92794 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

1This rule uses the term ‘‘child pornography,’’ 

instead of the currently preferred term ‘‘child 

sexual abuse material,’’ to match the language used 

in the Act. To avoid using the term ‘‘child 

pornography’’ in resource and application materials 

directed to potential claimants, however, the 

Department will describe the Child Pornography 

Victims Reserve established by the Act as the 

‘‘Defined Monetary Assistance Victims Reserve’’ in 

such resource and application materials. 

of paragraph (c)(1), insert the word 

‘‘the’’ between ‘‘on’’ and ‘‘nature’’. 

Aron L. Cosby, 

Federal Register Liaison, Publications and 

Regulations Branch, Legal Processing 

Division, Associate Chief Counsel, (Procedure 

and Administration). 

[FR Doc. 2024–27427 Filed 11–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4830–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

28 CFR Part 81 

[Docket No. CRM 120; AG Order No. 6090– 

2024] 

RIN 1105–AB57 

Implementing the Child Pornography 

Victims Reserve 

AGENCY: Department of Justice. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule finalizes with 

changes the Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (‘‘NPRM’’) published by 

Department of Justice (‘‘Department’’ or 

‘‘DOJ’’) to implement the Amy, Vicky, 

and Andy Child Pornography Victim 

Assistance Act of 2018, which 

established the Child Pornography 

Victims Reserve to provide defined 

monetary assistance to eligible 

individuals who are depicted in child 

pornography that is the basis for certain 

convictions. 

DATES: This final rule is effective 

November 25, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Catherine Pierce, Senior Advisor, Office 

for Victims of Crime, 810 7th Street NW, 

Rm. 2246, Washington, DC 20531, 

telephone (202) 307–6785 (not a toll-free 

number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Executive Summary 

Congress established the Child 

Pornography Victims Reserve 

(‘‘Reserve’’) to provide defined 

monetary assistance to eligible 

individuals who are depicted in child 

pornography that is the basis for certain 

convictions under chapter 110 of title 

18. The Amy, Vicky, and Andy Child 

Pornography Victim Assistance Act of 

2018 (‘‘the AVAA’’ or ‘‘the Act’’), Public 

Law 115–299, secs. 4–5, 132 Stat 4383, 

4385–88, codified at 18 U.S.C. 2259, 

2259A, and 2259B, and 34 U.S.C. 

20101(d). Under 18 U.S.C. 2259(d), a 

United States district court may order 

payment from the Reserve to a victim of 

a defendant convicted in Federal court 

of trafficking in child pornography 

depicting that victim. The Department, 

pursuant to this final rule, will make a 

payment from the Reserve to such child 

pornography victims based on orders 

obtained in United States district 

courts.1

The Department published an NPRM 

on June 5, 2023, Implementing the Child 

Pornography Victims Reserve, 88 FR 

36516, proposing to implement the 

AVAA, and received public comments. 

The Department is now issuing this 

final rule pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 

2259B(c), which provides that the 

Attorney General shall issue regulations 

to implement the payment of defined 

monetary assistance out of the Reserve. 

This final rule outlines procedures for 

persons to request to apply through the 

Department for a court order 

determining eligibility and directing 

payment of defined monetary 

assistance. It is not intended to limit 

how a claimant might seek an order for 

defined monetary assistance directly 

from a court. 

As set forth in more detail below, if 

a claimant chooses to proceed through 

the Department, the Department may 

present the claimant’s application for a 

court order. (‘‘Claimant’’ means the 

person who claims to be a victim of 

trafficking in child pornography and to 

be eligible for the defined monetary 

assistance under 18 U.S.C. 2259(d), and 

‘‘victim’’ or ‘‘victim of trafficking in 

child pornography’’ means a person 

whom a Federal court has determined, 

under 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(1)(B), to be a 

victim of trafficking in child 

pornography.) The Department will 

provide payment from the Reserve to 

the victim (or an authorized 

representative, if applicable) pursuant to 

a court order issued under 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(1)(C), upon receipt of the order 

and the requisite information from the 

claimant following instructions on the 

Department’s website for this program: 

https://www.justice.gov/DMAVR. 

The final rule also sets forth 

procedures by which persons may 

submit requests to the Department, 

including through their attorney, a legal 

guardian (in the case of claimants under 

the age of 18 or who are incompetent, 

incapacitated, or deceased), or a 

representative authorized by the 

claimant, which includes a personal 

representative of an estate (for deceased 

claimants) (collectively, ‘‘authorized 

representative’’). The final rule is 

procedural in nature, implementing a 

process by which a claimant may 

request that the Department facilitate 

the claimant’s request that a court make 

a determination of eligibility pursuant 

to the eligibility requirements of the 

Act. It does not create new rights or 

impose obligations independent of the 

statute, and it does not create an 

attorney-client relationship between the 

claimant and any Department attorney. 

II. Background 

Under Federal law, victims of child 

pornography offenses are entitled to full 

and timely restitution from defendants 

charged and convicted in Federal court, 

including restitution for losses caused 

by conduct such as the possession, 

receipt, viewing, transportation, and 

distribution of child pornography. See 

18 U.S.C. 2259. Restitution is imposed 

upon an individual criminal defendant 

by a Federal court in connection with 

sentencing, and the obligation to pay 

restitution is part of the defendant’s 

criminal sentence. See id.; see also 18 

U.S.C. 3663A. The Federal Government 

bears the burden of proving that the 

defendant owes restitution to a victim, 

although a defendant can agree to pay 

restitution as part of a plea agreement. 

In order for a court to impose a 

restitution obligation on a child 

pornography trafficking defendant, the 

Federal Government, represented by the 

prosecutor, must prove the following: 

• Victim status: This element means 

that the person seeking restitution is a 

victim, i.e., that the person has been 

harmed as a result of the commission of 

a Federal child pornography trafficking 

crime. 

• Losses: This element refers to the 

amount of losses incurred by the victim, 

both since the offense took place and 

that are reasonably projected to be 

incurred in the future. There is no 

statutory limit on how much restitution 

may be ordered to be paid to a victim, 

but there must be a sufficient 

evidentiary basis to prove that all of the 

losses have been or are reasonably 

projected to be incurred. The statute 

permits recovery for the following types 

of losses: medical services relating to 

physical, psychiatric, or psychological 

care; physical and occupational therapy 

or rehabilitation; necessary 

transportation, temporary housing, and 

child care expenses; lost income; 

reasonable attorneys’ fees, as well as 

other costs incurred; and any other 

relevant losses incurred by the victim. 

18 U.S.C. 2259(c)(2). Restitution losses 

are limited to actual monetary losses 

and should not be confused with 

amounts of money a victim might be 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 92795 

awarded for pain and suffering or 

punitive damages in a civil tort lawsuit. 

• Causation: As discussed in more 

detail below, this element requires proof 

that the losses were caused in the 

aggregate by the trade in child 

pornography depicting the victim. 

• Amount: In cases where multiple 

defendants contributed to the victim’s 

losses, the court must determine how 

much each individual defendant should 

pay to the victim. 

In all Federal cases, restitution is 

obtained on a case-by-case basis. 

Because child pornography can be 

possessed and shared by many different 

unrelated criminal defendants and 

distributed repeatedly, a single child 

pornography trafficking victim may 

receive restitution orders in hundreds of 

individual criminal cases being brought 

in different Federal courts all over the 

country. Under current law, each of 

these defendants is ordered to pay some 

portion of the victim’s overall losses. 

Once the victim has collected payment 

for the full amount of the victim’s losses 

from one or more defendants, no further 

restitution orders can be imposed on 

additional defendants on the victim’s 

behalf unless new losses are incurred. 

See 18 U.S.C. 2259(b)(2)(C). 

In 2009, a victim sought restitution for 

the first time, not from the individual 

who sexually abused her and produced 

and shared the images, but from 

individuals who subsequently traded 

and collected those images. A small 

number of other child pornography 

victims subsequently sought similar 

restitution. Federal prosecutors across 

the country were soon seeking 

restitution for victims in Federal courts 

in child pornography possession, 

receipt, and distribution cases. 

Despite the Department’s overall 

success in obtaining orders of restitution 

for these victims, courts were 

inconsistent in their approach to 

restitution claims. Some courts 

struggled to determine whether an 

individual defendant convicted of 

possession, receipt, or distribution 

proximately caused a victim’s losses. If 

a defendant was only one of thousands 

who harmed the victim, then some 

courts indicated that the defendant 

could not be said to have caused the 

victim’s losses because those losses 

would be essentially the same if that 

particular defendant had never 

committed the crime. On that logic, 

some courts simply denied the 

restitution requests. Others demanded a 

showing as to how much an individual 

defendant’s crime incrementally 

increased the victim’s losses, imposing 

a generally insurmountable evidentiary 

burden. Among courts that awarded 

restitution, many grappled with how to 

determine the amount that the 

defendant should pay to the victim. 

