34 U.S.C. § 20102 — Crime victim compensation

submitted 42 years ago by Pub. L. 98-473 to r/title-34-CRIME-CONTROL-AND-LAW-ENFORCEMENT · 1,156 words · no verdicts yet

in plain englishAI-generated · not legal advice

This law has the Director give yearly grants to state crime-victim compensation programs. Grants usually cover 75% of what a program paid victims the year before, not counting property damage. A program must meet listed eligibility rules, like covering nonresidents and Federal crimes fairly, to qualify.

(a) Authority of Director; grants (1) Normally, the Director gives an eligible state crime-victim compensation program a yearly grant equal to 75 percent of what it paid out in awards the year before (not counting property-damage awards). Except as allowed in (4), that grant money can only pay for compensation awards. (2) If the Fund doesn't have enough money to give every program 75 percent, the Director instead gives every eligible program the same percentage of its prior-year awards (again, not counting property damage) — whatever percentage the available money allows. (3) When figuring out how much a program awarded the year before, the Director does not make programs subtract their costs of collecting restitution or subrogation recoveries. (4) A program can spend no more than 5 percent of its grant on staff training and administering the state program. (b) Eligible crime victim compensation programs — A state program qualifies if: (1) it's run by a state and pays victims — including victims of drunk driving and domestic violence — for medical expenses (including mental health care) tied to a physical injury from a compensable crime, lost wages tied to such an injury, and funeral costs tied to a death from such a crime; (2) it encourages victims to cooperate with reasonable law-enforcement requests, unless the victim's age, physical condition, mental state, cultural or language barriers, or other health or safety concern makes that inappropriate; (3) the state certifies the grant money won't replace state funding that would otherwise pay for crime-victim compensation; (4) it pays nonresident victims of in-state crimes using the same rules as resident victims; (5) it pays victims of federal crimes the same way it pays victims of state crimes; (6) it pays state residents victimized by out-of-state crimes, if those crimes would have qualified had they happened in-state and the other state has no eligible compensation program of its own; (7) it doesn't deny compensation just because the victim and offender are related or share a residence, except under rules meant to stop the offender from unfairly benefiting; (8) it doesn't pay compensation to anyone convicted of a federal offense while they're behind on a fine, penalty, or restitution from that offense; (9) starting no later than 3 years after March 15, 2022, it (A) waives its application deadline for a victim who is otherwise eligible but whose delay in applying was caused by a delay in testing or DNA matching from a sexual-assault evidence kit or related biological evidence, and (B) doesn't make that victim go through an appeal just to get the waiver considered; and (10) it gives the Director any other information or assurances the Director reasonably requires. (c) Exclusion from income, resources, and assets for purposes of means tests — When any federal, state, or local program using federal money checks someone's income, resources, or assets to decide eligibility for medical or other assistance, crime-victim compensation the person received under this section does not count as their income, resources, or assets, and does not reduce the other assistance they get — unless their combined assistance from every such program already fully covers their crime-related losses. (d) Definitions — (1) "Property damage" does not include damage to prosthetic devices, eyeglasses or other corrective lenses, or dental devices. (2) "Medical expenses" includes, to the extent the state program covers it, eyeglasses or corrective lenses, dental services and devices, prosthetic devices, and services recognized as a method of healing under state law. (3) "Compensable crime" means a crime whose victims are eligible for compensation under the state program, including crimes described in a hate-crimes law (section 247 of title 18) that cause death or personal injury, driving while intoxicated, and domestic violence. (4) "State" includes the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and any other U.S. possession or territory. (5) "Recovery costs" means expenses for personnel who work directly on collecting restitution or subrogation payments. (e) Relationship to certain Federal programs — If a federal program — including one under a separate victim-compensation law — or a federally financed state or local program would otherwise cover the same costs, the state crime-victim compensation program does not pay them, and the other program pays without regard to whether the state compensation program exists.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

(a) Authority of Director; grants

(1)

Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Director shall make an annual grant from the Fund to an eligible crime victim compensation program of 75 percent of the amounts awarded during the preceding fiscal year, other than amounts awarded for property damage. Except as provided in paragraph (4), a grant under this section shall be used by such program only for awards of compensation.

(2)

If the sums available in the Fund for grants under this section are insufficient to provide grants as provided in paragraph (1), the Director shall make, from the sums available, a grant to each eligible crime victim compensation program so that all such programs receive the same percentage of the amounts awarded by such program during the preceding fiscal year, other than amounts awarded for property damage.

(3)

For the purposes of calculating amounts awarded in the previous fiscal year under this subsection, the Director shall not require eligible crime victim compensation programs to deduct recovery costs or collections from restitution or from subrogation for payment under a civil lawsuit.

(4)

Not more than 5 percent of a grant made under this section may be used for training purposes and the administration of the State crime victim compensation program receiving the grant.

