|
Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season filled with relaxation and reflection. As we embark on 2025, we're proud to recognize CalVCB's 60th anniversary serving crime victims. In 1965, California led the nation as the first state to provide compensation to victims of violent crime, and over the past six decades, we've approved more than 1.7 million applications and issued over $2.7 billion in compensation.
As we build on the achievements of the past, this January we’re releasing our 2025-2028 strategic plan. We’ve reflected on our successes, gathered valuable feedback, and mapped out future steps to enhance our services, operations, and policies. With insights from stakeholders and staff, we’re committed to promoting equitable access to CalVCB services, improving user experience through innovative technology, and fostering a dedicated workforce. I’m eager to see all we’ll achieve with this updated plan, and I encourage you to continue to share feedback and insights to help us make a positive impact. |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| I’m also excited to announce that our technology team is updating our online portal this month so community-based organizations and government agencies can access it to help victims of crime file applications online and assist victims who filed paper applications. You’ll find more details about these enhancements below, and I hope your teams will take advantage of this portal to better assist the victims you serve.
In partnership, Lynda |
| | Reminders:CalVCB Webinars: Available Resources for Human Trafficking Victims and How to Apply (Thursday, Jan. 16, and Tuesday, Jan. 21), CalVCB Advocate Portal Updates (Wednesday, Jan. 29), How to Complete a CalVCB Application (Tuesday, Feb. 18).
CalVCB will be closed on Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 20), President’s Day (Feb. 17), and Cesar Chavez Day (Mar. 31).
The next CalVCB Board meeting is Thursday, Jan. 16, at 10 a.m.
|
| | Get Access to CalVCB’s Advocate Portal |
| Community organizations and government partners can use CalVCB’s Advocate Portal to help victims of crime file applications online and assist victims who filed paper applications.
Using CalVCB Online is beneficial for victims, advocates, and CalVCB. When an application is submitted online, applicants can immediately access important information about their claim. What information is in the Advocate Portal? The Advocate Portal includes information for applications submitted on or after Jan. 1, 2013, by paper, fax, or online. It allows advocates to help victims complete their applications and get real-time updates on the following information: Application status The victim’s remaining benefit amounts by type Bills paid – Advocates can view the Bill ID, service date, billed amount, status, and paid amount. Advocates cannot see the payee or download the bill document Correspondence sent from CalVCB – Advocates can view the type of the correspondence, the date it was sent and the bill ID if related to a bill. Advocates cannot download the document. The advocate organization and the representative assigned to the application
How do I get access? First, your organization will need to determine who will be the Advocate Portal Administrators. The Administrators will be responsible for ensuring all users are active, deactivating users who have left the organization, and assigning applications to advocates. CalVCB suggests each organization have at least two administrators so there is coverage in the office if one administrator is unavailable.
The Advocate Portal Administrator will need to send an email to [email protected] that includes the following: Names Titles Emails Organization name, address, and county Website address How does your organization serve victims of crime?
New accounts will be available by the end of January 2025.CalVCB will assist new Advocate Portal administrators for each office in getting onboarded to the portal.
How do I learn how to use the Portal? Once you have access to the Advocate Portal, the “Help” tab includes many resources, including a comprehensive guide, an orientation video, shorter self-help videos, and an FAQ document.
In 2025, CalVCB will kick off an Advocate Portal webinar series. During these webinars we will share information about the Advocate Portal and host listening sessions to get feedback from users.
The first webinar will be on Wednesday, Jan. 29, from 10-11:30 a.m. |
| | | | Human Trafficking Prevention Month |
|  | In January, CalVCB will join with organizations worldwide to recognize Human Trafficking Prevention Month.
During Fiscal Year 2023-24, CalVCB approved 296 applications submitted by human trafficking victims and compensated claimants more than $4.1 million dollars.
Much of the compensation comes as a result of Assembly Bill 629, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2020. The bill allows human trafficking victims to receive up to $10,000 a year in income loss for a maximum of two years.