These issues were brought to the 

Supreme Court in Paroline v. United 

States, 572 U.S. 434 (2014). After 

finding that section 2259 required proof 

of proximate causation for all the 

categories of losses referenced in the 

statute, the Court summed up the 

problem this way: 

In this case . . . , a showing of but-for 

causation cannot be made. . . . From the 

victim’s perspective, Paroline was just one of 

thousands of anonymous possessors. . . . [I]t 

is not possible to prove that her losses would 

be less (and by how much) but for one 

possessor’s individual role in the large, 

loosely connected network through which 

her images circulate. Even without Paroline’s 

offense, thousands would have viewed and 

would in the future view the victim’s images, 

so it cannot be shown that her trauma and 

attendant losses would have been any 

different but for Paroline’s offense. 

Id. at 450 (internal citations omitted). 

To resolve this dilemma, the Court 

adopted the less demanding aggregate 

causation standard: 

[A]lternative and less demanding causal 

standards are necessary in certain 

circumstances to vindicate the law’s 

purposes. It would be anomalous to turn 

away a person harmed by the combined acts 

of many wrongdoers simply because none of 

those wrongdoers alone caused the harm. 

And it would be nonsensical to adopt a rule 

whereby individuals hurt by the combined 

wrongful acts of many (and thus in many 

instances hurt more badly than otherwise) 

would have no redress, whereas individuals 

hurt by the acts of one person alone would 

have a remedy. 

Id. at 452. Therefore, the Court 

concluded: 

In this special context, where it can be 

shown both that a defendant possessed a 

victim’s images and that a victim has 

outstanding losses caused by the continuing 

traffic in those images but where it is 

impossible to trace a particular amount of 

those losses to the individual defendant by 

recourse to a more traditional causal inquiry, 

a court applying § 2259 should order 

restitution in an amount that comports with 

the defendant’s relative role in the causal 

process that underlies the victim’s general 

losses. 

Id. at 458. The Court then considered 

how district courts might determine the 

amount a given defendant should pay a 

victim in restitution. To provide 

guidance, the Court cited a number of 

factors courts might consider, including 

‘‘the number of past criminal defendants 

found to have contributed to the 

victim’s general losses; . . . whether the 

defendant reproduced or distributed 

images of the victim; whether the 

defendant had any connection to the 

initial production of the images; how 

many images of the victim the 

defendant possessed; and other facts 

relevant to the defendant’s relative 

causal role.’’ Id. at 460. 

The aggregate causation standard is 

easily understood and applied. To the 

extent that restitution is contested, the 

dispute is often solely over how much 

a defendant should be ordered to pay a 

given victim. 

Nonetheless, even after Paroline, few 

victims exercised their right to 

restitution. It appeared that the process 

of tracking hundreds of cases around the 

country over the course of years was too 

burdensome. Almost all victims seeking 

restitution in child pornography 

trafficking cases hire an attorney to help 

coordinate the logistics. In addition, 

although the Government bears the 

burden of proving restitution, in order 

to submit estimates of future losses, 

many victims hire psychological experts 

and economic analysts to help prepare 

their claims. The necessity of engaging 

multiple experts has served as a barrier 

that prevents victims from seeking 

restitution at all. 

Congress therefore enacted the AVAA 

to create an alternative system to allow 

victims of trafficking in child 

pornography to obtain some measure of 

compensation (called ‘‘defined 

monetary assistance’’) without having to 

prove their losses. The process of 

obtaining defined monetary assistance is 

an alternative to the traditional means of 

seeking restitution as part of a Federal 

prosecution. Providing the defined 

monetary assistance alternative is meant 

to ameliorate the structural 

impediments that prevent victims from 

claiming restitution while preserving 

the option of obtaining full restitution 

for those who wish to do so. Under the 

terms of the statute, victims of these 

types of child pornography offenses can 

choose whether to present their full 

restitution claims in court through 

prosecutors, as is currently done, obtain 

a one-time payment of defined monetary 

assistance, or both, depending on the 

circumstances. The amount of defined 

monetary assistance in 2019 was 

$35,000, but the amount is adjusted for 

inflation over time. 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(1)(D). 

The Act provides that the ‘‘Attorney 

General shall administer’’ the Reserve. 

See 18 U.S.C. 2259B(c). The 

determination regarding victim 

eligibility for the payment is made by 

the court. The procedural details of the 

Department’s administration of the 

Reserve and the substantive law 

applicable to the court’s determination 

are discussed in Part IV of this 

preamble. 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
92796 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

2The Department also received one web 

submission from a person who indicated that the 

person’s comment was included as an attachment. 

No attachment was included, however, and the 

Department did not receive any response from the 

submitter after inquiring about the apparently 

missing attachment. 

III. Discussion of Comments Received 

on the NPRM 

Notice of the proposed rule was 

published in the Federal Register on 

June 5, 2023. Before the comment 

period closed on August 4, 2023, 

comments were received from 11 

commenters.2 These comments were 

largely supportive of the rule and 

focused primarily on seeking additional 

information about how the Department 

plans to implement the rule. The 

Department has made a few 

amendments to the rule in response to 

some of the comments. The Department 

also amended § 81.55(c) to clarify that 

claimants should not submit videos, in 

addition to not submitting images, of 

child pornography as supporting 

information because transmitting videos 

of child pornography could also 

potentially violate Federal law. A 

discussion of comments received, and 

the Department’s responses, follows. 

A. Comment From the Administrative 

Office of the United States Courts 

(‘‘AO’’) 

1. The AO stated that the proposed 

rule does ‘‘not provide specifics as to 

the information the Department will 

require victims to provide as part of 

th[e] application process’’ and does ‘‘not 

address how the applications will be 

presented to the courts for a 

determination of eligibility.’’ Another 

commenter similarly stated that the rule 

should provide that the Department’s 

website contain certain specified 

information and be accessible for at 

least 30 days before ‘‘program 

commencement.’’ 

Response. The proposed rule stated 

that the Department, through its 

website, will set out the specific 

information that a claimant will be 

required to submit. The Department 

declines to amend the rule to require 

that the website be accessible for 30 

days before requests for applications to 

a court can be submitted, given 

uncertainty about the time it will take 

to build the new website and portal; 

requiring a fixed amount of time before 

submission of requests would delay the 

ability of eligible victims to submit their 

requests through the Department if they 

choose to do so. The Department will 

address how applications will be 

presented to the courts through internal 

guidance. The Department anticipates 

that it and the AO will continue to 

collaborate on the implementation of 

the Reserve. 

B. Comments From the National Center 

for Missing & Exploited Children 

(‘‘NCMEC’’) 

1. NCMEC stated that the proposed 

rule is ‘‘largely silent . . . regarding the 

timing and details of the process for 

when DOJ will present a victim’s claim 

for payment to a federal court’’ and that, 

absent more specific deadlines or 

assurances of promptness, the 

Department’s process may be delayed, 

which would in turn impede victims 

from obtaining payment. Two 

commenters stated that the proposed 

rule should contain specific time 

limitations by which the Department 

will act in connection with a claimant’s 

request for payment from the Reserve. 

Response. The statute does not 

provide any deadline or limitations 

period for submitting a claim for 

defined monetary assistance to a court. 

The Department likewise declines to 

impose a deadline or limitations period 

on itself because it lacks sufficient 

information at this time to do so. It does 

not know, for example, the number of 

individuals who will request that the 

Department apply for an order of 

defined monetary assistance, the 

number of claims that will be pending 

in court at any given moment, or the 

extent to which the Department will 

need to adopt additional internal 

measures to ensure that only those 

individuals determined by a court to be 

eligible for payment under the statute 

receive such payment. The Department 

does, however, commit itself to taking 

reasonable measures to ensure prompt 

payment to eligible individuals. 

Moreover, and in any event, the 

procedures set forth in this rule do not 

limit a claimant’s ability to request an 

order for defined monetary assistance 

directly from a court. 

2. NCMEC stated that the proposed 

rule does ‘‘not provide any details or 

even basic descriptions of what actual 

information a survivor will be required 

to submit to DOJ to support a claim.’’ 

Relatedly, NCMEC stated that the 

proposed rule should make clear that 

although a victim can fairly be required 

to provide some information in support 

of a claim for payment from the Reserve, 

‘‘the research and effort needed to draft 

a suitable federal court submission in 

this situation remains DOJ’s 

responsibility.’’ 

