New York State Senator Michael Balboni announced today that the Senate passed a bill he sponsored which extends eligibility for crime victim's awards to victims of stalking. The legislation, supported by the Nassau Coalition Against Domestic Violence, provides compensation awards to stalking victims to cover expenses incurred as result of the crime. To date, awards from the Crime Victim's Board have usually been granted only to victims who have suffered personal physical injury.

Balboni commented, "Stalking can best be described as psychological terrorism and a crime that can be emotionally and financially devastating. I sincerely hope that this legislation will prevent further suffering and victimization."

The bill provides reimbursement of expenses to cover: Loss of earnings or support; costs associated with the repair or replacement of personal property; the unreimbursed costs of security devices to enhance the personal protection of the victim; transportation expenses for court appearances; unreimbursed costs of counseling and mental health intervention.

Senator Balboni noted that most vicitms of stalking experience severe emotional trauma and suffer repeated financial loss during the period in which they are victimized. In addition, as a result of repeated threats and vandalism, many victims usually spend a significant amount of money on security measures or are compelled to relocate, but cannot afford to do so.

Helen Carroll Scholfield, director of Legal Services for the Nassau County Coalition Against Domestic Violence said, "This bill provides assistance to victims of stalking crimes which can enable them to resume some semblance of a normal life and will, as a side effect, encourage them to take action together with law enforcement agencies, for prosecution of the perpetrator."

Star Legislation to Expand Help for Senior Citizens

State Senator Michael Balboni announced today that he has introduced a bill which expands the eligibility of senior citizens for the enhanced STAR (School Tax Relief) program. The legislation will increase the number of senior citizens who qualify for the reduced property tax and make the program more inclusive.

Currently those who are over 65 years of age, but who may have children, siblings, or others on the deed are excluded from the enhanced STAR program, even if household income is less than $60,000. This new provision would amend the real property tax law so that as long as one homeowner is age 65 or over, they would qualify for the STAR program. This legislation will aid those seniors who would have otherwise qualified for STAR but were turned down.

The legislation is the third bill that Senator Balboni, a member of the Senate Committee on Aging has sponsored this year to assist seniors with the STAR program. Originally proposed by Governor George Pataki, the STAR acceleration will provide senior citizen homeowners with the full benefits of the STAR tax cut this year. Senior citizen homeowners who have struggled with the burden of school property taxes will see them reduced by an average of 45 percent.

Balboni concluded, "My goal is to maximize the number of seniors who qualify for STAR and to minimize the obstacles involved in obtaining this historic tax cut.