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February 22, 2024 SB 24-120
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
Fiscal Note
Drafting Number:
Prime Sponsors:
LLS 24-0636
Sen. Fields
Date:
Bill Status:
Fiscal Analyst:
February 22, 2024
Senate Judiciary
Aaron Carpenter | 303-866-4918
aaron.carpenter@coleg.gov
Bill Topic: UPDATES TO THE CRIME VICTIM COMPENSATION ACT
Summary of
Fiscal Impact:
☒ State Revenue
☒ State Expenditure
☐ State Transfer
☒ TABOR Refund
☒ Local Government
☐ Statutory Public Entity
The bill makes several updates to victim compensation. Starting in FY 2024-25, the bill
will increase state and local revenue and expenditures.
Appropriation
Summary:
No appropriation is required for the Crime Victim Compensation Fund.
Fiscal Note
Status:
The fiscal note reflects the introduced bill.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts Under SB 24-120
Budget Year
FY 2024-25
Out Year
FY 2025-26
Revenue Cash Funds $214,768 $248,287
Expenditures Cash Funds up to $214,768
up to $248,287
$243,386
Transfers - -
Other Budget Impacts TABOR Refunds $214,768
$248,287
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February 22, 2024 SB 24-120
Summary of Legislation
The bill makes several modifications to the victim compensation program including changing
award approval requirements, what losses are eligible for reimbursement, increasing the amount
of funding that may be used for administrative expenses, and placing a surcharge on criminal
actions that result in alternative sentencing.
Approval requirements. Under current law, a person eligible for compensation must notify law
enforcement of a crime within 72 hours of the perpetration of the crime and must submit an
application within one year of the date of the injury. The bill clarifies that the requirement to
notify law enforcement is met when the person provides documentation of a forensic
examination conducted by a nurse or medical provider.
Compensable losses. Only certain losses are eligible for victim compensation. The bill removes
outpatient care and homemaker and home health services as compensable losses and adds:
replacement services losses;
funeral expenses;
reasonable travel expenses related to funeral, burial, medical care, counseling, and attending
critical events during the criminal justice process unless the victim is subpoenaed to testify;
dependent care services;
payment of the deductible on a motor vehicle insurance policy;
reasonable relocation expenses;
towing or impound fees; and
repair or replacement of medically necessary devices.
The bill clarifies that compensable loss related to repairing property applies to residential
property and makes motor vehicle expenses not related to insurance or rekeying the vehicle
non-compensable.
Deducting compensation approval from collateral sources. Under current law, a victim
compensation board must deduct from an applicant’s overall compensation approval any
payments the applicant receives from the offender, the government, a private source, or an
emergency approval of compensation. The bill allows but does not require this deduction.
Compensation to relatives. The bill adds funeral expenses to the list of eligible expenses that
are compensated for relatives of a victim.
Emergency approvals. Under current law, a board may approve emergency compensation up
to $2,000. The bill removes this cap and allows a board to set its own cap.
Administrative expense. The bill increases the amount district attorneys and the court
executive may use for administrative expenses, from 12 to 22.5 percent, with district attorneys
allowed to use 20 percent and the court executive allowed to use 2.5 percent.
Victim compensation surcharge. Finally, the bill establishes a new $33 surcharge on each
criminal action that results in placement in an alternative sentencing program (diversion
surcharge), and removes the court’s ability to waive victim compensation surcharges for
indigency. Page 3
February 22, 2024 SB 24-120
Assumptions
Indigence waivers. Based on FY 2019-20 and FY 2020-21 data from the Judicial Department,
there were about 1,352 traffic cases, 2,406 misdemeanor cases, and 4,201 felony cases that were
assessed a victim compensation penalty, of which one-third received a waiver for indigence.
Inability to pay. The bill precludes the court from waiving fees for indigence; however, certain
offenders will not have the funds to pay the diversion surcharge even if required by a court. The
fiscal note assumes that 30 percent of individuals who received an indigence waiver, as
discussed above, or 10 percent of all offenders, will be unable to pay.
State Revenue
The bill will increase state revenue to the Crime Victim Compensation Fund by $215,000 in
FY 2024-25 and $248,000 in FY 2025-26 and ongoing from the new surcharge and removing
indigence waivers, as described below.
Fee impact on offenders. Colorado law requires legislative service agency review of measures
which create or increase any fee collected by a state agency. These fee amounts are either
outlined in the bill (the surcharge in cases of alternative sentencing) or represent the average
assessment issued by the courts for certain offenses. The table below identifies the fee impact of
this bill, and more information about each source of revenue is explained in more detail below.
