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GREENSBORO — Domestic violence programs in Guilford County could lose staff and money this year because of a funding dispute with the state.

The state says the county has been getting double what it’s due — money for programs in Greensboro and High Point. But those who run the local programs say they deserve the money because they serve a total larger population and each program meets eligibility requirements.

Greensboro is the state’s third-largest city and High Point is the eighth. Each city has a higher population than some of the state’s other counties.

However, “The program in Guilford County was actually getting two grants for the same program operating in two locations,” said Jill Lucas, a spokesman for the N.C. Department of Administration.

“Once we observed that inequity we moved to correct it,” Lucas said. “Just because an error continued for a period of years doesn’t mean it should continue forever.”

Each of the programs, which provide shelter, counseling and advocacy, has received funding through the N.C. Council for Women since 1984  — although they now are both part of Family Service of the Piedmont, a nonprofit.

“We’re in a hard place, but we are going to fight it,” said Tom Campbell, the president of Family Services. “We are talking about the lives of our clients and being able to serve them.”

In 1999, the boards operating Family Service of High Point and Family and Children’s Services of Greater Greensboro merged some administrative positions to cut costs.

Family Service contends the High Point and Greensboro domestic violence programs are separate, and continue to meet individual eligibility requirements, and each deserves continued funding.

“We eliminated all these upper-level positions to use more money for our direct services staff,” Campbell said of combining some resources.

His agency first heard through an advocacy group after the July 1 start of the new fiscal year that the council would treat the operations in High Point and Greensboro as a single program.

And a revised written policy, effective Aug. 1, says that only one domestic violence program in each county will be eligible for funding.

That move could reduce Guilford County’s money by as much as $90,000.

Campbell said he couldn’t believe it. He is headed to Raleigh on Monday to speak to the domestic violence legislative committee.

“It seems to me they can’t do what they’re doing,” he said. “I don’t think legislators are aware of this. I don’t think the board of the Council for  Women is aware of this. I just think the staff are making decisions that in my opinion they should not be making.”

The legislature allocates the money, which is distributed by the Council for Women. Last year, each eligible agency statewide got about $70,000, plus a sexual assault victims grant of about $20,000, including each of the two agencies in Guilford. Campbell said he has yet to receive a response on the potential impact of the sexual assault grant that each program got last year.

Campbell has found advocates in state Rep. Maggie Jeffus (D-Guilford) and Sen. Katie Dorsett (D-Guilford), who this term co-chaired the general government appropriations committee, which makes budget recommendations for the Council for Women.

“I was caught by surprise, and hopefully we will get it all straightened out,” said Dorsett, a former secretary of the Department of Administration, who helped shape domestic violence funding.

Jeffus said she specifically asked about domestic violence funding during the last budget session, and was satisfied it would at least stay the same as last year.

“It was not the legislature or anybody’s intent I know of to cut this program out,” she said.

The money is handed out at the end of each quarter — so any reductions would be felt by October. Campbell said he was told by the council’s staff that they would try to help the agency find other sources of money.

“The plan to just go get other money sounds good on paper but it is very difficult to do,” Campbell said.

Contact Nancy McLaughlin at 373-7049 or nancy.mclaughlin@news-record.com