Response. A court will ultimately 

determine what information is 

necessary to support a claim for defined 

monetary assistance, and this rule does 

not limit a claimant’s ability to request 

an order for defined monetary assistance 

directly from a court. If a claimant 

requests that the Department submit an 

application for an order for defined 

monetary assistance on the claimant’s 

behalf, and the Department determines 

under the procedures set forth in this 

rule that it will do so, the Department 

will use reasonable efforts to facilitate 

the submission of the application to the 

court. In general, where the Department 

is presenting an application to a court 

to determine a claimant’s eligibility, the 

research and drafting of the court 

submission remains the responsibility of 

the Department attorney representing 

the Government. However, the claimant 

is responsible for providing the 

information to support their claim and 

for providing responses to follow-up 

requests for information from the 

Department. 

The proposed rule requested 

comment on the appropriate criteria to 

be included in the claim form and noted 

that, to enable the Department to collect 

information from claimants to facilitate 

applications to courts and payments 

from the Reserve, the Department would 

submit an information collection 

request and publish a notice of a new 

Privacy Act system of records upon 

publication of the final rule. 88 FR at 

36521. These procedural requirements 

are set forth by law, and the Department 

declines to change the rule to provide 

for a different process. Following this 

process, the Department anticipates 

posting a ‘‘claim form’’ on its website 

that will allow claimants (1) to request 

that the Department present an 

application to the court or (2) if a 

claimant already has a court order 

determining eligibility and directing 

payment, to provide the information 

necessary for the Department to 

facilitate that payment. 

The proposed rule further explained 

that the Department’s website will set 

forth the information that a claimant 

will be required to submit to the 

Department in furtherance of a claim for 

payment from the Reserve. Because the 

information required may be modified 

by the courts, the Department needs the 

flexibility to update its claim form in 

response to case law as it develops. And 

because the Department believes that 

the website will be sufficient to provide 

appropriate information to claimants, no 

change will be made to the rule in that 

respect. The Department notes that, in 

general, it will collect information to 

establish the identity of the claimant, 

the basis for the claim for eligibility for 

defined monetary assistance, the 

identity and authority of the person 

submitting the form, and the identity of 

any attorney representing the claimant 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 92797 

or person submitting the form, if 

applicable. 

3. NCMEC stated that the proposed 

rule should contain ‘‘more specific and 

concrete language . . . about the 

efforts’’ the Department will take to 

ensure a claimant’s privacy. Another 

commenter also expressed concerns 

about protections for claimant privacy. 

Response. In response to this 

comment, the Department is revising the 

final rule to state that the Department 

will not publicly disclose any claimant’s 

personally identifiable information, 

except as necessary to process a request 

or as required by law or court order. 

More generally, the Department will 

undertake to protect all victims’ privacy 

consistent with applicable laws, rules, 

and Department policies and 

procedures. See, e.g., 18 U.S.C. 

3509(d)(1) (providing for confidentiality 

of information that discloses the name 

or any other information concerning a 

child); 18 U.S.C. 3771(a)(8) (stating 

victims’ right to be treated with respect 

for privacy); see also 5 U.S.C. 552a 

(Privacy Act). 

4. NCMEC stated that the proposed 

rule ‘‘contain[s] no indication of how 

DOJ will interpret constitutional and 

statutory disclosure obligations to 

defendants or whether disclosure of 

victim information will be handled 

differently if a claim is submitted to the 

court after a defendant has already been 

sentenced.’’ 

Response. The AVAA establishes an 

entitlement to defined monetary 

payment to a victim of a ‘‘defendant 

who was convicted of trafficking in 

child pornography.’’ 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(1)(B). The Department 

interprets the conviction component of 

this requirement to mean a final 

judgment of conviction, after 

sentencing, although the Department 

may submit an application for an order 

of defined monetary assistance for the 

court to decide in conjunction with a 

defendant’s sentencing. The Department 

does not anticipate handling victim 

information differently based on 

whether a defendant has been 

sentenced. Moreover, the Department 

cannot opine in advance on how a 

particular constitutional or statutory 

provision will apply to the facts of a 

specific case. The Department will, 

however, abide by all constitutional and 

statutory disclosure obligations and, as 

noted above, protect all victims’ privacy 

consistent with applicable laws, rules, 

and Department policies and 

procedures. 

5. NCMEC stated that the proposed 

rule should require the Department to 

‘‘submit any facially valid application’’ 

to the court and ‘‘leave it to the court 

alone to make’’ eligibility 

determinations. 

Response. The Department declines to 

modify the rule as suggested. Because 

the Department is obligated to 

administer the Reserve in a manner 

consistent with the AVAA and other 

applicable law, the Department declines 

to adopt a requirement that it submit 

any facially valid application. Instead, 

the Department will take reasonable 

steps to ensure that defined monetary 

assistance is paid only to claimants who 

qualify for payment under the statute, 

and it will determine whether to 

support a claimant’s application 

accordingly. Moreover, the procedures 

set forth in this rule do not limit a 

claimant’s ability to request an order for 

defined monetary assistance directly 

from a court. In addition, the AVAA 

establishes, and the rule already 

provides, that courts have the sole 

authority to determine whether an 

individual is entitled to payment under 

the statute. 

C. Other Comments 

1. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should provide that the 

Department must seek to obtain an order 

of payment within 90 days after the 

claimant’s request is complete, absent 

extraordinary circumstances. 

Response. Due to uncertainty 

regarding the number of individuals 

who will request that the Department 

apply for payment, the number of 

claims that will be pending at any given 

moment, and the Department’s need to 

ensure that only those individuals 

determined by a court to be eligible for 

payment under the statute receive such 

payment, the Department has decided 

not to impose specific timelines on 

itself. The Department does, however, 

commit itself to taking reasonable 

measures to ensure prompt payment to 

eligible individuals. 

2. One commenter suggested that the 

proposed rule make clear that victims of 

open or closed (or ‘‘completed’’) cases 

are entitled to seek payment and that 

the Department will consider both open 

and closed or ‘‘completed’’ cases in 

determining the claimant’s eligibility for 

payment. 

Response. The statute does not 

distinguish between victims in open 

and closed cases. The Department has 

revised the final rule to clarify that 

victims of open or closed cases are 

eligible to seek payment under the 

statute. Although victims in open or 

closed cases may request that the 

Department apply for a court order of 

payment from the Reserve, the 

requirements for eligibility for payment 

are established by statute, and 

satisfaction of those requirements are 

determined by a court. One of the 

requirements for eligibility is that the 

claimant is a victim of a defendant who 

has been convicted of trafficking in 

child pornography. 

3. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should make clear that if 

the Department determines that it will 

recommend against payment to a 

claimant, the Department: (1) will give 

the claimant at least 14 days advance 

notice before informing the court of its 

position; (2) will meet and confer with 

the claimant and give meaningful 

consideration to the claimant’s 

concerns; and (3) will, if the Department 

maintains its position, inform the 

claimant that the claimant can seek 

payment through the court independent 

of the Department. 

Response. The Department has 

revised the final rule to clarify that if the 

Department determines that it will 

recommend against the court ordering 

payment, the Department will make 

reasonable efforts to inform the claimant 

(or the claimant’s authorized 

representative, if applicable) of that 

recommendation prior to providing that 

recommendation to the court. However, 

due to uncertainty regarding the number 

of individuals who will request that the 

Department apply for payment, the 

number of claims that will be pending 

at any given moment, and the 

Department’s need to ensure that only 

those individuals determined by a court 

to be eligible for payment under the 

statute receive such payment, the 

Department cannot commit itself to 

acting within a prescribed time limit. A 

claimant may submit a new application 

to the Department to correct 

shortcomings in an earlier application, 

so long as the new application contains 

material, additional information 

supporting the claimant’s eligibility for 

defined monetary assistance. A claimant 

may also choose to present an 

application without proceeding through 

the Department under this final rule. 

4. Two commenters stated that the 

proposed rule should make clear that 

payment can be paid to a claimant’s 

representative. One of those 

commenters further offered that the rule 

should state what documentary 

evidence is required for the Department 

to deem a representative ‘‘authorized.’’ 

Response. The Department has 

revised the final rule to clarify that 

payment can be made to a victim’s 

authorized representative, where 

appropriate. See 18 U.S.C. 2259(c)(4) 

(‘‘In the case of a victim who is under 

18 years of age, incompetent, 

incapacitated, or deceased, the legal 

guardian of the victim or representative 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
92798 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

of the victim’s estate, another family 

member, or any other person appointed 

as suitable by the court, may assume the 

crime victim’s rights under this 

section.’’). The Department’s website 

will provide information concerning the 

types of documentation that will suffice 

to prove that a representative is 

‘‘authorized.’’ 

5. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should, at least with 

respect to claims supported by a verified 

Federal judgment or restitution order, 

provide for a ‘‘presumption of 

eligibility’’ regarding those claims. 

Response. The statute establishes the 

criteria for eligibility and does not 

include a presumption of eligibility. A 

court ultimately determines whether a 

claimant is eligible. 

6. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should make clear ‘‘that 

criminal restitution or civil damages 

amounts collected before submitting a 

claim . . . need not be deducted from 

the defined monetary assistance 

remitted to the claimant.’’ 

Response. The AVAA contains 

provisions outlining the relationship 

between payment from the Reserve and 

payment in the form of restitution. See 

18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(2)–(3). Section 

2259(d)(2)(C) specifies that the amount 

a victim received in defined monetary 

assistance must be deducted from the 

total amount of losses subsequently 

sought in restitution. The Department 

has added a statement in the rule to 

make it clear that this statutory 

deduction applies only to restitution 

sought after a victim receives defined 

monetary assistance. The amount of 

restitution received need not be 

deducted from the amount of defined 

monetary assistance. Once a victim has 

collected restitution in an amount 

greater than the amount of defined 

monetary assistance, however, the 

victim would be ineligible for defined 

monetary assistance in any amount. 

Regarding amounts received before 

the receipt of defined monetary 

assistance, section 2259(d)(3) provides 

that ‘‘[a] victim who has collected 

payment of restitution pursuant to this 

section in an amount greater than the 

amount [of defined monetary assistance] 

shall be ineligible to receive defined 

monetary assistance.’’ In preparing this 

final rule, the Department determined 

that the discussion regarding this 

provision in the preamble of the NPRM, 

see 88 FR at 36519, was incorrect 

because it assumed that a victim who 

received restitution in an amount equal 

to the amount of defined monetary 

assistance would be ineligible to seek 

defined monetary assistance. This 

assumption is incorrect because the 

statute provides for ineligibility only if 

the victim has collected restitution in an 

amount ‘‘greater than’’ the amount of 

defined monetary assistance. The 

Department clarifies here that the 

examples in the preamble of the NPRM 

were inaccurate and that a victim who 

has received restitution in an amount 

less than or equal to the amount of 

defined monetary assistance may 

continue to seek the full amount of 

defined monetary assistance. 

7. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should clarify ‘‘all’’ 

potential reasons that the Department 

might cite as a basis to decline a request 

for payment. 

Response. The Department is 

committed to taking reasonable 

measures to ensure that eligible 

claimants receive payment from the 

Reserve, consistent with the statute. 

Because the Department is unable to 

predict all possible requests that it 

might receive, the Department declines 

to provide an exhaustive list of reasons 

why the Department would decline a 

request to support an application for 

payment. Moreover, only a court, not 

the Department, can order, or decline to 

order, payment to a claimant. 

8. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should make clear that 

funds paid out from the Reserve ‘‘ought 

not be considered taxable income as a 

matter of public policy.’’ 

Response. The Department does not 

have the authority to determine what is 

considered taxable income. The Internal 

Revenue Code defines income and 

provides specific items that are 

excluded from income. As a general 

rule, unless a payment or benefit is 

specifically excluded, it is considered 

income. 

9. One commenter stated that 

claimants may have a difficult time 

submitting the necessary documentation 

to the Department and recommended 

that the rule ‘‘give greater deference to 

delaying the adjudication of requests 

than the returning of them.’’ 

Response. The Department is 

committed to taking reasonable 

measures to ensure that eligible victims 

receive payment from the Reserve, 

consistent with the statute. In that 

respect, the Department is committed to 

working with claimants to obtain 

missing information before returning a 

request to them. The rule provides that 

the Department will make ‘‘reasonable 

efforts’’ to request missing information 

from a claimant and will make 

‘‘reasonable efforts’’ to identify a 

Federal criminal case in which a 

claimant’s application might be 

submitted. The Department under the 

rule accordingly has discretion to 

determine, based on the claimant’s 

circumstances, whether to delay the 

return of an application to allow a 

claimant additional time to submit 

documentation. If, however, after 

reasonable efforts, the Department is 

unable to obtain the necessary 

information or identify such a case, it 

cannot present the claimant’s 

application to a court and will return 

the request to the claimant. The 

Department does not ‘‘adjudicate’’ the 

application in doing so. Neither this 

rule nor the Department’s return of a 

request limits the claimant’s ability to 

present an application to a court. 

Moreover, a claimant may submit a new 

application to the Department to correct 

shortcomings in an earlier application, 

so long as the new application contains 

material, additional information 

supporting the claimant’s eligibility for 

defined monetary assistance. 

10. One commenter recommended 

that the Department inform victims of 

their right potentially to obtain 

compensation from ‘‘their particular 

state jurisdiction.’’ 

Response. The Department declines to 

amend the rule to include information 

about other sources of compensation 

because this rule focuses on defined 

monetary assistance. The Department 

already provides information about 

other victim compensation and 

assistance on its website: https://

ovc.ojp.gov/help-for-victims/help-inyour-state. 

11. One commenter stated that the 

proposed rule should require the 

creation of a system ‘‘to notify potential 

claimants’’ of their ‘‘potential 

eligibility’’ for payment. 

Response. The Department declines to 

amend the rule to require creation of a 

notification system. The AVAA does not 

provide for the creation of such a 

system, and the Department does not 

possess the information necessary to set 

up a system of that nature. For example, 

the Department does not regularly track 

restitution payments and thus would 

not know whether a claimant has 

already received more than the amount 

of defined monetary assistance in 

restitution, which would make the 

claimant ineligible under the statute. 

Moreover, a court, not the Department, 

determines whether a claimant is 

eligible. 

IV. Process To Obtain Defined 

Monetary Assistance From the Reserve 

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(1)(B) 

and (C), a district court determines 

whether a claimant is eligible to receive 

defined monetary assistance, and, if it 

makes such a finding, orders payment of 

defined monetary assistance to the 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 92799 

victim or the victim’s authorized 

representative. The Act does not specify 

any application process, but it does 

authorize the Attorney General to 

administer the Reserve. Pursuant to this 

authorization, the Department has 

established the process set forth in this 

final rule to allow claimants to request 

that the Department facilitate 

obtainment of the requisite district court 

order for the victim. 

A. Request and Review Process 

This final rule is designed to assist 

claimants in obtaining court 

determinations of eligibility for payment 

of defined monetary assistance from the 

Reserve. As discussed more fully below, 

defined monetary assistance is distinct 

from court-ordered restitution. 

Under the final rule, claimants may 

choose to request that the Department 

present an application to a court for the 

court’s determination of eligibility for 

defined monetary assistance. The 

Department will review the request and 

may follow up as needed to seek 

additional information from the 

claimant or the claimant’s authorized 

representative in order to resolve any 

gaps in the claimant’s supporting 

information. It is the claimant’s 

responsibility to present evidence 

sufficient to establish a complete 

request, but in no instance will the 

claimant be required to send—nor shall 

the claimant send—any images or 

videos of child pornography. A request 

is complete where it is supported by all 

information required by the claim form 

and by responses to follow-up requests 

for information. The Department will 

not present an application based on a 

request that is incomplete or duplicative 

of a request that the Department has 

already received. The Department will 

provide notice to a claimant if it decides 

not to present the requested application 

to the court. 

After the Department receives a 

claimant’s request, and the Department 

has exhausted reasonable efforts to 

obtain any needed additional 

information from the claimant, the 

Department will use reasonable efforts 

to identify a Federal child pornography 

trafficking case in which a visual 

depiction of the claimant was involved. 

The Department will consider any cases 

identified by the claimant as well as any 

in which the Department has 

independent information linking the 

claimant to a Federal child pornography 

trafficking case. If, based on the 

information in the request, the claimant 

might be eligible for defined monetary 

assistance as a result of more than one 

case, the Department, in its sole 

discretion, will decide in which case it 

will present the application. 

It may take time for the Department to 

identify an appropriate case to seek the 

required court order or to determine 

which of several potential cases is the 

most appropriate. The Department will 

endeavor to obtain the order in a timely 

manner. 