Table 2
Fee Impact on Offenders
Year Type of Fee Assessment
Number
Affected
Percent
Collected
Total Fee
Impact
FY
24-25
Diversion Surcharge $33.00 1,215 55% $22,052
Waived Indigence – Traffic $40.00 446 28% $4,995
Waived Indigence – Misdemeanor $78.00 794 38% $23,534
Waived Indigence – Felony $163.00 1399 72% $164,187
FY 2024-25 Total $214,768
FY
25-26
Diversion Surcharge $33.00 1,215 55% $22,052
Waived Indigence – Traffic $40.00 446 28% $4,995
Waived Indigence - Misdemeanor $78.00 794 38% $23,534
Waived Indigence – Felony $163.00 1399 72% $164,187
Prior-Year Collections - - - $33,518
FY 2025-26 Total $248,287
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February 22, 2024 SB 24-120
Diversion surcharge. Starting in FY 2024-25, revenue to the Crime Victim Compensation Fund
will increase due to the new $33 diversion surcharge on offenses that result in placement in an
alternative sentencing program. Based on Judicial data analyzed by Legislative Council Staff,
there were about 1,350 diverted sentences in FY 2022-23. Applying the ability to pay assumption
outlined above, it is estimated that 135 individuals will be unable to pay the new surcharge. Of
the remaining individuals, based on Judicial Department collection rates for other victim
compensation assessments, it is assumed 55 percent of the diversion surcharge assessed will be
collected in the fiscal year. It is unknown what the collection rate of district attorney offices will
be; therefore, actual revenue may vary.
Waiving indigence. By removing the ability for the court to waive a victim assessment due to
indigence, the bill will increase revenue from requiring payment from individuals that receive a
waiver. Applying the ability to pay assumption outlined above, the fiscal note estimates that an
additional 446 traffic offenses, 794 misdemeanor cases, and 1,399 felony cases will be assessed a
victim compensation assessment. Based on Judicial Department collection rates for each of
these offenses (28 percent for traffic offenses, 38 percent for misdemeanor offenses, and
72 percent for felony offenses), the fiscal note further estimates how much will be collected in
one fiscal year, as outlined in Table 2.
Prior year collections. Starting in FY 2025-26, revenue will increase from collections of
assessments that were assessed in the prior fiscal year. It is estimated that 12 percent of the
diversion surcharge, 14 percent of the waived traffic assessment, 12 percent of the waived
misdemeanor assessment, and 8 percent of the waived felony assessment will be collected.
State Expenditures
Starting in FY 2024-25, bill increases workload within the Judicial Department and may increase
expenditures from the Crime Victim Compensation Fund, as described below.
Judicial Department. Workload within the Judicial Department will increase to update its
information technology system to create a new financial code, and for accounting staff to
update ledgers and spreadsheets to track the new revenue, and to make payments to each
judicial districts. All work can be accomplished within existing workload and no change in
appropriations is required.
Victim compensation. By increasing revenue to the Crime Victim Compensation Fund,
expenditures from the fund will also increase to award more compensation. Exact increases will
depend upon funding decisions by each individual judicial district’s victim compensation board.
In addition, the bill may change individual compensation awards in two ways. First, by increasing
administrative expenses, there may be less money available for victim compensation awards.
Second, by changing the requirements on how to get an award, and what is eligible for
reimbursement, the number of individuals receiving compensation and the size of individual
awards may increase, which may decrease award amounts in other areas. The fiscal note
assumes that victim compensation boards will make compensation award decisions within the
available funds.
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February 22, 2024 SB 24-120
Other Budget Impacts
TABOR refunds. The bill is expected to increase the amount of state revenue required to be
refunded to taxpayers by the amounts shown in the State Revenue section above. This estimate
assumes the December 2023 LCS revenue forecast. A forecast of state revenue subject to TABOR
is not available beyond FY 2025-26. Because TABOR refunds are paid from the General Fund,
increased cash fund revenue will reduce the amount of General Fund available to spend or save.
Local Government
District attorneys. Starting in FY 2024-25, the bill will increase workload for district attorney
offices that run diversion programs to collect and transmit the diversion surcharge. In addition,
revenue to district attorney offices will increase from retaining additional victim compensation
funds for administrative purposes, as allowed under the bill.
Victim compensation boards. Starting in FY 2024-25, the bill will increase revenue to, and may
increase expenditures in victim compensation boards. The exact revenue increase to each board
will be dependent upon the number of diversion cases in each judicial district and the number
of waived indigence cases there currently are in the judicial district. In addition, the exact
increase in expenditures will be dependent upon compensation award decisions made by each
board.
Effective Date
The bill takes effect upon signature of the Governor, or upon becoming law without his
signature, and applies to compensation approvals on or after this date.
State and Local Government Contacts
District Attorneys Judicial Public Safety
The revenue and expenditure impacts in this fiscal note represent changes from current law under the bill for each
fiscal year. For additional information about fiscal notes, please visit the General Assembly website.