Ala. Admin. Code r. 262-X-1-.01 - General Information And Definitions
(1) Purpose: It is the intent of the
Legislature and the purpose of the Alabama Crime Victims Compensation
Commission (ACVCC) to provide financial and other assistance for victims of
violent crime for the allowable expenses that are incurred as a direct result
of victimization. Eligibility requirements are listed in the following
sections.
(2) Program Description:
ACVCC provides financial assistance for allowable expenses to victims of
violent crime who have suffered personal injury, psychological injury or death.
Compensation may be reduced or denied based on contribution to one's own
victimization as defined in the following sections. The program provides
compensation for a number of services, which are listed in the following
sections. ACVCC does not award compensation for expenses, which are paid by a
collateral source. The program also has a statutory entitlement to subrogation
when a claimant has received recovery from a collateral source after having
been paid by ACVCC.
The maximum amount of compensation that may be awarded in any one claim is $15,000.
(3)
The public may obtain information about the Commission by visiting its website
at www.acvcc.alabama.gov or calling
the Commission at 334.290.4420. Submissions to the agency should be mailed to
PO Box 231267; Montgomery, AL 36123-1267 or emailed to info@acvcc.alabama.gov.
Requests for public records should be emailed to
public.records@acvcc.alabama.gov or via mail to: ACVCC, Attn: General Counsel,
PO Box 231267, Montgomery, AL 36123-1267. A copy of the Commission's Public
Records Policy is available at
https://acvcc.alabama.gov/Public_Records.htm.
(4) The Commission will maintain a
Departmental Forms Index. The Departmental Forms Index (Appendix A) contains a
listing of all forms a claimant/victim may be required to complete and submit
in order to receive compensation benefits.
(a)
The Index will be updated when forms are added or removed.
(b) A copy of forms may be obtained by
following the guidelines in
262-X-1-.01(3).
(c) A list of internal forms excluded from
the Departmental Forms Index may be obtained by following the guidelines in
262-X-1-.01(3).
(5) Definitions: As used in these
rules the following words shall include but are not limited to the following
meanings unless the context clearly requires a different meaning:
(a) Commission. The Alabama Crime Victims
Compensation Commission as described in Chapter 262-X-2 of these
rules.
(b) Criminally Injurious
Conduct: Criminally injurious conduct includes any of the following acts:
1. An act occurring or attempted within the
geographical boundaries of this state which results in serious personal injury
or death to a victim for which punishment by fine, imprisonment or death may be
imposed; or
2. An act occurring or
attempted outside the geographical boundaries of this state in another state of
the United States of America which is punishable by fine, imprisonment or death
and which results in personal injury or death to a citizen of this state; and
shall include an act of terrorism, as defined in Section 2331 of title 18,
United States Code, committed outside of the United States, against a resident
of this state; provided, however, such a citizen at the time such act was
committed had a permanent place of residence in the geographical boundaries of
this state, and in addition thereto:
(i) Had
a permanent place of employment located within the geographical boundaries of
this state; or
(ii) Was a member of
the regular armed forces of the United States of America; or the United States
Coast Guard; or was a full-time member of the Alabama National Guard, Alabama
Air National Guard, U.S. Army Reserve, U.S. Naval Reserve, U.S. Air Force
Reserve; or
(iii) Was retired and
receiving Social Security or other retirement income; or
(iv) Was 60 years of age or older;
or
(v) Was temporarily in another
state of the United States of America for the purpose of receiving medical
treatment; or
(vi) Was temporarily
in another state of the United States of America for the purpose of performing
employment related duties required by an employer located within the
geographical boundaries of this state as an expressed condition of employment
or employee benefits; or
(vii) Was
temporarily in another state of the United States of America for the purpose of
receiving occupational, vocational or other job-related training or instruction
required by an employer located within the geographical boundaries of this
state as an expressed condition of full-time employment or employee benefits;
or
(viii) Was a full-time student
at an academic institution, college or university located in another state of
the United States of America; or
(ix) Had not departed the geographical
boundaries of this state for a period exceeding 30 days or with the intention
of becoming a citizen of another state or establishing a permanent place of
residence in another state.
The term 'criminally injurious conduct' shall not mean: An act committed outside the geographical boundaries of this state upon a person who was not at the time such act was committed a citizen of the State of Alabama or an act committed outside the geographical boundaries of this state upon a person who at the time such act was committed had departed the geographical boundaries of this state for the purpose of becoming a citizen of another state or for the purpose of establishing a permanent place of residence in another state.
(c) Victim. A person who suffered serious
personal injury, psychological injury as a result of a direct face to face
threat of physical injury or actual physical injury or death as a result of
criminally injurious conduct.
(d)
Dependent. A natural person wholly or partially dependent upon the victim for
care or support, and includes a child of the victim born after the death of the
victim when the death occurred as the result of criminally injurious
conduct.
