BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de Le�n, Chair
SB 107 (Corbett) - Sexual assault: victim medical evidentiary
examination.
Amended: April 1, 2013 Policy Vote: Public Safety 7-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: April 22, 2013
Consultant: Jolie Onodera
This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 107 would repeal the January 1, 2014, sunset
date authorizing the use of federal Violence Against Women Act
(VAWA) grant funding to cover the costs of the medical
evidentiary examination portion of medical examinations of
sexual assault victims.
Fiscal Impact: Ongoing VAWA grant expenditures of less than
$150,000 (Federal) per year in reimbursements for forensic
medical examinations. The Office of Emergency Services (OES)
reimbursed 24 claims totaling less than $10,000 in 2012.
Potential cost savings (General Fund) to the extent the sunset
would have resulted in state costs to reimburse local law
enforcement agencies in the absence of available federal funds.
Background: The federal VAWA appropriates grants, including the
Services-Training-Officers-Prosecutors (STOP) formula grant
program, to fund a variety of victim services including sexual
assault and domestic violence programs. California receives
approximately $12 million annually through the VAWA for various
qualifying programs. The OES (formerly the California Emergency
Management Agency (CalEMA)) is the designated agency that
administers the VAWA STOP program and allocates the funds
consistent with STOP program requirements to support victim
services agencies, law enforcement, prosecution, and the courts.
VAWA was first enacted in 1994 and was reauthorized in 2000 and
2005, with the most recent authorization expiring in Federal
Fiscal Year (FFY) 2011. On March 7, 2013, the President signed
the VAWA Reauthorization Act of 2013 (Public Law 113-4) which
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reauthorizes various programs, including the STOP formula grant
program, through FFY 2018.
To be eligible to receive VAWA funds, the state or another
governmental entity must incur the full out-of-pocket cost of
forensic medical examinations for victims of sexual assault.
Further, effective January 5, 2009, a state is not entitled to
funds under the STOP program unless victims of sexual assault
are not required to participate in the criminal justice system
or cooperate with local law enforcement in order to be provided
with a forensic medical examination at no cost to the victim (42
U.S.C. �3796gg-4).
SB 534 (Corbett) Chapter 360/2011 enacted changes to sexual
assault forensic protocol to conform state law to federal
requirements for VAWA funding and specified that any sexual
assault victim seeking a forensic medical examination is not
required to engage with law enforcement in order to receive the
examination, and no costs are to be charged directly or
indirectly to the victim.
Existing state law provides that the cost of a forensic medical
examination for a victim of sexual assault is to be charged to
the local law enforcement agency, provided, however, that that
the local law enforcement agency may seek reimbursement for the
cost of conducting the forensic medical examination of a victim
who does not participate in the criminal justice system.
Current law requires the OES to use discretionary funds from the
VAWA STOP program to cover the cost of the forensic medical
examination of a sexual assault victim. The authorization to use
VAWA grant funds to pay for the examinations sunsets on January
1, 2014.
Proposed Law: This bill eliminates the January 1, 2014, sunset
date authorizing the use of federal VAWA grant funding to cover
the costs of the medical evidentiary examination portion of
medical examinations of sexual assault victims.
Staff Comments: This bill would authorize the OES to continue to
use discretionary federal VAWA STOP program funds to reimburse
local law enforcement agencies for the cost of forensic medical
examinations for victims of sexual assault who choose not to
participate in the criminal justice system.
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The FFY 2012 VAWA STOP award was $12.5 million, of which $1.7
million was available for discretionary programs. Due to the
impact of federal sequestration, a five percent reduction from
the FFY 2012 award is anticipated for FFY 2013, which would
equate to a total award of $11.9 million, with $1.6 million
available for discretionary programs.
Current law provides that the maximum cost that may be charged
by a physician, hospital, or other emergency medical facility
for a forensic medical examination is $300. The OES has
indicated a total of 24 reimbursement requests for sexual
assault forensic medical examinations were received in 2012,
resulting in claim payments of less than $10,000 from
discretionary VAWA STOP funds. The OES projects approximately
$25,000 in claims to be paid from the FFY 2013 VAWA grant.
Because there is no fiscal year restriction or timeframe within
which a claim may be submitted for reimbursement, it is unknown
to what degree the number and value of claims for reimbursement,
including retroactive reimbursement for years past, may increase
in future years. Given the total number of sexual assault
victims is unknown and vastly underreported, future claim
reimbursements could be much greater than have been paid to
date. In FY 2009-10, there were approximately 30,000 reported
victims of sexual assault in California. Should claims be
submitted for one percent of victims, reimbursement for 300
exams would cost $90,000.
In the absence of this legislation, the OES would no longer have
the authority to utilize discretionary VAWA funds to reimburse
local law enforcement agencies. It is unclear if OES would be
responsible to identify an alternative funding source to
reimburse local law enforcement agencies or if law enforcement
would be unable to continue to seek reimbursement in the absence
of the sunset extension. To the extent the sunset would have the
effect of no longer providing for local law enforcement
reimbursement, the increased level of service may be determined
to be a reimbursable state mandate, resulting in increased
General Fund costs.
Recommended Amendments: To ensure the OES is authorized to use
future VAWA funds to be awarded under recently enacted federal
legislation, staff recommends an amendment to add a reference
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within Penal Code �13823.95(d) to the "Violence Against Women
Reauthorization Act of 2013 (P.L. 113-4).