In cases where a language barrier interferes with victims receiving appropriate services, the OVS has contrated with Language Line to ensure that any victim may be able to be informed of the eligibility requirements, availalbe benfits and have their questions answered.

 OVS staff attend a bi-monthly Human Trafficking Task Force meeting in an effort to network and brainstorm with members of the task force in ways to better recognize, approach, and serve victims of human trafficking in Pennsylvania. This has resulted in compensation trainings to advocates who work with human trafficking victims and in establishing a single point within VCAP for all human trafficking victims. 



 Staff provided Compensation trainings to Immigrant and Refugee staff as well as the  entire Mexican Consulate.  A presentation was also presented at the Regional Comp ensation Conference on ?Reaching Underserved Populations.? 

 

Information received at a previous training from a FBI Victim Services Coordinator on providing services to federal crime victims, was reviewed with staff.  An update training is being planned for 2008. 

A needs assessment has been conducted to obtain an accurate appraisal of the current situation as it relates to service provision to victims of crime, knowledge and enforcement of victim's rights, funding and staffing levels, and barriers encountered when providing services to victims. The survey was conducted online using the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) website and was completed by the Executive Director or Director of subgrantees. 



Furthermore, PCCD?s Office of Victims? Services developed questions for a phone survey regarding the Victim Compensation Assistance Program, as well as the public?s awareness of crime victim rights in the State, which were deployed in this study. A total of 862 telephone interviews with adult Pennsylvanians age 18 or older were conducted between September 23, 2006 and November 14, 2006. The sampling error for the poll is plus or minus 3.4 percentage points where the distribution of responses is 50 percent. The sample drawn for the 2006 poll consisted of telephone numbers selected at random from all of Pennsylvania?s telephone exchanges using a random-digit-dialing sampling procedure. This sampling technique guaranteed that every telephone household in Pennsylvania had an equal chance of being selected. Moreover, a randomized respondent selection technique ensured that every adult within each sampled household had an equal probability of being interviewed. Results and analysis should be available in late January 2008.



Pennsylvania became the first (and currently only) state where victims can file a compensation claim themselves online using an automotive system.  This system is called Dependable Access for Victimization Expenses (DAVE). Eight DAVE trainings have been held across Pennsylvania. 

 

A major new training initiative this year was the addition of online training for victim Service providers.  In addition, the Notification Booklet was revised with a vastly improved readability level along with an initiative to use ?plain English? in all materials.  



Working under a grant awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), Pennsylvania's Statewide Automated Victim Information & Notification (SAVIN) system will allow the state to implement a unified, centralized notification solution that will notify crime victims, law enforcement and the community of changes in offender movement (such as releases, transfers, and escapes) at the local county correctional facilities.

See attached information

Notable trends that present as current issues include the impact decreasing funding has on the programming.  Many programs have been barely able to maintain positions and have been trying to get by through not filling empty positions or by restructuring. Many of the programs report they have had to turn all of their energies to just providing basic services, rather than taking on new initiatives or looking toward expansion.  Another trend that, perhaps is related, is an increase programs are noticing in the number of victims with multiple problems; for instance, victims who are also mentally ill or drug and alcohol dependent. While these issues are not new, the number of victims presenting with multiple problems has increased at the same time that the available community resources to assist them have decreased.  



Furthermore, another notable trend seen is an increase in services to victims with Limited English Proficiency.  This is being accomplished by starting 24 hour hotlines for Hispanic/Latina crime victims, having the availability of language line, brochures available in several different Asian languages, etc.  



Utilizing the Internet is another trend that is emerging. Many programs are increasing particular services via the Internet or web based.  For example, doing Protection From Abuse orders through video conferencing on-line, making it easier and safer for the victims.  

Expenditures charge/transferred to federal administrative grants are eligible expenditures net of any state match. 



Examples of expenditures are salary/benefits of staff assigned an internal order, designating 100 percent of their activity as related to the federal grant, and salary/benefit costs of the Office of Financial Management and Administration as determined through the use of time sheets.



If it is determined that federal funding will exceed personnel/benefit costs, operating expenditures are charged as incurred for the specific benefiting program for travel, printing and office supplies.  Other methods used to allocate operation costs are: postage, leases of photocopy machines and paper ? based on historic usage as captured by codes placed on equipment; real estate lease, based on square footage; other miscellaneous charges, prorated across all benefiting programs.