N001795
Tuesday, January 15, 2002 6:48 PM
9/11 Victims' Compensation Fund/Kenneth Feinberg, Esq.
Dear Mr. Feinberg:
My husband , along with 34 of his
co-workers was tragically killed in the September 11th
attack on the WTC. They were employees of .
I am writing to you to voice my concerns and
objections to the Department of Justice's September
11th Victims Compensation Fund. It was my
understanding that Congress set up the fund to ensure
that the airlines bail out would not come at the
expense of the victim's families. The act mandates
full and fair compensation to victims and their
families for their actual economic and non-economic
damages.
The DOJ has ignored this mandate and instead has
written arbitrary regulations that will result in
compensation levels far below the losses actually
suffered by us. The DOJ's formula for non-economic
damages is $250,000. for the person killed and
$50,000. for the spouse and each dependent. Normally
non-economic damage awards run well into the
seven-figure range. This dramatic undervaluation of
presumed non-economic damages runs contrary to
Congress's general intent to provide full and fair
compensation.
Also, the method used to calculate economic damages
are based on federal workers' incomes and not the
higher-paying private sector. The cap placed on a
victim's income at $231,000. per annum, combined with
the offset for collateral damage further erodes the
compensation we would receive from this fund.
The DOJ should fulfill the act's intent by revising
the rules to compensate victims and their families for
the types of damages specified by Congress at levels
comparable to those provided in the tort system the
fund was designed to replace.
I would greatly appreciate your consideration and
attention to the aforementioned matters.
Sincerely,
Individual Comment
Bayside, NY