BILL ANALYSIS
SB 733
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 733 (Leno)
As Amended August 16, 2010
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :32-2
PUBLIC SAFETY 7-0 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Ammiano, Hagman, Beall, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Bradford, |
| |Gilmore, Hill, | |Huffman, Coto, Davis, De |
| |Portantino, Skinner | |Leon, Gatto, Hall, |
| | | |Skinner, Solorio, |
| | | |Torlakson, Torrico |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Conway, Harkey, Miller, |
| | | |Nielsen, Norby |
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SUMMARY : Authorizes the California Victims Compensation and
Government Claims Board (CVCGCB) to evaluate applications and
award grants totaling up to $3 million, to multi-disciplinary
trauma recovery centers (TRCs) that provide specified services
to and resources for crime victims. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the following services to be considered for an award
grant:
a) Mental health services;
b) Community outreach services; and,
c) Coordination among medical personnel, mental health care
providers, law enforcement and social services.
2)Makes codified legislative declarations and findings regarding
the importance of providing treatment and services to victims
of crimes.
3)Specifies that grants for trauma recovery centers shall not be
processed unless the Restitution Fund is projected to have a
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year-end fund reserve to at least 25% of the total budgeted
expenditures for that fiscal year.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the CVCGCB to enter into an interagency agreement
with the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), to
establish a victims of crime recovery center at the San
Francisco General Hospital for the purpose of providing
comprehensive and integrated services to victims of crime,
subject to conditions set forth by the board.
2)States legislative intent to provide services to meet the
needs of both victims and witnesses of crime through the
funding of local comprehensive centers for victim and witness
assistance.
3)Finds that although the State of California has a fund for
needy victims of violent crimes, and compensation is available
for medical expenses, lost income or wages, and rehabilitation
costs, the application process may be difficult, complex, and
time-consuming, and victims may not be aware that the
compensation provisions exist.
4)Declares that there is a need to develop methods to reduce the
trauma and insensitive treatment that victims and witnesses
may experience in the wake of a crime since all too often
citizens who become involved with the criminal justice system,
either as victims or witnesses to crime, are further
victimized by that system.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee analysis, annual costs to the Restitution Fund of up
to $2 million, contingent upon an appropriation and a 25%
reserve balance in the fund. It is unlikely that a 25% reserve
will materialize in the next few years.
The $148 million Restitution Fund, supported by penalty
assessments, is currently flirting with insolvency in 2010-11,
with a projected reserve of about 4% at best ($6 million), and
will be insolvent by the close of 2011-12, with a deficit in the
range of $20 million.
The CVDGCB notes they receive a 60% federal match on all
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payments the CVCGCB makes to crime victims. While this bill
requires TRCs to provide any information required by the CVCGCB
to qualify the proposed grant funds for a federal match, the
CVCGCB notes that of the $1.3 million provided to the UCSF TRC
in 2006-07, only about $100,000 qualified for a federal match
due to specifications regarding victim eligibility and allowable
expenses. (The author takes issue with the CVCGCB's estimate
regarding federal fund eligibility and suggests a more thorough
effort by the CVCGCB would greatly increase matching funds for
TRC.)
COMMENTS : According to the author, "At any given time, crime
statistics suggest that there are many more victims of crime in
California eligible for services from the CVCGCB than actually
seek it out. Disadvantaged crime victims have an especially
difficult time gaining access to the system. A bureaucratic
maze of paperwork effectively denies them assistance and
represents an inherent bias in the current system of care.
Victims are required to produce as many as 10 supporting
documents to establish eligibility before beginning a waiting
period - lasting up to three months or more - to find out
whether their application for compensation has been accepted.
The goal of the state's victim services, and the obligation of
the state, is to serve victims, all victims, not just those
savvy enough to navigate the system.
"SB 733 offers victims an alternative by providing for the
establishment of a grant program within the CVCGCB which would
provide TRCs with the funding they need to offer expert medical
treatment directly to victims of crime.
"The grant program will be administered by the CVCGCB and would
fund programs that replicate the victim service model developed
at the San Francisco TRC (San Francisco General Hospital/UCSF)
which utilizes a multidisciplinary staff to provide direct
mental health services and treatment to victims while
coordinating services with law enforcement and other social
service agencies all under one roof. This victim service model
has received national recognition for its ability to cost
effectively meet the special needs of crime victims immediately
following their trauma.
"Unlike California's Victim Compensation Program (VCP), the
Trauma Recovery model allows for aggressive outreach to
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vulnerable populations - those individuals that are most
susceptible to becoming victims of crime and also the least
likely to benefit from VCP services.
"Given the State Auditor's findings in the 2008 audit of the
CVCGCB, including a significant decline in payments to victims,
increased program costs, unprocessed claims, and consistently
poor community outreach, the importance of implementing a
sustainable alternative service model cannot be overstated.
"By allowing Restitution Funds to flow directly to TRCs through
a clear and competitive process, SB 733 takes the first
important step toward achieving a more comprehensive, clinically
cost-effective, approach to expanding the availability of
treatment services to victims throughout California."
Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this
bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Gabriel Caswell / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744
FN: 0006003