BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1563
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
1563 (Rodriguez)
As Amended May 24, 2016
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: | 76-0 | (April 14, |SENATE: | 37-0 |(June 30, 2016) |
| | |2016) | | | |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY: Establishes a six-month deadline for the Victim
Compensation and Government Claims Board to respond to an appeal
by a crime victim who has had an application for compensation
denied. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the board to evaluate an appeal for reconsideration
of compensation within six months of the date the board
receives the application, unless it determines that there was
insufficient information to make a decision.
2)Provides that if the board determines that there was
insufficient information to make a decision, it shall notify
the applicant in writing within six months of the date the
appeal was received.
The Senate amendments make technical, non-substantive changes.
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EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the board to operate the California Victim's
Compensation Program (CalVCP).
2)Provides than an application for compensation shall be filed
with the board in the manner determined by the board.
3)States that, except as provided by specified sections of the
Government Code, a person shall be eligible for compensation
when all of the following requirements are met:
a) The person form whom compensation is being sought any of
the following:
i) A victim;
ii) A derivative victim; or,
iii) A person who is entitled to reimbursement for
funeral, burial or crime scene clean-up expenses pursuant
to specified sections of the Government Code.
b) Either of the following conditions is met:
i) The crime occurred within California, whether or not
the victim is a resident of California. This only
applies when the board determines that there are federal
funds available to the state for the compensation of
crime victims; or
ii) Whether or not the crime occurred within the State
of California, the victim was any of the following:
(1) A California resident;
(2) A member of the military stationed in
California; or
(3) A family member living with a member of the
AB 1563
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military stationed in California.
c) If compensation is being sought for derivative victim,
the derivative victim is a resident of California, or the
resident of any state, who is any of the following:
i) At the time of the crimes was the parent,
grandparent, sibling, spouse, child or grandchild of the
victim;
ii) At the time of the crime was living in the household
of the victim;
iii) At the time of the crime was a person who had
previously lived in the house of the victim for a person
of not less than two years in a relationship
substantially similar to a previously listed
relationship;
iv) Another family member of the victim including, but
not limited to, the victim's fiancé or fiancée, and who
witnessed the crime; or
v) Is the primary caretaker of a minor victim, but was
not the primary caretaker at the time of the crime.
d) And other specified requirements.
4)Authorizes the board to reimburse for pecuniary loss for
specified types of losses, including medical expenses,
mental-health counseling, loss of income or loss of support,
and installing or increasing residential security.
5)Requires the board to approve or deny applications, based on
recommendations by the board staff, within an average of 90
calendar days and no later than 180 calendar days of
acceptance by the board.
6)Requires the board to grant a hearing to an applicant who
contests a staff recommendation to deny compensation in whole
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or in part.
7)States that at such a hearing, the person seeking compensation
shall have the burden of establishing, by a preponderance of
the evidence, the elements for eligibility.
8)Establishes protocols for reconsideration hearings, and
specifies that they are informal and not subject technical
rules of evidence.
9)Requires the board's post-hearing decision to be in writing.
A copy of the decision must be personally delivered to the
applicant or his or her representative, or sent by mail.
10)Allows the board to order a reconsideration of all or part of
a decision on written request of the applicant. The board may
not grant more than one request for reconsideration with
respect to any one decision on an application for
compensation.
11)Prohibits the board from considering any request for
reconsideration if the request is filed with the board more
than 30 calendar days after the personal delivery or 60
calendar days after the mailing of the original decision.
12)Permits judicial review of a final decision of the board by
filing a petition for writ of mandate.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill established a six-month
deadline for the Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board
to respond to an appeal by a crime victim who has had an
application for compensation denied.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
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Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8 negligible state costs.
COMMENTS: According to the author, "Victims of crime often
suffer long-term after a criminal offense has taken place, and
without adequate treatment or services, are likely to become
re-victimized. In the past, the Victim's Compensation Program
has demonstrated a lack of management of appeals cases, leaving
many victims waiting for answers and footing the bill for
services that could have been compensated earlier and more
efficiently. AB 1563 seeks to address this problem by making
sure the Board makes a decision on an appeal within six months
of receiving an application and informing an applicant if
anything is missing from their application. This measure will
ensure that victim applicants are not waiting indefinitely for a
response, and have a fair opportunity to submit information that
would complete their applications. This will allow victims to
successfully move on with their lives with the treatment and
services they need."
Analysis Prepared by:
Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN:
0003646