B. Presentment of an Application for an 

Order Affirming Eligibility 

Once the Department identifies an 

appropriate case, the Department will 

present the claimant’s application to the 

district court, which may then issue an 

order affirming the claimant’s eligibility 

for payment. The mere presentment of 

an application to a court does not imply 

that the Department has taken a position 

on the ultimate merits of the 

application. The Department may or 

may not (as it deems appropriate) 

present the application with an 

accompanying recommendation—for 

example, the Department may include a 

recommendation that the court grant the 

application where the Department is 

persuaded that the statutory standard 

for payment is met. Conversely, the 

Department may recommend that the 

court deny the application if it is not 

persuaded that the statutory standard 

for payment is met. If the Department 

determines that it will recommend 

against the court ordering payment, the 

Department will make reasonable efforts 

to inform the claimant (or the claimant’s 

authorized representative, if applicable) 

of such recommendation prior to any 

presentation of the claimant’s 

application to the court. 

In the event that the Department 

disagrees with the court’s eligibility 

determination, the Department may 

decide to seek appellate review of a 

ruling by a district court regarding the 

claimant’s eligibility for defined 

monetary assistance. The Department 

will make reasonable efforts to consult 

with the claimant (or the claimant’s 

authorized representative, if applicable), 

on the issue of seeking appellate review. 

Depending on the basis for the court’s 

ruling, the Department may seek to 

present the claim underlying a denied 

application in another case when it 

would be appropriate to do so. The 

Department will make reasonable efforts 

to consult with the claimant (or the 

claimant’s authorized representative, if 

applicable) about any decision to 

present a claim in another case. 

If an application is denied by the 

district court, no appellate review is 

taken or such appellate review is 

unsuccessful, and the claim underlying 

an application is not presented in 

another case, the claimant will not 

receive defined monetary assistance on 

the basis of the claimant’s request to the 

Department. If the claimant resubmits a 

request to the Department with material, 

additional supporting information, the 

Department may present that new 

application as consistent with these 

regulations. 

C. Payment 

Once the court issues an order of 

payment, the Department will pay the 

victim (or an authorized representative, 

if applicable) the defined monetary 

assistance from the Reserve, as specified 

in the order. Payment will typically be 

made via electronic funds transfer 

facilitated by the Department of the 

Treasury, but the Department may use 

other methods (e.g., physical check) 

depending on the circumstances and 

technology or systems in place at the 

time of payment. Any money received 

may be subject to Federal, State, or local 

taxes. 

D. Limits on Attorney Representative 

Fees and Costs 

There is no fee to submit a request to 

the Department when seeking defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve, 

and a claimant (or authorized 

representative, if applicable) may 

submit a request for defined monetary 

assistance without being represented by 

an attorney. Nonetheless, a claimant (or 

authorized representative, if applicable) 

may hire an attorney for this purpose; it 

will be entirely the claimant’s or 

authorized representative’s decision 

whether to do so. Under 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(4), if the claimant or authorized 

representative is represented by 

counsel, the attorney shall not charge, 

receive, or collect, and the court may 

not approve, any payment of fees and 

costs that in the aggregate exceeds 15 

percent of any defined monetary 

assistance paid under the Act on such 

claim. An attorney who violates this 

provision is subject to fine, 

imprisonment of up to one year, or both. 

E. Privacy 

Claimant submissions will not be 

made public and will be protected and 

used only in accordance with applicable 

law, including the Privacy Act of 1974, 

5 U.S.C. 552a. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 

552a, 18 U.S.C. 3509(d)(1), and 18 

U.S.C. 3771(a)(8), the Department will 

not disclose to the public the names of 

the individuals who have requested 

defined monetary assistance from the 

Reserve or the names of the deceased 

claimants for whom defined monetary 

assistance is sought from the Reserve, or 

their personally identifiable 

information, except as necessary to 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
92800 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

process a request or application or 

obtain a court order, to bring a criminal 

or civil case against an individual for 

obtaining defined monetary assistance 

by fraud, or pursuant to law or court 

order. However, the fact that a victim 

has received defined monetary 

assistance may be introduced in a 

Federal criminal proceeding where the 

amount of the victim’s losses is at issue. 

In Department filings, the Department 

will protect the confidentiality of names 

and other personally identifiable 

information, including by submitting 

filings under seal, consistent with 

applicable law, rules, and Department 

policies and procedures. 

The process of providing a claimant 

with access to information held by the 

Government will be subject to all 

applicable laws and regulations, 

including the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 

U.S.C. 552a, and subpart B of part 16 of 

title 28, Code of Federal Regulations. 

F. Victim Choice as to Defined Monetary 

Assistance Versus Restitution 

Victims may choose to pursue 

restitution; to pursue defined monetary 

assistance; or to pursue some 

combination of the two, whether in the 

same case or in multiple cases, as 

appropriate. 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(3) 

provides that a victim who has 

previously collected restitution in an 

amount greater than the amount of the 

defined monetary assistance available 

under section 2259(d)(1)(D) is ineligible 

to seek defined monetary assistance. A 

victim who has collected restitution in 

an amount less than or equal to the 

amount of defined monetary assistance 

(i.e., less than or equal to $35,000, 

adjusted for inflation as of the date of 

application and as described above) is 

eligible to seek defined monetary 

assistance. Although the statute does 

not define the term ‘‘collected,’’ the 

word ‘‘collected’’ ordinarily means 

amounts actually received, not merely 

amounts ordered but not yet paid. See, 

e.g., Collect, Oxford English Dictionary, 

https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/36263 

(last visited July 22, 2024) (defining 

‘‘collect’’ to mean ‘‘to receive money’’). 

There is often a lag between order and 

payment. The amount collected is the 

aggregated payment from all defendants. 

Once victims have collected an amount 

of restitution greater than the amount of 

defined monetary assistance, they 

become ineligible to obtain defined 

monetary assistance. For example, a 

defendant may have been ordered to pay 

a victim $50,000 in restitution, but the 

victim to date might have received only 

$5,000. That victim would remain 

eligible for defined monetary assistance 

until the victim collects more than 

$35,000 (inflation-adjusted) in 

restitution. If a victim obtains orders for 

restitution, and then receives defined 

monetary assistance, the amount of the 

defined monetary assistance must be 

disclosed if the victim is later asked to 

provide information to a court 

concerning the amount of recovery 

collected pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 2259. 

See 18 U.S.C. 2259(b)(2)(C), (d)(2)(C). 

Collection of forms of monetary 

recovery other than restitution, such as 

from a civil suit, does not affect a 

victim’s eligibility for defined monetary 

assistance. 

G. One-Time Defined Monetary 

Assistance Payment; Effect on 

Restitution and Civil Remedies 

Under 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(2)(A), a 

victim may receive a payment of 

defined monetary assistance only once. 

Even after receiving such a payment, a 

victim can, under 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(2)(B), decide to seek restitution 

in court pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 2259. 

However, 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(2)(C) 

specifies that the amount a victim 

received in defined monetary assistance 

must be deducted from the total amount 

of losses subsequently sought in 

restitution. For example, if a victim 

obtains defined monetary assistance in 

the amount of $35,000, and in a later 

case pursues a restitution claim for 

$100,000, the maximum amount 

recoverable on the latter claim would be 

$65,000. 

Obtaining restitution or defined 

monetary assistance does not bar 

victims from seeking a civil remedy, 

such as under 18 U.S.C. 2255, although 

either may impact the amount the 

victims recover in a civil suit. 

H. Statutory Requirements for Eligibility 

Defined monetary assistance is 

available to any eligible ‘‘victim of . . . 

trafficking in child pornography.’’ 18 

U.S.C. 2259(d)(1)(A). The Act imposes 

three requirements for payment of 

defined monetary assistance. 

First, the claimant must appear in 

child pornography that has been 

trafficked. ‘‘Trafficking in child 

pornography’’ is defined in 18 U.S.C. 

2259(c)(3) by reference to statutes that 

prohibit advertising, transporting, 

distributing, receiving, or possessing 

child pornography, or accessing child 

pornography with intent to view it. 

Second, at least one defendant must 

have been convicted in Federal court of 

conduct (advertising, transporting, 

distributing, receiving, or possessing 

child pornography, or accessing child 

pornography with intent to view it) 

involving a visual depiction of the 

claimant. The Act imposes no time 

limits on when the conviction must 

have occurred. Any qualifying 

conviction serves as a basis for 

establishing a claimant’s eligibility for 

defined monetary assistance, so long as 

there is sufficient evidence to obtain a 

court order as required under the 

statute. 

Sometimes the evidence may suggest 

that the defendant possessed child 

pornography depicting a particular 

victim, but the defendant’s conviction 

was for a different crime. This could 

happen if child pornography involving 

Victim A was found on a defendant’s 

computer, but the defendant was 

actually convicted of producing child 

pornography of Victim B or distributing 

child pornography depicting Victim C. 

