AUGUSTA -- Deborah Shepherd dreamed one day that the Family Violence Project would close its doors because there was no more domestic violence.

The dream is slipping into a nightmare.

Shepherd, executive director of the Family Violence Project in Augusta, said all nine of the state's domestic-violence programs might close -- not because of less abuse, but because the money that supported family-violence programs is going away.

Gov. John Baldacci's latest budget eliminates state funding for domestic-violence programs, Shepherd said.

"This has been verified by our DHHS (Department of Health & Human Services) contract administrator," Shepherd said. "The president's FY09 budget drastically cuts or eliminates our major federal funding sources."

Shepherd said those sources, and their fate as of now, are:

n $222,824 from the state, eliminated;

n $122,584 from Victims of Crime Act, eliminated;

n $87,558 from Family Violence Prevention Services Act, major cuts;

n $166,664 from Violence Against Women Act, major cuts; and

n $200,000 from Social Service Block Grant, in jeopardy.

She said projects might also lose $40,000 from the Maine Care Targeted Case Management Funds, if the regulations are changed. That would eliminate services to some victims who are eligible for Family Violence Project services, which aids victims in Kennebec and Somerset counties.

But John Martins, spokesman for the Maine Department of Health & Human Services, said he didn't believe the block grant is in jeopardy. There should still be $2.2 million available for such programs statewide, he said.

But that might not be enough to keep the doors open.

"When we looked at all the cuts and looking at how to do more with less, everybody is dealing with a really tough economy right now," Martins said Friday. "We felt there are still some funding services in this area, and that's important to us.

"What it looks like in terms of what services can be provided, that's still up for debate."

Shepherd said the state has faced huge budget deficits in the past, but never has any Maine department, legislature or governor concluded that eliminating services for domestic-violence victims and their children was an option for balancing a budget.

"Thousands of abused women and children throughout the state will have no other place to turn if the Family Violence Project and other programs in Maine are forced to close," she said. "The $1,092,744 cut to domestic-violence services in the governor's FY09 supplemental budget must be fully restored."

David Farmer, Baldacci's spokesman, said these cuts would be made as an effort to help Mainers who can't afford higher taxes and who are struggling to pay their bills.

"We will work with the Legislature to do what we can to mitigate them," Farmer said. "But the bottom line is, we have spending at the state level that exceeds money coming in and we have to bring that into balance. We don't think at this point taxpayers can handle more broad-based taxes."

Shepherd urges people to contact U.S. Reps. Tom Allen and Mike Michaud and U.S. Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins to request full funding for the federal programs at levels already approved in the Congressional 2009 budget.

Gov. Baldacci's 2009 supplemental budget would eliminate state funding of the programs beginning July 1.

Without state and federal funding, town and private contributions won't keep the organizations afloat, Shepherd said.

The nine domestic violence programs in Maine would be forced to close their doors after October 2008.

"There's no fat to trim," she said. "Even now these cuts are cutting into the meat of our organization, which are our programs."

Mechele Cooper -- 623-3811, Ext. 408

mcooper@centralmaine.com