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Legislators wrestle with size, timing of YDC settlement funding; attorneys and outreach cited as complicating factors
Summary
House Finance included $10 million for a named YDC settlement and $10 million per year for two subsequent years for the Sununu Youth Development Center settlement fund, but committee members said the full anticipated liability could be far larger and noted legal and administrative complications.
Representative Dan McGuire, chair of Division 1 for the House Finance Committee, described the YDC settlement fund the committee added to the budget and said the administration of historic abuse claims at the Sununu Youth Development Center remains an active and uncertain issue.
"We first of all, the AG's office asked us to fund one particular settlement at the amount of $10,000,000 that's for a victim named Gilpatrick. And we did so. And then we put in $10,000,000 per year for the next two years," McGuire said when summarizing how the House set aside money for YDC claims.
Committee members and presenters noted that a wider set of claims remains in process. McGuire said roughly $160 million has already been placed into a settlement fund, but some House members and staff offered higher estimates of potential exposure: McGuire described rough modeling that a pool of about 1,500 eligible claims at an average award near $500,000 would imply aggregate exposure in the range of $750 million. He also said the proposed annual funding level in the House falls short of the $75 million-per-year assumption embedded in earlier settlement plans.
Several House members warned that large, early appropriations can attract litigation advertising and create pressure for larger settlements. McGuire described concerns that contingency-fee arrangements can reduce funds available to claimants and urged caution on how much lump-sum money to deposit at once. "If you put too much money in there again it becomes a target," he said.
The House package provides a $10 million appropriation tied to a named settlement and adds $10 million in each of the next two years to the claims administration fund; McGuire and other members said the AG's office and settlement coordinator continue to negotiate claims and that additional legislative action could be required depending on application and award filings.
The Senate Finance Committee will review the House approach and hear further testimony from the attorney general's office and claims administrators about expected claims counts, average awards and administrative costs.
