Requires the office of victim services to publicize programs offered by the office and to include certain information in annual reports to the governor and the legislature and to make such reports public on the office's website; makes alterations to the amounts of and qualifications for awards of compensation to victims of crimes, including good samaritans who are injured.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5443
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 14, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CHANDLER-WATERMAN -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to reports and awards by
the office of victim services
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 623 of the executive law is amended by adding a new
2 subdivision 18-a to read as follows:
3 18-a. To publicize through the office, state, county, and municipal
4 criminal justice agencies, statewide coalitions, victim service provid-
5 ers, survivor support agencies, hospitals, medical, mental health or
6 other counseling service providers, local programs for crime victims,
7 and other public or private agencies, the existence of the programs
8 funded by the office, including the procedures for obtaining compen-
9 sation from the office as defined in section six hundred twenty-five-a
10 of this article.
11 § 2. Subdivision 20 of section 623 of the executive law, as amended by
12 chapter 489 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
13 20. To render [each year] annually to the governor and [to] the legis-
14 lature, and to the public via the office's website, on or before Decem-
15 ber first of each year, a written report on the office's activities
16 including, but not limited to, specific information on each of the
17 subdivisions of this section. [Such]
18 (a) The annual report shall also include but not be limited to infor-
19 mation regarding crime victim service programs, including:
20 [(1)] (i) the programs funded by the office;
21 [(2)] (ii) other sources of funding for crime victims service
22 programs;
23 [(3)] (iii) an assessment of the adequacy of the current level of
24 appropriation to the office to meet the reasonable needs of crime
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08947-01-5
A. 5443 2
1 victims service programs for funding under section six hundred thirty-
2 one-a of this article; and
3 [(4)] (iv) an estimate of the reasonable needs of programs in the next
4 fiscal year.
5 (b) The annual report shall also include but not be limited to infor-
6 mation regarding the office's performance measures, including:
7 (i) The number of claim applications filed with the office;
8 (ii) The number of claims accepted, including disaggregated data
9 denoting the claims accepted by type, for eligibility determinations;
10 (iii) The number of claims rejected, including disaggregated data
11 denoting the categorical reasons for claims rejected;
12 (iv) The number of claims resulting in no award decisions, including
13 disaggregated data denoting the categorical reasons for no award deci-
14 sions;
15 (v) The number of claims awarded, including disaggregated data denot-
16 ing the claim type for claims awarded;
17 (vi) Anonymized data denoting the race, gender, age, sexual orien-
18 tation, and county of residence for claim applications filed, claims
19 accepted, claims rejected, claims resulting in no award decisions, and
20 claims awarded;
21 (vii) Anonymized data denoting the crime involved in claim applica-
22 tions filed, claims accepted, claims rejected, claims resulting in no
23 award decisions, and claims awarded; and
24 (viii) The average time between the office receiving an application,
25 the determination of eligibility, and the first award to the victim.
26 (c) After December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-five, pursuant to
27 paragraph (a) of subdivision one of section six hundred thirty-one, the
28 annual report shall also include but not be limited to information
29 regarding the records indicating the commission of a crime, including:
30 (i) The number of claims using the records of a support agency for
31 survivors of crime, including disaggregated data denoting the categori-
32 cal type of support agency for survivors of crime; and
33 (ii) The number of claims using the records of a criminal justice
34 agency, including disaggregated data denoting the categorical type of
35 criminal justice agency.
36 (d) The annual report shall also include but not be limited to infor-
37 mation regarding the office's performance of the duty of publicization
38 pursuant to subdivision eighteen-a of this section.
39 § 3. Paragraphs (i), (j), and (k) of subdivision 1 of section 624 of
40 the executive law, paragraph (i) as amended by section 9 of part A-1 of
41 chapter 56 of the laws of 2010, paragraph (j) as added by chapter 427 of
42 the laws of 1999, and paragraph (k) as amended by chapter 117 of the
43 laws of 2017, are amended and a new paragraph (l) is added to read as
44 follows:
45 (i) a surviving spouse of a crime victim who died from causes not
46 directly related to the crime when such victim died prior to filing a
47 claim with the office or subsequent to filing a claim but prior to the
48 rendering of a decision by the office. Such award shall be limited to
49 out-of-pocket loss incurred as a direct result of the crime; [and]
50 (j) a spouse, child or stepchild of a victim of a crime who has
51 sustained personal physical injury as a direct result of a crime[.];
52 (k) a surviving spouse, grandparent, parent, stepparent, guardian,
53 [brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister,] sibling, stepsiblings,
54 child, stepchild, or grandchild of a victim of a crime who died as a
55 direct result of such crime and where such crime occurred in the resi-
56 dence shared by such family member or members and the victim[.]; and
A. 5443 3
1 (1) any person not otherwise eligible under this subdivision who has
2 paid for or incurred the crime scene cleanup expenses, provided that
3 such person shall only be eligible to receive an award pursuant to this
4 article for crime scene cleanup.
