Bill would create state-run fund supporting sex abuse survivors

By Cayla Harris
Albany Times-Union
November 11, 2019

https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Bill-would-create-state-run-fund-supporting-14826394.php

Senator James F. Gaughran, pictured at a May 2019 committee meeting, is pushing a new bill that would create a fund to help child sex abuse survivors file civil claims. Photo by Phoebe Sheehan

Senator Alessandra Biaggi, pictured at a February 2019 press conference, is co-sponsoring a bill that would create a fund to help survivors of child sex abuse. Photo by Lori Van Buren

Gary Greenberg, a New York businessman and founder of Fighting for Children PAC, center, speaks during a press conference to bring attention to the Child Victims Act on Monday, Jan. 14, 2019, at the Legislative Office Building in Albany, N.Y. Greenberg has waged a years-long effort advocating New York lawmakers to pass the Child Victims Act. He said he was raped as a 7-year-old boy by a hospital worker. The Child Victims Act expected to pass this month after being blocked by Senate GOP for years. Photo by Will Waldron

A view of a billboard with a message paid for by Kat Sullivan, a survivor of child sex abuse, seen here on Monday, April 16, 2018, in Albany, N.Y. The billboard, seen in the background, is located along Interstate 787. Photo by Paul Buckowski

Fund would offer aid to nonprofits pursuing civil suits against alleged abusers

State lawmakers are proposing legislation to create a state-operated private fund to help survivors of child sex crimes pursue civil cases against their alleged abusers.

The legislation, spearheaded by Sen. James Gaughran, D-Long Island, would create a "Child Victim Foundation Fund" run jointly by the Department of Taxation and Finance, the Division of Criminal Justice Services and the comptroller's office. New Yorkers would be able to donate to the fund when they file their taxes, and people convicted of child sex crimes would contribute to the pool in the form of a $1,000 fine.

Under the proposal, the state would also allocate grants to nonprofit organizations that help survivors litigate child abuse claims.

“I decided that rather than try to create some new bureaucracy that would deal with this, that it would make a lot more sense in that we’ve got some great legal not-for-profits, and they could apply for grants to carry out this program,” Gaughran said.

The legislation builds upon the Child Victims Act, which in August opened a one-year “look-back” window temporarily eliminating the statute of limitations for survivors of child sex abuse to sue their alleged abusers.

The act also permanently extended the statute of limitations for both criminal and civil cases involving survivors of child sex abuse, allowing victims to file civil cases until they are 55 years old and criminal complaints until they are 28. Previously, the cutoff for both claims was age 23.

A number of state senators have been weighing a supplemental fund to aid survivors as they evaluated early feedback about the look-back period. Advocates and lawmakers have tapped into concerns that survivors hoping to lodge claims against individuals without large assets are having difficulty finding lawyers to tackle their cases.

The large majority of the more than 1,000 cases filed so far have been against deep-pocketed institutions such as the Catholic Church or the Boy Scouts of America.

Gaughran said the fund might be difficult to implement in time for this year’s tax-return cycle, since some people may start filing their taxes before the bill is voted on by the Legislature, which is scheduled to return to Albany in January. That timing may impact how many Child Victims Act cases the fund would support since the window for filing claims is scheduled to end in August, although some lawmakers are discussing extending the one-year period.

Still, individuals would be able to donate to the fund directly, and the $1,000 fine would go into effect immediately.

"The point is that we don't want this issue to just be a one-year thing that people are talking about this year, and then all of the sudden the bill doesn't have as much conversation around it or as much strength,” said state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, a Bronx Democrat who co-sponsored the legislation.