(b) Eligible crime victim compensation programs

A crime victim compensation program is an eligible crime victim compensation program for the purposes of this section if—

(1)

such program is operated by a State and offers compensation to victims and survivors of victims of criminal violence, including drunk driving and domestic violence for—

(A)

medical expenses attributable to a physical injury resulting from compensable crime, including expenses for mental health counseling and care;

(B)

loss of wages attributable to a physical injury resulting from a compensable crime; and

(C)

funeral expenses attributable to a death resulting from a compensable crime;

(2)

such program promotes victim cooperation with the reasonable requests of law enforcement authorities, except if a program determines such cooperation may be impacted due to a victim’s age, physical condition, psychological state, cultural or linguistic barriers, or any other health or safety concern that jeopardizes the victim’s wellbeing;

(3)

such State certifies that grants received under this section will not be used to supplant State funds otherwise available to provide crime victim compensation;

(4)

such program, as to compensable crimes occurring within the State, makes compensation awards to victims who are nonresidents of the State on the basis of the same criteria used to make awards to victims who are residents of such State;

(5)

such program provides compensation to victims of Federal crimes occurring within the State on the same basis that such program provides compensation to victims of State crimes;

(6)

such program provides compensation to residents of the State who are victims of crimes occurring outside the State if—

(A)

the crimes would be compensable crimes had they occurred inside that State; and

(B)

the places the crimes occurred in are States not having eligible crime victim compensation programs;

(7)

such program does not, except pursuant to rules issued by the program to prevent unjust enrichment of the offender, deny compensation to any victim because of that victim’s familial relationship to the offender, or because of the sharing of a residence by the victim and the offender;

(8)

such program does not provide compensation to any person who has been convicted of an offense under Federal law with respect to any time period during which the person is delinquent in paying a fine, other monetary penalty, or restitution imposed for the offense;

(9)

beginning not later than 3 years after March 15, 2022, such program—

(A)

provides a waiver for any application filing deadline imposed by the program for a crime victim if—

(i)

the crime victim is otherwise eligible for compensation; and

(ii)

the delay in filing the application was a result of a delay in the testing of, or a delay in the DNA profile matching from, a sexual assault forensic examination kit or biological material collected as evidence related to a sexual offense; and

(B)

does not require the crime victim to undergo an appeals process to have the application of the crime victim considered for a filing deadline waiver under subparagraph (A); and

(10)

such program provides such other information and assurances related to the purposes of this section as the Director may reasonably require.

Notwithstanding any other law (other than title IV of Public Law 107–42), for the purpose of any maximum allowed income, resource, or asset eligibility requirement in any Federal, State, or local government program using Federal funds that provides medical or other assistance (or payment or reimbursement of the cost of such assistance), any amount of crime victim compensation that the applicant receives through a crime victim compensation program under this section shall not be included in the income, resources, or assets of the applicant, nor shall that amount reduce the amount of the assistance available to the applicant from Federal, State, or local government programs using Federal funds, unless the total amount of assistance that the applicant receives from all such programs is sufficient to fully compensate the applicant for losses suffered as a result of the crime.

(d) Definitions

As used in this section—

(1)

the term “property damage” does not include damage to prosthetic devices, eyeglasses or other corrective lenses, or dental devices;

(2)

the term “medical expenses” includes, to the extent provided under the eligible crime victim compensation program, expenses for eyeglasses or other corrective lenses, for dental services and devices and prosthetic devices, and for services rendered in accordance with a method of healing recognized by the law of the State;

(3)

the term “compensable crime” means a crime the victims of which are eligible for compensation under the eligible crime victim compensation program, and includes crimes, whose victims suffer death or personal injury, that are described in section 247 of title 18, driving while intoxicated, and domestic violence;

(4)

the term “State” includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, and any other possession or territory of the United States; and

(5)

the term “recovery costs” means expenses for personnel directly involved in the recovery efforts to obtain collections from restitution or from subrogation for payment under a civil law suit.

(e) Relationship to certain Federal programs

Notwithstanding any other law, if the compensation paid by an eligible crime victim compensation program would cover costs that a Federal program, including the program established under title IV of Public Law 107–42, or a federally financed State or local program, would otherwise pay,— 1

(1)

such crime victim compensation program shall not pay that compensation; and

(2)

the other program shall make its payments without regard to the existence of the crime victim compensation program.

Source credit: (Pub. L. 98–473, title II, § 1403, Oct. 12, 1984, 98 Stat. 2171; Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, §§ 7123(b)(1)–(3), 7125, 7126, Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4421–4423; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXIII, §§ 230202, 230203, title XXXIII, § 330025(b), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2079, 2151; Pub. L. 104–132, title II, §§ 233(a), (b), 234(a)(1), (b), Apr. 24, 1996, 110 Stat. 1244, 1245; Pub. L. 104–155, § 5, July 3, 1996, 110 Stat. 1394; Pub. L. 107–56, title VI, § 622(a)–(e)(1), Oct. 26, 2001, 115 Stat. 371, 372; Pub. L. 109–162, title XI, § 1133(a), Jan. 5, 2006, 119 Stat. 3108; Pub. L. 117–27, § 2(b), July 22, 2021, 135 Stat. 301; Pub. L. 117–103, div. W, title XIII, §§ 1311, 1316(b), Mar. 15, 2022, 136 Stat. 935, 939.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1984Enacted · Pub. L. 98-473 · 98 Stat. 2171
1988Amended · Pub. L. 100-690 · 102 Stat. 4421
1994Amended · Pub. L. 103-322 · 108 Stat. 2079, 2151
1996Amended · Pub. L. 104-132 · 110 Stat. 1244, 1245
1996Amended · Pub. L. 104-155 · 110 Stat. 1394
2001Amended · Pub. L. 107-56 · 115 Stat. 371, 372
2006Amended · Pub. L. 109-162 · 119 Stat. 3108
2021Amended · Pub. L. 117-27 · 135 Stat. 301
2022Amended · Pub. L. 117-103 · 136 Stat. 935, 939

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 98-473 on 1984-10-12.

all 0 arguments · sorted by: best

no arguments yet — make the first case