BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 519 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 519 (Hancock) As Amended July 16, 2015 2/3 vote SENATE VOTE: 40-0 ------------------------------------------------------------------ |Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Public Safety |7-0 |Quirk, Melendez, | | | | |Jones-Sawyer, Lackey, | | | | |Lopez, Low, Santiago | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Appropriations |17-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | | | | |Bloom, Bonta, | | | | |Calderon, Chang, | | | | |Nazarian, Eggman, | | | | |Gallagher, Eduardo | | | | |Garcia, Holden, | | | | |Jones, Quirk, Rendon, | | | | |Wagner, Weber, Wood | | | | | | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------ SB 519 Page 2 SUMMARY: Makes reforms to rules governing the processing of claims by the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board (board). Specifically, this bill: 1)Prohibits the board from requiring an applicant to submit documentation from the Internal Revenue Service, the Franchise Tax Board, the State Board of Equalization, the Social Security Administration, or the Employment Development Department in order to determine eligibility for compensation. 2)Requires all correspondence by the board to an applicant to be written in specified languages. 3)Prohibits the denial of a claim for a victim who is a minor based on the grounds of failing to cooperate with law enforcement. 4)Provides that a felon on probation or parole is eligible for compensation for mental health counseling despite this status. 5)Prohibits the board from establishing policy or regulations limiting the amount recoverable for funeral expenses to less than $7,500. 6)Requires the board to approve or deny an application within 90 days of acceptance. 7)Allows an applicant to be accompanied by a service animal at a hearing to contest the denial of a claim. SB 519 Page 3 8)Permits a crime victim to testify at a restitution hearing or a modification hearing by live, two-way audio and video transmission, if it is available at the court. EXISTING LAW: 1)Establishes the board to operate the California Victim 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. 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 VCGCB determines that there are federal funds available to the state for the compensation of crime victims. ii) Whether or not the crime occurred within the State of California, the victim was any of the following: SB 519 Page 4 (1) A California resident. (2) A member of the military stationed in California. (3) A family member living with a member of the 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 another 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. 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)States that an application shall be denied if the board finds that the victim failed to reasonably cooperate with law SB 519 Page 5 enforcement in prosecution of the crime. 5)Disqualifies certain individuals from eligibility, including a participant in the crime for which compensation is being sought, and persons convicted of a felony who are currently on probation or parole. 6)Authorizes the board to reimburse for pecuniary loss for the following types of losses: a) The amount of medical or medical-related expenses incurred by the victim, subject to specified limitations. b) The amount of out-patient psychiatric, psychological or other mental health counseling-related expenses incurred by the victim, as specified, including peer counseling services provided by a rape crisis center. c) The expenses of non-medical remedial care and treatment rendered in accordance with a religious method of healing recognized by state law. d) Compensation equal to the loss of income or loss of support, or both, that a victim or derivative victim incurs as a direct result of the victim's injury or the victim's death, subject to specified limitations. e) Cash payment to, or on behalf of, the victim for job retraining or similar employment-oriented services. f) The expense of installing or increasing residential security, not to exceed $1,000, with respect to a crime that occurred in the victim's residence, upon verification by law enforcement to be necessary for the personal safety of the victim or by a mental health treatment provider to SB 519 Page 6 be necessary for the emotional well-being of the victim. g) The expense of renovating or retrofitting a victim's residence or a vehicle to make them accessible or operational, if it is medically necessary. h) Expenses incurred in relocating, as specified, if the expenses are determined by law enforcement to be necessary for the personal safety or by a mental health treatment provider to be necessary for the emotional well-being of the victim. 7)Limits the total award to or on behalf of each victim to $35,000, except that this amount may be increased to $70,000 if federal funds for that increase are available. 8)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. 9)Requires the board, if it fails to meet the 90-day average, to report to the Legislature on a quarterly basis its progress and current average processing time. FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee: 1)Moderate administrative costs to the board to make a determination within the required 90 days of receipt of the claim, since this will increase the number of appeals. If a claim is incomplete, the board will deny the claim and the SB 519 Page 7 claimant will appeal the decision. The language requirement for all correspondence is consistent with current board practice. 2)Increased ongoing claim costs in the $200,000 (General Fund) range, $100,000 to provide mental health counseling for felons and $100,000 to reimburse qualifying minors. The $7,500 minimum reimbursement for funeral expense is the current reimbursement rate COMMENTS: According to the author, "It should not be surprising that crime incurs all kinds of costs on its victims. In 2004, a National Institute of Justice report estimated that the nationwide costs of crime are $105 billion per year. When factoring in pain-and-suffering and reduced quality of life, that figure jumps to $450 billion. Making sure that victims are compensated by their victimizers is not only good economic policy, but morally sound. "Providing justice and compensation to Californians who are the victims of crime are among the paramount missions of our government. The intent of SB 519 is to improve the way that the Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board provides compensation for crime victims." Analysis Prepared by: Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0001615 SB 519 Page 8