NORTHAMPTON — Safe Passage is just one of many organizations that rely on federal funding caught between a rock and a hard place — between going through a funding desert, or risking being penalized for misuse of federal funds.

In response to these conditions, 17 state coalitions filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in a Rhode Island court seeking to force the White House to lift new restrictions tied to applying for federal funds, which are hindering some organizations from being included in federal funds.

Safe Passage, the longtime Northampton nonprofit whose mission is to end domestic violence and help survivors in Hampshire County and parts of Franklin and Hampden counties, was cited by the plaintiff filing from Massachusetts, Jane Doe Inc., as an example of how the federal government’s new restrictions are negatively impacting social service agencies that care for survivors of domestic abuse and sexual assault.

The restrictions, which took effect March 11 and are designed to be in alignment with executive orders signed by President Donald Trump, are preventing Safe Passage from applying for federal funding because the organization’s mission doesn’t align with the new mandates, said Executive Director Marianne Winters.

According to administration’s new restrictions, organizations must not:

■Promote or facilitate discriminatory programs or ideology, including diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, that do not advance the policy of equal dignity and respect as laid out in Trump’s executive order.

■Inculcate or promote gender ideology.

■Frame domestic violence or sexual assault as systemic social justice issues. Instead, domestic violence must be seen from a criminal justice standpoint.

■Prioritize illegal aliens over U.S. citizens and legal residents in receiving victim services and support.

■Promote any activity or program that unlawfully violates an executive order.

Since Safe Passage’s mission is necessarily tied to the marginalized, Winters said it was impossible to apply for grants.

“People who are survivors of domestic abuse, if you look at the list of cases, there is some form of marginalization in every story,” she said, adding that care for immigrants, documented and undocumented, people with disabilities and sexual and racial minorities are often those in need of the most dire help.

To make matters worse, Safe Passage and other organizations could incur serious penalties if they misuse federal funds based on these restrictions. Such violations fall under the 1863 False Claims Act — also known as “Lincoln’s Law” — designed to prevent fraudulent government contractors.

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a memo dated on May 19 that, “The False Claims Act is the Justice Department’s primary weapon against government fraud, waste, and abuse.”

It later said that, “The False Claims Act is also implicated whenever federal-funding recipients or contractors certify compliance with civil rights laws while knowingly engaging in racist preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities, including through diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs that assign benefits or burdens on race, ethnicity, or national origin.”

So to stay on the safe side, Winters said Safe Passage did not apply for federal grants this spring.

Among the grants that the organization is losing out on include one from the Office of Violence Against Women — Department of Justice funding that would have awarded $500,000 over three years to pay for three transitional living units in Holyoke. The transitional housing allows survivors of domestic abuse to have a safe place to live and adapt to living on their own for up to two years.

Winters said Safe Passage is already feeling the impacts to its mission.

“Our total budget is roughly $3 million, about half of that is state and federal contracts,” she said. “We have about $600,000 in federal contracts that are administered by the state. We have had to downsize and have frozen two positions and laid off two others in order to get our budget to balance.”

She further clarified that it is currently unclear whether current state and federal contracts will be canceled.

“At this point we don’t think that the contract funds will be gone, but a lot depends on the final federal budget as it applies to what the state receives,” she said. “If there are cuts, they would likely happen around October.”

Each state has a statewide coalition that offers legal help, advocacy, and training for survivors of domestic abuse and sexual assault. Massachusetts’ coalition is Jane Doe Inc., the nonprofit that is among the 17 states suing the Trump administration.

Like Safe Passage, Jane Doe Inc. Executive Director Hema Sarang-Sieminski said the organization may have to let go two or three members of its seven-person staff.

Federal funding, she said, is a “core part of how we function.” Among the losses for Jane Doe is $357,000 from the Office of Violence Against Women. She estimates that coalitions nationwide stand to lose out on “tens of millions” in grant funding because of the restrictions.

“So this is a huge shift for us to see these conditions coming through to not only limit our work, but limit how we do the work,” said Sarang-Sieminski.

She said the changes will make it risky for organizations to be inclusive and work with the marginalized.

“This field is not perfect, we know, but we’re feeling nervous about working with immigrant survivors or trans survivors, or members of the LGBTQ community” said Sarang-Sieminski.

She added that, “Some of the terms are so vague, it’s hard to imagine how you would parse when the values and principles of an organization is to welcome all survivors.”

“These kinds of risks are high, so to say we are between a rock and a hard place is an understatement.”

Samuel Gelinas can be reached at sgelinas@gazettenet.com.