoming, child-focused spaces where kids can share what happened to them just once, in a safe setting, with a specially-trained interviewer and support from a family advocate.

CACs exist to guarantee that no child has to navigate the aftermath of this horrific abuse alone. Right now, that promise is at risk.

LD 117, a bipartisan bill that was recently approved by the full House and Senate with overwhelming support, would provide the essential funding needed to keep these services going.

With only days left in the legislative session, LD 117 still awaits funding. If that doesn’t change, the consequences will be severe: CACs may have to reduce services, turn children away or even close their doors. We cannot let that happen.

Maine’s CACs serve more than 1,000 children every year. These are some of our most vulnerable young people – kids who have experienced profound harm. In written testimony submitted during the public hearing on this bill before the Health and Human Services Committee in March, District Attorney Neil McLean, who represents Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford Counties, highlighted the profound impact of these centers.

“[Children’s Advocacy Centers of Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford] provides a child-centered, trauma-informed, multidisciplinary approach in instances of child sexual abuse and other forms of child abuse and neglect,” he wrote. “Their work is invaluable to successful prosecutions involving child victims of sexual assault, and for securing justice for survivors.”

CACs are often the first step in a survivor’s healing and the critical link to accountability and justice. Without the coordinated response they provide, children would be forced to relive their trauma, telling their story repeatedly to doctors, police officers, prosecutors and social workers separately. That re-traumatization is what CACs were designed to prevent.

We know this model works. CACs lead to higher rates of prosecution and stronger coordination between law enforcement and child protective services. Children served through CACs are significantly more likely to receive timely medical care and forensic exams after disclosing abuse. Just as importantly, both children and their caregivers report greater satisfaction with the
care they receive — and a clearer understanding of their rights, their options and the legal process ahead of them.

When this model is funded and functioning, it offers not just a response but a path toward recovery. The truth is simple: these centers save lives.

LD 117 addresses the current crisis in the sustainability of sexual assault services in Maine, including the critical work of CACs. The funding included in this bill will ensure that these centers can keep their doors open, retain experienced staff and provide every child with the support they need.

Without this investment, fewer children will get trauma-informed care at the most critical moment – and more families will be left to navigate the aftermath of abuse without the coordinated response they deserve. In these final days of the legislative session, as critical budget priorities are being weighed and balanced in Augusta, we will be working in concert with our colleagues on the budget committee to ensure that Maine continues to support some of our most vulnerable children and their families.

Our state has a strong support system that protects children who have experienced sexual abuse. Now is the time to keep it stable.