Victim A would not be entitled to 

defined monetary assistance based upon 

that case, though Victim A might be 

eligible in a different case. 

A single conviction is sufficient to 

establish a claimant’s eligibility. There 

is no need under the Act to prove that 

the claimant was a victim in more than 

one conviction for trafficking in child 

pornography. 

Third, the claimant must appear in a 

visual depiction that shows ‘‘sexually 

explicit conduct’’ as defined in 18 

U.S.C. 2256(2)(A) and must have been 

under the age of 18 at the time the visual 

depiction was created. 

Not all images of children being 

traded online meet this definition of 

sexually explicit conduct. As one 

example, some individuals may appear 

in imagery that is illegal under State 

law, but that is not prohibited under 

Federal law. Because such images do 

not depict ‘‘sexually explicit conduct’’ 

as defined in section 2256, individuals 

appearing in such material would not be 

eligible for defined monetary assistance. 

In order to obtain defined monetary 

assistance, the claimant would need to 

establish that a defendant was convicted 

of a Federal offense involving the 

sexually explicit imagery. 

A claimant need not be a United 

States citizen and need not reside in the 

United States in order to be eligible for 

defined monetary assistance. 

I. Section-by-Section Overview of Final 

Rule 

Section 81.51 sets forth the statutory 

basis for and the purpose of the Reserve, 

as well as the statutory one-time 

payment amount. 

Section 81.52 provides the definitions 

applicable to this subpart. If a term is 

not defined in section 81.52, the term 

has the statutory definition at 18 U.S.C. 

2256, 2259, 2259A, or 2259B. 

Section 81.53 provides certain 

requirements for eligibility for a 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 92801 

payment from the Reserve, including 

burden of proof and eligibility 

exclusions, and specifies the effect of 

collecting defined monetary assistance 

on later requests for restitution. 

Section 81.54 provides a description 

for how persons may submit requests to 

the Department for funds from the 

Reserve using an online portal located 

on the Department’s website for this 

program. Additional information as to 

how to submit a request to the 

Department will be available on the 

website. 

Section 81.55 explains that the 

claimant must follow the directions on 

the Department’s website for this 

program to submit a request to the 

Department for monetary assistance. 

Failure to submit all required 

documentation would potentially result 

in delay of the adjudication or return of 

the request by the Department. 

Section 81.56 details the procedures 

to determine a personal representative 

to request and receive funds on the 

claimant’s behalf. 

Section 81.57 provides the process by 

which requests submitted to the 

Department for defined monetary 

assistance and court orders requiring 

payment will be processed by the 

Department. 

Section 81.58 sets forth signatures and 

certifications required for a request to 

the Department to be considered 

complete. 

Section 81.59 provides information 

related to privacy and confidentiality of 

claimants’ names and other personally 

identifiable information during the 

course of the request process. 

V. Regulatory Analyses 

A. Administrative Procedure Act 

This final rule concerns matters 

relating to ‘‘benefits,’’ 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(2), 

and also to ‘‘rules of . . . agency 

procedure,’’ 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A). 

Therefore, it is exempt from the 

requirement of prior notice and 

comment and from a delay in its 

effective date. 

Nevertheless, the Department 

believed that comments from the public 

would be useful in developing these 

regulatory changes. Consequently, on 

June 5, 2023, 88 FR 36516, the 

Department published a notice of 

proposed rulemaking and solicited 

public comments on this matter. The 

comments received and the 

Department’s responses thereto are set 

forth in Part III above. 

B. Executive Orders 12866, 13563, and 

14094 (Regulatory Review) 

This final rule has been drafted and 

reviewed in accordance with Executive 

Order 12866, ‘‘Regulatory Planning and 

Review,’’ section 1(b), Principles of 

Regulation; in accordance with 

Executive Order 13563, ‘‘Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review,’’ 

section 1(b), General Principles of 

Regulation; and in accordance with 

Executive Order 14094, ‘‘Modernizing 

Regulatory Review’’. 

This final rule is not a ‘‘significant 

regulatory action’’ under section 3(f) of 

Executive Order 12866. The rule is 

primarily procedural, dealing with the 

administrative process of submitting 

requests to the Department for defined 

monetary assistance. The key eligibility 

standards are set forth in the statute, 

and the Department is not by this final 

rule making any changes to those 

standards. 

As set forth in the cost-benefit 

analysis below, this final rule will not 

have the economic effects described in 

section 3(f)(1) of Executive Order 12866. 

This regulation has no cost to State, 

local, or Tribal governments, or to the 

private sector. The Child Pornography 

Victims Reserve is funded by 

assessments paid by certain Federal 

offenders, as well as gifts, bequests, or 

donations from private individuals, 

deposited into the Crime Victims Fund 

in the United States Treasury and set 

aside in the Reserve; those funds may 

not be obligated in an amount above $10 

million in any given year. See 18 U.S.C. 

2259B(a); 34 U.S.C. 20101(d)(6). 

The cost to the Federal Government 

consists both of administrative expenses 

and amounts distributed to victims. 

Both types of costs depend on the 

number of claimants, including both 

prospective and retroactive claimants. 

Although spending is anticipated to 

be higher in the initial years as a result 

of the number of potential retroactive 

claimants, the program will not spend 

more than the statutory maximum of 

$10 million each fiscal year. That is, 

even if claimants submit requests for 

defined monetary assistance that, in the 

aggregate, exceed $10 million in one 

year, the Department will spend no 

more than $10 million, and will pay 

only those claims that can be satisfied 

from that amount. In such a 

circumstance, claims will be paid based 

on the date on which courts ordered the 

payments, with the earliest-ordered 

payments made first. See 18 U.S.C. 

2259B(b). Once the Department has paid 

out the allotted $10 million dollars in 

any given fiscal year, the requests that 

remain unpaid will roll over into the 

next fiscal year and will be processed in 

the original order in which they were 

ordered. The Department will also 

follow the same order-of-payment 

procedure in any other situation in 

which the Reserve has insufficient 

funds to make all of the payments 

ordered under section 2259(d). 

The Department has assessed the 

benefits and costs anticipated from this 

rulemaking and has considered whether 

there are reasonably feasible alternatives 

to this rulemaking, including whether 

there are reasonably viable nonregulatory actions that could be taken in 

lieu of this rulemaking. The purpose of 

this rulemaking is to provide the legal 

and administrative framework for 

defined monetary assistance to be given 

to any individual (or an authorized 

representative of such individual) who 

is determined by a Federal court to be 

a victim of trafficking in child 

pornography as defined by 18 U.S.C. 

2259(c) and (d). The Department 

concludes that there are no viable nonregulatory actions that it could take to 

implement the AVAA in a fair and 

efficient manner. 

C. Executive Order 13132 

This regulation will not have 

substantial direct effects on the States, 

on the relationship between the national 

government and the States, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. Therefore, under 

Executive Order 13132, the Department 

has determined that this regulation does 

not have sufficient federalism 

implications to warrant the preparation 

of a federalism impact statement. 

D. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Department certifies that this rule 

will not have a significant economic 

impact upon a substantial number of 

small entities. This regulation pertains 

to defined monetary assistance for 

eligible individuals who are depicted in 

child pornography that is the basis for 

certain convictions under 18 U.S.C. 

chapter 110. The Reserve will provide 

payment to such child pornography 

victims based on orders obtained in U.S. 

district courts. 

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995 

This regulation will not result in the 

expenditure by State, local, and Tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100,000,000 or more 

in any one year (adjusted annually for 

inflation), and it will not significantly or 

uniquely affect small governments. 

Therefore, no actions were deemed 

necessary under the provisions of the 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995. 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
92802 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

F. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

This final rule implements 18 U.S.C. 

2259, 2259A, 2259B, and 34 U.S.C. 

20101(d), which establish the Reserve 

and define eligibility for payments from 

the Reserve. In order to evaluate 

requests and provide defined monetary 

assistance, the Department must collect 

certain information from individuals 

who are depicted in child pornography 

that is the basis for certain convictions 

under 18 U.S.C. chapter 110, or from 

their authorized representatives. 

Accordingly, the Department’s 

Executive Office for United States 

Attorneys will submit an information 

collection request for review and 

clearance in accordance with the 

procedures of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995. 

G. Privacy Act of 1974 

The Department will publish a notice 

of a new Privacy Act system of records 

upon publication of the final rule, 

which will become effective upon 

publication, subject to a 30-day 

comment period for the routine uses 

claimed in the notice. In the interim, 

disclosures necessary to process 

requests will be made only with the 

prior written consent of claimants or as 

otherwise authorized under 5 U.S.C. 

