JLC C.S.S.B. 987 75(R) BILL ANALYSIS APPROPRIATIONS C.S.S.B. 987 By: Moncrief (Gallego) 5-9-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND The Texas Crime Victims' Compensation Fund was created in 1979 to serve as a financial safety net for victims of crime. The primary purpose of the fund is to reimburse victims for any out of pocket expenses incurred as a result of crime. The money in the fund comes directly from convicted offenders in the form of court costs and other fees. Administration of the Fund is governed by the Subchapter B, Code of Criminal Procedure, the Crime Victim's Compensation Act. During the 73rd Regular Legislative Session, the Act was amended to increase the amount paid by offenders into the fund. As a result, the monies in the fund have steadily increased over the past three years. These additional dollars have allowed the legislature to expand the program, thereby reaching a greater number of victims with more assistance. Currently, the amount of monies deposited to the credit of the fund exceeds the amount of monies necessary to provide compensation to victims of crime, while other victim-related needs go unfulfilled. State agencies, other than the Attorney General, that also provide crime victimrelated assistance are under funded, while monies that could provide assistance in a form other than compensation are unspent. PURPOSE H.B. 2628 allows for excess money in the Victims of Crime Fund and the Auxiliary Fund to be transferred to the general revenue fund. This bill allows the legislature to appropriate money from these funds to state agencies delivering or funding victim-related services or assistance. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill grants additional rulemaking authority to the attorney general in SECTION 2 (adding Article 56.541, Code of Criminal Procedure). SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Article 56.54, Code of Criminal Procedure is amended to allow for funds from the compensation to victims of crime fund to be transferred to the general revenue fund. Subsection (i) is added to allow the legislature to appropriate money in the compensation to victims of crime fund or compensation to victims of crime auxiliary fund to state agencies delivering or funding victim-related services or assistance for the upcoming biennium. This allowance expires August 31, 1998. SECTION 2. The attorney general shall estimate, before July 2 of each year, the amount of money to be credited to the fund during the next fiscal year and the amount expected to be obligated. If the attorney general estimates the amount credited to exceed obligations by more than $100 million, the comptroller shall transfer all funds over $100 million to the general revenue fund. The attorney general may use the interest accrued on money in the funds for grants or contracts supporting victim-related services or assistance, and shall adopt the rules necessary to carry out these requirements. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1997. The attorney general is required to make the first estimates regarding the funds for the fiscal year beginning September 1, 1998. SECTION 4. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE Revises SECTION 1. (h) and (i) by eliminating the purposes of the funds and the definition of victim which is defined elsewhere in the chapter. Adds a new SECTION 2. Deletes previous SECTION 2. Making and exception. Appropriation of excess money for other crime VICTIM ASSISTANCE. Deletes previous SECTION 3. Deletes previous SECTION 4. FUGITIVE APPREHENSION ACCOUNT. SECTION 5. Becomes SECTION 3. Effective date. Deletes language to transfer $8million to Fugitive Apprehension Account. Deletes previous SECTION 6. Which transfered $650,000 for DNA TESTING FUND.