BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2869
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 2869 (Leno)
As Amended May 16, 2006
Majority vote
PUBLIC SAFETY 7-0 APPROPRIATIONS 18-0
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|Ayes:|Leno, La Suer, Cohn, |Ayes:|Chu, Sharon Runner, Bass, |
| |Dymally, Goldberg, | | |
| |Cogdill, Hancock | |Berg, Calderon, De La |
| | | |Torre, Emmerson, Haynes, |
| | | |Karnette, Klehs, Leno, |
| | | |Nakanishi, Nation, |
| | | |Oropeza, Ridley-Thomas, |
| | | |Saldana, Walters, Mullin |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Clarifies that the Victims Compensation and Government
Claims Board (Board) is required to award compensation to a
person seeking reimbursement for the funeral and burial expenses
of a victim that died as a result of a crime without respect to
any felony status of the victim.
EXISTING LAW :
1)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 from whom compensation is being sought is 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) If compensation is being sought for a derivative victim,
the derivative victim is a resident of California or the
resident of another state who is any of the following:
AB 2869
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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 household of the victim for a
period of not less than two years in a relationship
substantially similar to the relationships listed in
subparagraph (i);
iv) Another family member of the victim including, but
not limited to, the victim's fianc? or fianc?e, 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.
2)States that, notwithstanding other provisions of law, no
person who is convicted of a felony may not be granted
compensation until that person has been discharged from
probation or has been released from a correctional institution
and has been discharged from parole, if any. In no case shall
compensation be granted to an applicant pursuant to this
chapter during any period of time the applicant is held in a
correctional institution.
3)Provides that when a victim dies as a result of crime, the
Board may reimburse any individual who voluntarily, and
without anticipation of personal gain, pay, or assumes the
obligation to pay any of the following expenses:
a) The medical expenses incurred as a direct result of the
crime in an amount not to exceed the rates or limitations
established by the Board;
b) When the crime occurs in a residence, the reasonable
costs to clean the scene of the crime in an amount not to
exceed $1,000; and,
c) The funeral and burial expenses incurred as a direct
AB 2869
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result of the crimes, not toe exceed $7,500.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee analysis, unknown, probably minor costs to the
Restitution Fund for additional funeral and burial expenses,
which are capped at $7,500. Though there is no solid data on
such claims, the Board anticipates that no more than 10 to 15
families would qualify for expenses as a result of this bill,
which would likely result in a cost of less than $90,000.
The Restitution Fund is projected to have a $100 million reserve
at the close of 2006-07.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "Current law is sufficiently
ambiguous as to allow the Board to deny claims of family members
to pay for the burial or funeral costs of their loved ones if
they were still on parole or probation at the time of their
violent death.
"A group of constituents came to visit me who had been denied
such claims. Their sons were still on parole or probation (for
a lesser crime) at the time they were gunned down which resulted
in a denial of their families' claims for burial/funeral
expenses.
"This bill attempts to provide clarity in the statute so that
guidance from the Board governing claims for burial or funeral
expenses is consistent from year to year so that we treat
victims of violent crime consistently."
Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of
this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744
FN: 0014484