552a(b). 

H. Severability 

It is the Department’s intent that if 

any provision of this rule is held to be 

invalid or unenforceable by its terms, or 

as applied to any person or 

circumstance, the remainder of the 

provision or rule shall be workable and 

construed so as to give it the maximum 

effect permitted by law, unless such 

holding shall be one of utter invalidity 

or unenforceability, in which event such 

provision shall be deemed severable 

from this part and shall not affect the 

remainder thereof or the application of 

such provision to other persons not 

similarly situated or to other, dissimilar 

circumstances. 

List of Subjects in 28 CFR Part 81 

Child abuse, Child pornography, 

Victims, Restitution, Benefits. 

By the authority vested in the 

Attorney General under 5 U.S.C. 301 

and 28 U.S.C. 509, 510, and for the 

reasons stated in the preamble, 28 CFR 

part 81 is amended as follows: 

PART 81—CHILD ABUSE AND CHILD 

PORNOGRAPHY REPORTING 

DESIGNATIONS AND PROCEDURES, 

AND CHILD PORNOGRAPHY VICTIMS 

RESERVE 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 81 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 28 U.S.C. 509, 510; 42 U.S.C. 

13031, 13032. 

■ 2. Revise the heading for part 81 to 

read as set forth above. 

§§ 81.1 through 81.5 [Designated as 

Subpart A] 

■ 3. Designate §§ 81.1 through 81.5 as 

subpart A. 

■ 4. Add a heading for newly designated 

subpart A to read as follows: 

Subpart A—Child Abuse and Child 

Pornography Reporting Designations 

and Procedures 

§§ 81.14 through 81.50 [Added and 

Reserved] 

■ 5. Amend subpart B by adding and 

reserving §§ 81.14 through 81.50. 

■ 6. Add subpart C to read as follows: 

Subpart C—Child Pornography Victims 

Reserve 

Sec. 

81.51 Child Pornography Victims Reserve. 

81.52 Definitions. 

81.53 Eligibility. 

81.54 Submission of requests to the 

Department. 

81.55 Supporting information. 

81.56 Procedures for determining the 

personal representative of an estate. 

81.57 Request and order processing. 

81.58 Signatures and certifications. 

81.59 Privacy. 

Authority: 18 U.S.C. 2259, 2259A, 2259B; 

28 U.S.C. 509, 510; 34 U.S.C. 20101(d), 

20341. 

§ 81.51 Child Pornography Victims 

Reserve. 

The Child Pornography Victims 

Reserve (‘‘Reserve’’) was established on 

December 7, 2018, to provide a source 

of defined monetary assistance for 

eligible victims of trafficking in child 

pornography, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d). Pursuant to the authority of the 

Department of Justice (‘‘the 

Department’’) to administer the Reserve, 

the Department will— 

(a) Accept a request that the 

Department seek a court order for a 

determination of eligibility for defined 

monetary assistance from a claimant 

who chooses to proceed through the 

Department; 

(b) Process such request and use 

reasonable efforts to follow up with 

such claimant to obtain information 

sufficient for a court to determine the 

claimant’s eligibility for defined 

monetary assistance; 

(c) Upon confirming that the request 

to the Department is complete and not 

duplicative of a previously received 

request, use reasonable efforts to 

identify a Federal child pornography 

trafficking case in which an image of the 

identified victim appears and in which 

the Department may present an 

application for court determination of 

the claimant’s eligibility; and 

(d) Pay a claimant (or an authorized 

representative, if applicable) pursuant to 

a Federal court order determining that 

such claimant is eligible to receive 

defined monetary assistance. 

§ 81.52 Definitions. 

(a) If a term is not defined in this 

section, the statutory definition at 18 

U.S.C. 2256, 2259, 2259A, or 2259B 

applies to the submission and 

processing of requests to the 

Department. 

(b) Authorized representative means 

an attorney or legal guardian (for 

claimants under age 18, incompetent, or 

incapacitated) of a claimant, the 

personal representative of a deceased 

claimant’s estate, any other person 

appointed as a representative of a 

claimant by a Federal court pursuant to 

18 U.S.C. 2259(c)(4), or a personal 

representative designated by the 

claimant to act on the claimant’s behalf. 

(c) Claimant means the person who 

claims to be a victim of trafficking in 

child pornography and to be eligible for 

the defined monetary assistance at 18 

U.S.C. 2259(d). 

(d) Reserve means the Child 

Pornography Victims Reserve set forth 

in 34 U.S.C. 20101(d)(6). The 

Department may also refer to the 

Reserve as the Defined Monetary 

Assistance Victims Reserve. 

(e) Victim or victim of trafficking in 

child pornography means a person 

whom a Federal court has determined, 

under 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(1)(B), to be a 

victim of trafficking in child 

pornography. 

§ 81.53 Eligibility. 

(a) Presentment of claims for payment 

to Federal courts. If a claimant chooses 

to submit a request to the Department, 

the Department shall review a properly 

submitted request and, as necessary, ask 

the claimant (or the claimant’s 

authorized representative, if applicable) 

for additional information to support 

the request. Once the Department 

confirms the request is complete and 

not duplicative of a previously received 

request, the Department will use 

reasonable efforts to find an appropriate 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 92803 

case in which to present the claim by 

means of an application for an order of 

payment of defined monetary assistance 

in a Federal court. An appropriate case 

may be an open or closed case. If the 

Department is unable to locate an 

appropriate case, it will notify the 

claimant and may decline to present the 

claim. If the Department presents the 

claimant’s application to a court, the 

Department may include a 

recommendation as to whether the court 

should grant or deny the application. 

(b) Determination by a court. A 

Federal court will make the 

determination, under 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(1)(B), as to whether a claimant 

is entitled to defined monetary 

assistance from the Reserve and, if so, 

shall order payment in the amount 

specified in 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(1)(D). 

This amount is $35,000 as adjusted for 

inflation from December 7, 2018, based 

on the date of the court’s order, in 

accordance with 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(1)(D). 

(c) Payment. The Department shall 

pay to the victim (or the victim’s 

authorized representative, if applicable) 

from the Reserve the defined monetary 

assistance set forth in 18 U.S.C. 2259, in 

accordance with the applicable Federal 

court order and consistent with 18 

U.S.C. 2259B(b). 

(d) Exclusions. (1) A victim may 

obtain defined monetary assistance 

under 18 U.S.C. 2259(d) only once. See 

18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(2)(A). 

(2) In no event shall an individual 

who is convicted of an act described in 

18 U.S.C. chapter 110, with respect to 

the victim, receive any defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve on 

behalf of the victim. See 18 U.S.C. 

2259(c)(4). 

(3) Claimants who have collected 

restitution payments in excess of 

$35,000 (as adjusted for inflation from 

December 7, 2018) pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 

2259 are not eligible to receive defined 

monetary assistance under this program. 

See 18 U.S.C. 2259(d)(3). 

(e) Effect on restitution. If a victim has 

received defined monetary assistance 

and, after receiving that defined 

monetary assistance, seeks restitution, 

the amount the victim received in 

defined monetary assistance must be 

deducted when determining the full 

amount of the victim’s losses for 

purposes of restitution. See 18 U.S.C. 

2259(d)(2)(C). 

§ 81.54 Submission of requests to the 

Department. 

(a) Requests submitted to the 

Department must be submitted in the 

form and manner, and supported by 

documentation, specified from time to 

time by the Department. The 

Department’s website will contain 

directions on how to access the claims 

system for defined monetary assistance. 

(b) Requests may be submitted to the 

Department at any time. The 

Department may decline to present to a 

court any application based on a request 

that duplicates a previously received 

request. A request duplicates a 

previously received request if it is 

submitted by or in connection with the 

same claimant and is premised on the 

same conduct as the previously received 

request. If a claimant obtains new 

information relevant to a claim after 

submitting a request, the claimant 

should amend that request rather than 

submitting a new request. If the 

Department has already returned the 

request to the claimant, the claimant 

may submit a new request, so long as 

such request contains material, 

additional information supporting the 

claimant’s eligibility for defined 

monetary assistance. 

(c) If a claimant is represented by an 

authorized representative, the request to 

the Department and any supporting 

information may be submitted to the 

Department by that authorized 

representative. The authorized 

representative must submit a separate 

request on behalf of each represented 

claimant. 

§ 81.55 Supporting information. 

(a) As part of a request to the 

Department, the claimant should submit 

information as instructed by the 

Department. The Department’s website 

will provide instruction about what 

information is required in support of a 

claim. Failure to submit all required 

information may result in delay or a 

decision by the Department not to 

present the claimant’s application to a 

court. 