As a reminder, human trafficking victims can also apply for compensation for mental health and medical treatment, relocation, and home security.
To better explain the compensation available for human trafficking victims, what is required on the application, and accepted documentation, CalVCB will host two webinars on Thursday, Jan. 16, and Tuesday, Jan. 21. Once you register on Zoom, you will receive a link to the session. Meeting materials will be sent in advance. |
|
| Human Trafficking Compensation Payments by Category, FY 23/24 Income and Support Loss - $4,096,293
Mental Health - $50,747
Relocation - $32,998
Security - $4,880
Medical - $1,038 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | CalVCB also created a digital toolkit containing social media posts and graphics. We encourage you to use this resource and tag us in your content. |
| | | New Laws to Support Survivors |
| Several news laws to support domestic violence and human trafficking survivors took effect on Jan. 1, 2025. The laws include victim-funding, raising awareness, strengthening protections for victims in emergency rooms, and improving law enforcement training. |
| | | | On Dec. 12, Kristina Rose, Director of the Office of Victims of Crime, provided a monthly update. She spoke about the status of the Crime Victims Fund (CVF), which funds the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) grants that are distributed to state programs. In California, CalVCB administers VOCA Compensation grants to provide direct compensation to victims of crime, while Cal OES administers VOCA Assistance grants, which they distribute to local organizations that assist victims.
In recent years, the balance of the CVF has declined. This caused reductions in 2024 VOCA Assistance grants and created the need for a General Fund backfill to preserve Cal OES’s funding of local assistance organizations. While CalVCB’s grant was not affected, there is concern that a continued decline in the CVF balance could lead to similar reductions in VOCA Compensation grants.
The CVF is largely funded by criminal federal fines and settlements with corporations, which are unpredictable in their amount and timing. The Director noted a deposit made from Telefonica in the amount of $82 million in November, following sizeable deposits from Citibank and Raytheon in October. The current balance of the CVF is over $4.1 billion. However, fines against British American Tobacco and Binance totaling $1.9 billion are currently being held due to pending litigation, leaving $2.2 billion available for use in federal fiscal year 2025. The Director believes this balance puts the CVF in a good financial position for the coming year. |
| | | The Board approved the following 2025 meeting calendar in November. Jan. 16 Mar. 20 May 15 July 17 Sept. 18 Nov. 20
Meetings are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and take place in person in Sacramento and online via Zoom. A YouTube link is also available to watch the meeting live online.
Meeting materials are posted online in advance.
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | | | Trauma Recovery Center (TRC) grant applications are being accepted until Jan. 24, 2025, by 2 p.m.
TRCs with two-year grant cycles ending on June 30, 2025, are not guaranteed continued funding, but may apply for a consecutive grant.
Information about the grants is available online.
CalVCB also hosted a webinar to answer questions and posted the link online (passcode 5#c@@d76) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | National Crime Victims’ Rights Week |
| National Crime Victims' Rights Week is April 6-12, 2025.
CalVCB would like to be involved in your remembrances and events. Additionally, we can issue your county or organization a proclamation acknowledging the work you do for victims.
Email [email protected] with your request. |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | | | The Application Search page includes an Assign Application(s) pane that Portal Administrators can use for workload management. Online and paper applications from the advocate’s county are both available for assignment. For applications that are assigned to the office, the Portal Administrator can assign them to an advocate user.
If an advocate user will be on vacation or taking a leave of absence, applications can be reassigned to another advocate user while they are away. Alternatively, if the advocate user shares a list of their active application IDs with whoever is covering for them, those individuals will be able to see the same information as the assigned advocate user because they are in the same county.
If an advocate user leaves the office, the Portal Administrator can use this page to review and reassign their applications to other advocate users in their office. Remember to deactivate their account!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|  | | County-by-County Application Numbers |
|  |  |
|
|
|
| |
|
