N001613
Tuesday, January 15, 2002 10:51 AM
Disappointment with deduction of collateral resources from
potential awards
Dear Mr.Zwick:
I am writing to express my disappointment with the rules outlined for
the Federal Victims Compensation Fund, particularly the rules which
would deduct collateral resources from any award amount. I was told
that the purpose of this fund was to provide victims with an alternative
to the long and costly litigation process. After reviewing the rules
outlined by Mr. Feinberg, I determined that the fund would clearly not
provide ANY financial assistance to my family. By deducting collateral
resources from the calculated award, my family would receive NOTHING
from the fund. This cannot have been the intention of the authors of
the statute.
Regarding these collateral deductions Mr. Feinberg stated:
??after we compute economic loss and non-economic loss, that gross
number must then result in a deduction for collateral offsets.
?Why? The statute requires it. The statute states that certain --
certain awards, certain compensation, certain benefits to victims must
be offset -- such as life insurance or other death-benefit programs.?
Feinberg weasels out of this by stating that he is only doing what the
statute requires. The answer to his dilemma is simple ? CHANGE THE
STATUTE. Legislation like this has never been passed in our country
before. It was written in a hurry and everyone agrees there are flaws.
It is imperative that the statute be changed now, before great
injustices are committed and terrible precedents are set.
He refers to private life insurance as a ?death benefit program?, as if
it is something sponsored by the federal government. Private life
insurance is an individual choice and not something that the government
should penalize some for having (while rewarding others for not having
it). It is not as if the federal government would be paying these
families twice. The amount the families have been compensated by
private insurance companies should have no effect on the award from the
Federal Victims Compensation Fund.
Individual Comment