SF 276 (LSB 1190SV (3) 87)

SENATE FILE 276

BY  COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

(SUCCESSOR TO SF 208)

A BILL FOR

An Act concerning payments under the crime victim compensation program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 915.80, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  7A.  “Survivor of a deceased victim” means a survivor who is a spouse, former spouse, child, foster child, parent, legal guardian, foster parent, stepparent, sibling, or foster sibling of a victim, or a person cohabiting with, or otherwise related by blood or affinity to, a victim, if the victim dies as a result of a crime, a good-faith effort attempting to prevent a crime, or a good-faith effort to apprehend a person suspected of committing a crime.
    Sec. 2.  Section 915.86, subsections 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, and 16, Code 2017, are amended to read as follows:
   4.  Loss of income from work that the victim, the victim’s parent or caretaker, or the survivor of a homicide deceased victim as described in subsection 10 would have performed and for which that person would have received remuneration, where the loss of income is a direct result of cooperation with the investigation and prosecution of the crime or attendance at criminal justice proceedings including the trial and sentencing in the case, or due to the planning of or attendance at a funeral, memorial, or burial service, not to exceed one thousand dollars per person.
   8.  In the event of a victim’s death, reasonable charges incurred for counseling the victim’s spouse, children, parents, siblings, or persons cohabiting with or related by blood or affinity to the a survivor of a deceased victim if the counseling services are provided by a psychologist licensed under chapter 154B, a victim counselor as defined in section 915.20A, subsection 1, or an individual holding at least a master’s degree in social work or counseling and guidance, and reasonable charges incurred by such persons for medical care counseling provided by a psychiatrist licensed under chapter 148. The allowable charges under this subsection shall not exceed five thousand dollars per person.
   9.  In the event of a homicide victim’s death, reasonable charges incurred for health care for the victim’s spouse; child, foster child, stepchild, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law; parent, foster parent, or stepparent; sibling, foster sibling, stepsibling, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; grandparent; grandchild; aunt, uncle, or first cousin; legal ward; or person cohabiting with the a survivor of a deceased victim, not to exceed three thousand dollars per survivor.
   10.  In the event of a homicide victim’s death, loss of income from work that, but for the death of the victim, would have been earned by the victim’s spouse; child, foster child, stepchild, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law; parent, foster parent, or stepparent; sibling, foster sibling, stepsibling, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; grandparent; grandchild; aunt, uncle, or first cousin; legal ward; or person cohabiting with the a survivor of a deceased victim, not to exceed six thousand dollars.
   11.  Reasonable expenses incurred by the victim, secondary victim, or survivor of a deceased victim for cleaning the scene of a crime, if the scene is a residence, not to exceed one thousand dollars per crime scene.
   13.  Reasonable dependent care expenses incurred by the victim, the victim’s parent or caretaker, or the survivor of a homicide deceased victim as described in subsection 10 for the care of dependents while attending criminal justice proceedings or, medical or counseling services, or funeral, burial, or memorial services, not to exceed one thousand dollars per person.
   14.  Reasonable crime-related expenses incurred by a victim, the victim’s parent or caretaker, or the a survivor of a homicide deceased victim as described in subsection 10 to replace inadequate or damaged or install new locks, windows, and other residential security items at the victim’s residence or at the residential scene of a crime, not to exceed five hundred dollars per residence.
   15.  Reasonable expenses incurred by the victim, a secondary victim, the parent or guardian of a victim, or the a survivor of a homicide deceased victim as described in subsection 10 for transportation to medical, or counseling services, funeral, or criminal justice proceedings, or a funeral, memorial, or burial service, not to exceed one thousand dollars per person.
   16.  Reasonable charges incurred by a victim, a secondary victim, the a survivor of a homicide deceased victim as described in subsection 9, or by a victim service program on behalf of a victim, for emergency relocation expenses, not to exceed one thousand dollars per person per lifetime.
    Sec. 3.  Section 915.86, Code 2017, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  18.  a.  A victim, secondary victim, or survivor of a deceased victim may be awarded additional compensation in an amount not to exceed a total of five thousand dollars per person for charges, expenses, or loss of income incurred that would otherwise be compensable under this section but for the eligibility requirements and compensation limits provided for at the time of initial application for compensation under this section under the following circumstances:
   (1)  The charges, expenses, or loss of income incurred were not compensable under this section at the time of initial application for compensation under this section.
   (2)  The victim, secondary victim, or survivor of a deceased victim demonstrates that a denial of additional compensation under this subsection would constitute an undue hardship.
   (3)  The victim, secondary victim, or survivor of a deceased victim incurs additional charges, expenses, or loss of income that would otherwise be compensable under this section but for the compensation limits provided for the applicable compensation category upon occurrence of a new event related to the event authorizing compensation under this section. For purposes of this subparagraph, “new event” includes additional criminal justice proceedings due to a mistrial, retrial, or separate or additional trials resulting from the existence of multiple offenders; a new appellate court decision relating to the event authorizing compensation under this section; a change of venue of a trial; a change in offender custody status; the death of the offender; or the exoneration of the offender.
   b.  Additional compensation otherwise authorized by this subsection shall not be awarded for an application for compensation under subsection 7, 16, or 17.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill concerns compensation payable under the victim compensation program.
   Code section 915.80 is amended to add a definition for a survivor of a deceased victim and provides that a survivor includes a spouse, former spouse, child, foster child, parent, legal guardian, foster parent, stepparent, sibling, foster sibling, or person cohabiting with, or related by blood or affinity, of a deceased victim.
   Code section 915.86, concerning computation of compensation under the victim compensation program, is amended.
   The bill amends provisions concerning reimbursement of loss of income from work to allow reimbursement for attending or planning the funeral of the deceased victim. In addition, the bill provides that the compensation limit under this category is $1,000 per person.
   The bill amends provisions concerning reimbursement for cleaning the scene of the crime to strike the limitation that the cleaning be limited to a crime scene that is a residence, and provides that the compensation limit of $1,000 applies per crime scene.
   The provisions concerning dependent care expenses are amended to allow compensation for attending funeral, burial, or memorial services.
   The bill amends provisions concerning reimbursement for certain security items to allow reimbursement to replace inadequate or damaged or install new locks, windows, and residential security items instead of just to replace these items.
   The provisions concerning reimbursement for certain transportation costs is amended to allow compensation for transportation to a funeral, memorial, or burial service.
   The bill adds a new provision to provide additional compensation of up to a total of $5,000 for qualifying compensable expenses under the Code section if the expenses were not eligible for compensation at the time the initial application for benefits was made; the victim, secondary victim, or survivor of a deceased victim demonstrates that a denial of additional compensation would constitute an undue hardship; or additional compensable qualifying expenses are incurred following a new event. The bill defines “new event” to include additional criminal justice proceedings, a new appellate court decision relating to the event, a change of venue of a trial, a change in offender custody status, the death of the offender, or the exoneration of the offender. The new provision further provides that expenses related to loss of support or charges incurred by a victim service program for emergency relocation expenses or housing assistance are not eligible for additional compensation.