5 § 4. Subdivisions 1 and 1-a of section 625-a of the executive law,
6 subdivision 1 as amended by section 15 of part A-1 of chapter 56 of the
7 laws of 2010, and subdivision 1-a as added by chapter 416 of the laws of
8 1979, are amended to read as follows:
9 1. [Every] The office shall supply informative booklets, pamphlets and
10 other pertinent written information, including information cards, to
11 every police station, precinct house, support agency for survivors of
12 crime as defined in paragraph (c) of subdivision one of section six
13 hundred thirty-one of this article after December thirty-first, two
14 thousand twenty-five, any appropriate location where a crime may be
15 reported and any location required by the rules and regulations of the
16 office [shall have available informative booklets, pamphlets and other
17 pertinent written information, including information cards, to be
18 supplied by the office], relating to the availability of crime victims
19 compensation including all necessary application blanks required to be
20 filed with the office and shall [display prominently] provide posters
21 giving notification of the existence and general provisions of this
22 article, those provisions of the penal law that prohibit the intim-
23 idation of crime victims and the location of the nearest crime victim
24 service program. The office [may] shall issue guidelines for the promi-
25 nent display of such posters and the location of such display [and shall
26 provide posters, application forms, information cards and general infor-
27 mation]. Every [victim who reports a crime in any manner whatsoever]
28 appropriate location where a crime may be reported shall [be given]
29 provide notice about the rights of crime victims and the existence of
30 all relevant local victim's assistance programs and services pursuant to
31 section six hundred twenty-five-b of this article, and [supplied by the
32 person receiving the report with information,] supply application
33 blanks[,] and information cards which shall clearly state: (a) that
34 crime victims may be eligible for state compensation benefits; (b) the
35 address and phone number of the office; (c) that police and district
36 attorneys can help protect victims against harassment and intimidation;
37 (d) the addresses and phone numbers of local victim service programs,
38 where appropriate, or space for inserting that information; or (e) any
39 other information the office deems appropriate. Such cards shall be
40 printed and distributed by the office and shall be designed by the
41 office in consultation with local police[, and shall be printed and
42 distributed by the office]. The office shall develop a system for
43 distributing a sufficient supply of the information cards referred to in
44 this subdivision, to all the appropriate designated locations, which
45 shall include a schedule for meeting that requirement.
46 1-a. [Every] The office shall supply posters giving notification of
47 the existence and general provisions of this article, application
48 blanks, and general information to every general hospital established
49 under the laws of this state[, which] that maintains facilities for
50 providing out-patient emergency medical care, and each such hospital
51 shall display the posters prominently in its emergency room [posters
52 giving notification of the existence and general provisions of this
53 chapter]. The board [may] shall issue guidelines for the location of
54 such display [and shall provide posters, application forms and general
55 information regarding the provision of this chapter to each such hospi-
56 tal].
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1 § 5. Subdivision 2 of section 631 of the executive law, as amended by
2 chapter 233 of the laws of 2020, is amended to read as follows:
3 2. Any award made pursuant to this article shall be in an amount not
4 exceeding out-of-pocket expenses, including indebtedness reasonably
5 incurred for medical or other services necessary as a result of the
6 injury upon which the claim is based; loss of earnings or support
7 resulting from such injury not to exceed thirty thousand dollars; loss
8 of savings not to exceed thirty thousand dollars; burial expenses not
9 exceeding [six] twelve thousand dollars [of a victim who died on or
10 after November first, nineteen ninety-six as a direct result of a
11 crime]; the costs of crime scene cleanup and securing of a crime scene
12 not exceeding twenty-five hundred dollars; reasonable relocation
13 expenses not exceeding twenty-five hundred dollars; reasonable employ-
14 ment-related transportation expenses, not exceeding twenty-five hundred
15 dollars and the unreimbursed cost of repair or replacement of articles
16 of essential personal property lost, damaged or destroyed as a direct
17 result of the crime. An award for loss of earnings shall include earn-
18 ings lost by a parent or guardian as a result of the hospitalization of
19 a child victim under age eighteen for injuries sustained as a direct
20 result of a crime. In addition to the medical or other services neces-
21 sary as a result of the injury upon which the claim is based, an award
22 may be made for rehabilitative occupational training for the purpose of
23 job retraining or similar employment-oriented rehabilitative services
24 based upon the claimant's medical and employment history. For the
25 purpose of this subdivision, rehabilitative occupational training shall
26 include but not be limited to educational training and expenses. An
27 award for rehabilitative occupational training may be made to a victim,
28 or to a family member of a victim where necessary as a direct result of
29 a crime. An award for employment-related transportation expenses shall
30 be limited to the time period necessary due to the personal physical
31 injuries sustained as a direct result of the crime upon which the claim
32 is based, as determined by the medical information collected during the
33 investigation of the claim.
