I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 275 
To prevent diversion of funds from the Crime Victims Fund. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 4, 2017 
Mr. PERRY (for himself and Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Rules, 
and in addition to the Committee on the Budget, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To prevent diversion of funds from the Crime Victims Fund. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fairness for Crime 
Victims Act of 2017’’. 
SEC. 2. POINT OF ORDER AGAINST CERTAIN CHANGES IN 
MANDATORY 
PROGRAMS 
AFFECTING 
THE 
CRIME VICTIMS FUND. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
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(1) the Crime Victims Fund was created in 
1984, with the support of overwhelming bipartisan 
majorities in the House of Representatives and the 
Senate and the support of President Ronald Reagan, 
who signed the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (Pub-
lic Law 98–473) into law; 
(2) the Crime Victims Fund was created based 
on the principle that funds the Federal Government 
collects from those convicted of crime should be used 
to aid those who have been victimized by crime; 
(3) the Crime Victims Fund is funded from 
fines, penalties, and forfeited bonds in Federal court 
and private donations; 
(4) the Crime Victims Fund receives no tax-
payer dollars; 
(5) Federal law provides that funds deposited 
into the Crime Victims Fund shall be used to pro-
vide services to victims of crime in accordance with 
the Victims of Crime Act of 1984; 
(6) the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 gives pri-
ority to victims of child abuse, sexual assault, and 
domestic violence; 
(7) since fiscal year 2000, Congress has been 
taking funds collected by the Crime Victims Fund 
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and not disbursing the full amount provided for 
under the Victims of Crime Act of 1984; 
(8) over $10,000,000,000 has been withheld 
from victims of child abuse, sexual assault, domestic 
violence, and other crimes; 
(9) from fiscal year 2010 through fiscal year 
2014, 
the 
Crime 
Victims 
Fund 
collected 
$12,000,000,000, but Congress disbursed only 
$3,600,000,000 (or 30 percent) to crime victims; 
(10) under budget rules, Congress represents 
that the money it has already spent in prior years 
is still in the Crime Victims Fund and available for 
victims of crime; 
(11) Congress concludes that it is time to re-
store fairness to crime victims; and 
(12) Congress concludes that henceforth, funds 
collected by the Crime Victims Fund should be used 
for services to crime victims in accordance with the 
Victims of Crime Act of 1984. 
(b) AMENDMENT.—Title IV of the Congressional 
Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘PART C—ADDITIONAL LIMITATIONS ON BUDG-
ETARY AND APPROPRIATIONS LEGISLATION 
‘‘SEC. 441. POINT OF ORDER AGAINST CHANGES IN MANDA-
TORY PROGRAMS AFFECTING THE CRIME 
VICTIMS FUND. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘CHIMP’ means a provision 
that— 
‘‘(A) would have been estimated as affect-
ing direct spending or receipts under section 
252 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 
Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 902) (as 
in effect prior to September 30, 2002) if the 
provision was included in legislation other than 
appropriation Acts; and 
‘‘(B) results in a net decrease in budget 
authority in the current year or the budget 
year, but does not result in a net decrease in 
outlays over the period of the total of the cur-
rent year, the budget year, and all fiscal years 
covered under the most recently adopted con-
current resolution on the budget; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘Crime Victims Fund’ means the 
Crime Victims Fund established under section 1402 
of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 
10601); and 
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‘‘(3) the term ‘3-year average amount’ means 
the annual average amount that was deposited into 
the Crime Victims Fund during the 3-fiscal-year pe-
riod beginning on October 1 of the fourth fiscal year 
before the fiscal year to which a CHIMP affecting 
the Crime Victims Fund applies. 
‘‘(b) POINT OF ORDER IN THE SENATE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—When the Senate is consid-
ering a bill or joint resolution making appropriations 
for a fiscal year, or an amendment thereto, amend-
ment between the Houses in relation thereto, con-
ference report thereon, or motion thereon, if a point 
of order is made by a Senator against a provision 
containing a CHIMP that, if enacted, would cause 
the amount available for obligation during the fiscal 
year from the Crime Victims Fund to be less than 
the 3-year average amount, and the point of order 
is sustained by the Chair, that provision shall be 
stricken from the measure and may not be offered 
as an amendment from the floor. 
‘‘(2) FORM OF THE POINT OF ORDER.—A point 
of order under paragraph (1) may be raised by a 
Senator as provided in section 313(e). 
‘‘(3) CONFERENCE REPORTS.—When the Sen-
ate is considering a conference report on, or an 
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amendment between the Houses in relation to, a bill 
or joint resolution, upon a point of order being made 
by any Senator pursuant to paragraph (1), and such 
point of order being sustained, such material con-
tained in such conference report or House amend-
ment shall be stricken, and the Senate shall proceed 
to consider the question of whether the Senate shall 
recede from its amendment and concur with a fur-
ther amendment, or concur in the House amendment 
with a further amendment, as the case may be, 
which further amendment shall consist of only that 
portion of the conference report or House amend-
ment, as the case may be, not so stricken. Any such 
motion in the Senate shall be debatable. In any case 
in which such point of order is sustained against a 
conference report (or Senate amendment derived 
from such conference report by operation of this 
subsection), no further amendment shall be in order. 
‘‘(4) SUPERMAJORITY WAIVER AND APPEAL.— 
In the Senate, this subsection may be waived or sus-
pended only by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of 
the Members, duly chosen and sworn. An affirmative 
vote of three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, 
duly chosen and sworn shall be required to sustain 
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an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on a point of 
order raised under this subsection. 
‘‘(5) DETERMINATION.—For purposes of this 
subsection, budgetary levels shall be determined on 
the basis of estimates provided by the Chairman of 
the Committee on the Budget of the Senate. 
‘‘(c) POINT OF ORDER IN THE HOUSE OF REP-
RESENTATIVES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—A provision in a bill or 
joint resolution making appropriations for a fiscal 
year that proposes a CHIMP that, if enacted, would 
cause the amount available for obligation during the 
fiscal year from the Crime Victims Fund to be less 
than the 3-year average amount shall not be in order 
in the House of Representatives. 
‘‘(2) AMENDMENTS
AND
CONFERENCE
RE-
PORTS.—It shall not be in order in the House of 
Representatives to consider an amendment to, or a 
conference report on, a bill or joint resolution mak-
ing appropriations for a fiscal year if such amend-
ment thereto or conference report thereon proposes 
a CHIMP that, if enacted, would cause the amount 
available for obligation during the fiscal year from 
the Crime Victims Fund to be less than the 3-year 
average amount. 
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‘‘(3) DETERMINATION.—For purposes of this 
subsection, budgetary levels shall be determined on 
the basis of estimates provided by the Chairman of 
the Committee on the Budget of the House of Rep-
resentatives.’’. 
(c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 
The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Congressional 
Budget Act of 1974 is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 428 the following: 
‘‘PART C—ADDITIONAL LIMITATIONS ON BUDGETARY AND APPROPRIATIONS 
LEGISLATION 
‘‘Sec. 441. Point of order against changes in mandatory programs affecting the 
Crime Victims Fund.’’. 
Æ 
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