(e) Claimant. Any of the
following persons applying for compensation under this chapter:
1. A victim;
2. A dependent of a deceased victim, if such
victim died as result of criminally injurious conduct; or
3. A person authorized to act on behalf of a
victim, or a dependent of a deceased victim if such victim died as a result of
criminally injurious conduct.
(f) Dependent spouse. The spouse of a
deceased victim, unless it is shown that he/she was voluntarily living apart
from the deceased victim for the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the
criminally injurious conduct that caused the victim's death and it is shown
that the deceased victim was not in any way contributing support to the
spouse.
(g) Dependent child. An
unmarried child under the age of nineteen (19) years for whom the deceased
victim was a significant source of direct support to the minor child in the
twelve (12) months immediately preceding the criminally injurious conduct that
caused the victim's death. A dependent child is also one over the age of
nineteen (19) who is physically or mentally incapacitated from earning and it
is shown that the deceased victim was a significant source of direct support to
the adult child in the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the criminally
injurious conduct that caused the victim's death. A dependent child is also one
over the age of nineteen (19), but under the age of twenty-six (26), who is
enrolled in college, technical school, or vocational school and it is shown
that the deceased victim was a significant source of direct support to the
adult child in the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the criminally
injurious conduct that caused the victim's death.
(h) Allowance Expense. Charges incurred for
needed products, services and accommodations, including but not limited to,
medical care, rehabilitation, rehabilitative occupational training, and other
remedial treatment and care. For incidents of criminally injurious conduct
occurring on or after October 1, 2014 through July 8, 2020, no more than seven
thousand dollars ($7,000.00) may be paid for expenses related to funeral,
cremation, or burial. For incidents of criminally injurious conduct occurring
on or after July 9,2020, no more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) may be
paid for expenses related to funeral, cremation, or burial.
(i) Work Loss. Loss of income from work the
victim would have performed if such person had not been injured or died,
reduced by any income from substitute work actually performed by the victim or
by income the victim would have earned in available appropriate substitute work
which he or she was capable of performing but unreasonably failed to undertake.
Work loss also includes loss of income of an offender charged with domestic
violence under Sections
13A-6-130,
13A-6-131, and
13A-6-132 when the victim was
residing with the offender at the time of commission of the offense and the
offender's income was a significant source of direct support for the
victim.
(j) Replacement Services
Loss. Expenses reasonably incurred in obtaining ordinary and necessary services
in lieu of those the victim would have performed, not for income, but for the
benefit of self or family, if the victim had not been injured or
died.
(k) Economic Loss of a
Dependent. A loss after the death of the victim of contributions of things of
economic value to the dependent, not including services which would have been
received from the victim if he or she had not suffered the fatal injury, less
expenses of the dependent avoided by reason of death of the victim.
(l) Replacement Services Loss of Dependent.
The loss reasonably incurred by dependents after death of the victim in
obtaining ordinary and necessary services in lieu of those that the deceased
victim would have performed for their benefit had the deceased victim not
suffered the fatal injury, less expenses of the dependent avoided by reason of
death of the victim and not subtracted in calculating the economic loss of the
dependent.
(m) Economic Loss.
Monetary detriment consisting only of allowable expense, work loss, replacement
services loss and, if injury causes death, economic loss and replacement
services loss of the dependent, but shall not include noneconomic loss, or
noneconomic detriment.
(n)
Noneconomic Loss or Detriment. Pain, suffering, inconvenience, physical
impairment and nonpecuniary damage.
(o) Collateral Source. The source of income,
financial or other benefits or advantages for economic loss other than the
compensation paid by the Compensation Commission which the claimant has
received or is entitled to receive or is readily available to the claimant from
any or more of the following:
1. The
offender;
2. The government of the
United States or any agency thereof, in the form of benefits, such as Social
Security, Medicare and Medicaid, a state or any of its subdivisions or an
instrumentality of two or more states, unless the law providing for the
benefits or advantages makes them excessive or secondary to the benefits under
this chapter;
3. Any temporary
nonoccupational disability insurance;
4. Workman's compensation;
5. Wage continuation programs of any
employer;
6. Proceeds of a contract
of insurance payable to the claimant for loss which the victim sustained
because of the criminally injurious conduct; or
7. A contract providing prepaid hospital and
other health care services or benefits for disability.
(p) Immediate Family. Immediate family for
purposes of determining compensation eligibility shall mean spouse, child, and
parent/legal guardian. Except when unusually strong personal ties exist, due to
the victim or family member having been reared by a person of some relationship
other than which is provided for in this definition for a period of twenty-four
consecutive months or longer, this relationship may be considered as immediate
family at the discretion of the Commission.
Notes
Author: Everette L. Johnson
Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, ยงยง 15-23-5(14).
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