(b) All information supporting the 

request should be updated as necessary 

while the request to the Department is 

pending, including the amounts of any 

restitution collected, address changes, 

changes to information needed to 

process payment to the claimant, and 

any other pertinent information that 

may be relevant to the request. 

(c) To avoid a potential violation of 

Federal law, claimants (or authorized 

representatives, if applicable) shall not 

send images or videos of child 

pornography when providing 

supporting information. 

§ 81.56 Procedures for determining the 

personal representative of an estate. 

(a) In general. For any request to the 

Department by the estate of a deceased 

claimant, the personal representative of 

the estate, who will be the authorized 

representative for purposes of defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve, 

shall be determined as follows: 

(1) First preference will be given to an 

individual appointed by a court of 

competent jurisdiction as the personal 

representative of the deceased claimant 

or as the executor or administrator of 

the deceased claimant’s will or estate. 

(2) In the event that no personal 

representative or executor or 

administrator has been appointed by 

any court of competent jurisdiction, and 

such issue is not the subject of pending 

litigation or other dispute, the next 

preferred personal representative for 

purposes of defined monetary assistance 

from the Reserve will be the person 

named by the deceased claimant in the 

deceased claimant’s will as the executor 

or administrator of the deceased 

claimant’s estate. 

(3) In the event that no will exists, the 

next preference for personal 

representative for purposes of defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve 

will be the first person in the line of 

succession for inheritance established 

by the laws of the deceased claimant’s 

domicile governing intestacy. In the 

case where State law provides for two 

or more persons to inherit in equal 

shares (e.g., parents or siblings), the 

defined monetary assistance payment 

will be split accordingly. 

(4) In the event that none of the 

individuals described in paragraphs 

(a)(1) through (3) of this section are 

available to serve as personal 

representative, any other person may 

seek to be appointed by a court of 

competent jurisdiction as the personal 

representative for purposes of defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve. 

Upon appointment, that person will 

serve as personal representative. 

(b) Notice to beneficiaries. (1) Any 

purported personal representative must, 

before submitting a request to the 

Department, provide written notice of 

the intent to submit a request and the 

procedures in paragraph (c) of this 

section to object to such status as 

personal representative to the 

immediate family of the deceased 

claimant; to the executor, administrator, 

and beneficiaries of the deceased 

claimant’s will; and to any other 

persons who may reasonably be 

expected to assert an interest in an 

award or to have a cause of action to 

recover damages relating to the 

wrongful death of the deceased 

claimant. 

(2) Personal delivery or transmission 

by certified mail, return receipt 

requested, shall be deemed sufficient 

notice under this subpart. The 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
92804 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 227 / Monday, November 25, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

purported personal representative must 

certify that such notice (or other notice 

that the Department deems appropriate) 

has been given. 

(c) Objections to personal 

representatives. Objections to the 

authority of an individual to file as the 

personal representative of a deceased 

claimant may be submitted to the 

Department, as instructed on the 

Department’s website for this program, 

by parties who assert a financial interest 

in the award. Any such objection must 

be submitted within 30 days following 

receipt of notice by the personal 

representative as defined under this 

section. If timely submitted, such 

objections shall be treated as evidence 

of a ‘‘dispute’’ under paragraph (d) of 

this section. 

(d) Disputes as to the identity of the 

personal representative. The 

Department will not, and shall not be 

required to, arbitrate, litigate, or 

otherwise resolve any dispute as to the 

identity of the personal representative. 

In the event of a dispute over the 

appropriate personal representative, the 

Department may suspend or return a 

request to the claimant without 

prejudice to its later resubmission and 

may withhold any payment until the 

dispute is resolved either by agreement 

of the disputing parties or by a court of 

competent jurisdiction. Alternatively, 

the disputing parties may agree in 

writing to the identity of a personal 

representative to act on their behalf, 

who may seek and accept defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve 

while the disputing parties work to 

settle their dispute. 

§ 81.57 Request and order processing. 

(a) Upon receipt of a request to the 

Department, the Department will review 

it and may follow up with the claimant 

(or authorized representative, if 

applicable) to resolve any gaps in the 

request’s supporting information. 

(b) The Department will then use 

reasonable efforts to identify an open or 

closed Federal criminal case involving 

the claimant to present the claimant’s 

application (with supporting 

information, as appropriate) for a court 

to determine the claimant’s eligibility to 

receive defined monetary assistance. If 

the Department is unable to locate such 

a case, it will notify the claimant (or the 

claimant’s authorized representative, if 

applicable). If the Department presents 

the claimant’s application to a court, in 

its sole discretion, the Department may 

or may not present the claim with an 

accompanying recommendation that the 

court order payment or not. If the 

Department determines that it will 

recommend against the court ordering 

payment, the Department will make 

reasonable efforts to inform the claimant 

(or the claimant’s authorized 

representative, if applicable) of such 

recommendation prior to any 

presentation of the application to the 

court. 

(c) If a court issues an order requiring 

payment to any claimant, the 

Department will process payment of 

defined monetary assistance to the 

claimant or, where appropriate, to the 

claimant’s authorized representative, in 

accordance with the order in the 

amount specified therein, upon receipt 

of the order and the requisite 

information from the claimant following 

instructions on the Department’s 

website for this program. Failure to 

submit all required information to the 

Department may result in delay of 

payment. 

(d) If the court issues an order 

denying eligibility based on an 

application submitted by the 

Department, the Department will notify 

the claimant (or the claimant’s 

authorized representative, if applicable). 

The Department may decide to seek 

appellate review of a ruling by a district 

court regarding a claimant’s eligibility 

for defined monetary assistance. The 

Department will make reasonable efforts 

to consult with the claimant (or the 

claimant’s authorized representative, if 

applicable) on the issue of appellate 

review. 

§ 81.58 Signatures and certifications. 

A request to the Department will be 

deemed submitted when it is submitted 

online at the Department’s website for 

this program; or, as provided in 

accordance with § 81.54, consistent with 

the instructions on the claim form. By 

submitting the request, the claimant (or, 

if submitted by an authorized 

representative, the authorized 

representative) acknowledges and 

certifies as to each of the following: 

(a) Veracity of request. The claimant 

certifies, under oath, subject to penalty 

of perjury or in a manner that meets the 

requirements of 28 U.S.C. 1746, that the 

information provided in the request and 

any documents submitted in support of 

the request are true and accurate to the 

best of the claimant’s knowledge, and 

the claimant agrees that any defined 

monetary assistance paid from the 

Reserve is expressly conditioned upon 

the truthfulness and accuracy of the 

information and documentation 

submitted in support of the request. 

Where a claimant is represented by an 

authorized representative, that 

representative must have authority to 

certify the request on behalf of the 

claimant. 

(b) Potential criminal penalties. The 

claimant understands that false 

statements or claims made in 

connection with the request may result 

in fines, imprisonment, and any other 

remedy available by law to the Federal 

Government, including fines and 

imprisonment as provided in 18 U.S.C. 

1001 and treble damages and civil 

penalties under the False Claims Act, 31 

U.S.C. 3729, et seq. Requests that appear 

to be potentially fraudulent or to 

contain false information may be 

forwarded to Federal, State, and local 

law enforcement authorities for possible 

investigation and prosecution. 

(c) Limitation on attorney fees. If a 

claimant is represented by counsel, no 

attorney shall charge, receive, or collect 

any payment of fees and costs that in 

the aggregate exceeds 15 percent of any 

defined monetary assistance paid on 

such application. An attorney who 

violates this provision is subject to fine, 

imprisonment of up to one year, or both. 

§ 81.59 Privacy. 

The Department will not disclose to 

the public the names of the claimants 

(or their authorized representatives, if 

applicable) who have requested defined 

monetary assistance from the Reserve 

under this program, or their other 

personally identifiable information, 

except as necessary to process a request 

or application or pursuant to law or 

court order. 

Dated: November 8, 2024. 

Merrick B. Garland, 

Attorney General. 

[FR Doc. 2024–26679 Filed 11–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4410–14–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

33 CFR Part 165 

[Docket Number USCG–2024–0393] 

RIN 1625–AA11 

Regulated Navigation Area; Cuyahoga 

River, Cleveland, OH 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Interim rule and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard is issuing an 

Interim Final Rule establishing a 

Regulated Navigation Area (RNA) for 

certain waters of the Cuyahoga River in 

Cleveland, Ohio. This action is 

necessary to provide for the safety of life 

on these navigable waters near the 

‘‘Irishtown Bend’’ in Cleveland, Ohio, 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES