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Bill would add public members with victim‑service experience to Crime Victims Reparations Committee
Summary
Sen. Wendy DeBoer sponsored LB 499 to expand the Crime Victims Reparations (CVR) Committee membership and add members with direct victim and trauma‑service experience; victim‑service groups and child‑advocacy centers supported the change as improving trauma‑informed decision making for reparations claims.
Senator Wendy DeBoer introduced LB 499 to increase the membership of the Crime Victims Reparations (CVR) Committee and to specify that some public members have direct experience with victim services or be themselves a survivor of crime.
DeBoer summarized the committee’s role: the CVR panel reviews and approves applications for the state crime victims reparations fund that can pay for medical care, counseling, funeral expenses and other losses related to reported crimes. She described prior interim work (LR412 and LB 757 in 2023) that identified administrative gaps and said LB 499 is another step toward a more trauma‑informed and responsive program.
Supporters included the Nebraska Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence and the Nebraska Alliance of Child Advocacy Centers. Kristen McTaggart of the Coalition said the change will help the committee better understand trauma‑related behavior and the needs of victims whose claims the board evaluates. Ivy Svoboda of the child advocacy centers stressed that including professionals who work directly with child victims ensures committee members have access to evidence‑based, multidisciplinary perspectives when reviewing claims and appeals.
Proponents said the bill imposes no new fiscal cost and that prior statute changes have already improved timeliness for some applicants. DeBoer said an amendment corrects an omission in the bill’s introduced text to include assault of a child as an enumerated qualifying offense.
The committee took testimony and the sponsor closed; no vote occurred that day.