34 § 6. Subdivisions 4 and 5 of section 631 of the executive law, as
35 amended by section 22 of part A-1 of chapter 56 of the laws of 2010,
36 paragraph (e) of subdivision 5 as amended by chapter 70 of the laws of
37 2020, paragraph (f) of subdivision 5 as added by section 5 of part H of
38 chapter 55 of the laws of 2017, and paragraph (g) of subdivision 5 as
39 added by chapter 494 of the laws of 2018, are amended to read as
40 follows:
41 4. (a) Any award made pursuant to this article shall be reduced by the
42 amount of any payments received or to be received by the claimant as a
43 result of the injury from federal or federally financed state and local
44 programs.
45 (b) Any award made pursuant to this article [shall] may be reduced by
46 the amount of any payments received or to be received by the claimant as
47 a result of the injury [(a)] (i) from or on behalf of the person who
48 committed the crime, [(b)] (ii) under insurance programs mandated by
49 law, [(c) from public funds, (d)] (iii) under any contract of insurance
50 wherein the claimant is the insured or beneficiary, [(e)] (iv) as an
51 emergency award pursuant to section six hundred thirty of this article.
52 (c) Notwithstanding the [foregoing] provisions of paragraphs (a) and
53 (b) of this subdivision, where the person injured is a livery operator
54 victim, because undue hardship may result to the claimant if immediate
55 payment is not made, any award pursuant to paragraphs (f) and (g) of
56 subdivision one of section six hundred twenty-seven of this article
A. 5443 5
1 shall be granted without reduction for workers' compensation benefits to
2 be received, if any.
3 (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this
4 subdivision, any award made pursuant to this article shall not be
5 reduced by the amount of any payments received or to be received by the
6 claimant as a result of private donations, including but not limited to
7 funds raised through crowdfunding platforms.
8 5. (a) [In determining the amount of an award, the office shall deter-
9 mine whether, because of his conduct, the victim of such crime contrib-
10 uted to the infliction of his injury, and the office shall reduce the
11 amount of the award or reject the claim altogether, in accordance with
12 such determination.
13 (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivi-
14 sion, the office shall disregard for this purpose the responsibility of
15 the victim for his own injury where the record shows that the person
16 injured was acting as a good samaritan, as defined in this article.
17 (c)] Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this article, where
18 the person injured acted as a good samaritan, the office may, without
19 regard to the financial difficulty of the claimant, make an award for
20 out-of-pocket losses. Such award may also include compensation for any
21 loss of property up to five thousand dollars suffered by the victim
22 during the course of [his] their actions as a good samaritan.
23 [(d)] (b) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this article,
24 where a person acted as a good samaritan, and was killed as a direct
25 result of the crime, the office may, without regard to the financial
26 difficulty of the claimant, make a lump sum award to such claimant for
27 actual loss of support not to exceed thirty thousand dollars.
28 [(e)] (c) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of this article,
29 where a police officer or firefighter, both paid and volunteer, dies
30 from injuries received in the line of duty as a direct result of a
31 crime, the office may, without regard to the financial difficulty of the
32 claimant, make an award for the unreimbursed counseling expenses of the
33 eligible spouse, domestic partner, parents, [brothers, sisters] siblings
34 or children of such victim, and/or the reasonable burial expenses
35 incurred by the claimant.
36 [(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivi-
37 sion, the office shall disregard for this purpose the responsibility of
38 the victim for his or her own loss of savings.
39 (g) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivi-
40 sion, if the crime upon which the claim is based resulted in the death
41 of the victim, the office shall determine whether, because of his or her
42 conduct, the victim of such crime contributed to the infliction of his
43 or her injury, and the office may reduce the amount of the award by no
44 more than fifty percent, in accordance with such determination.]
45 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately.
