HB 1483 - Victims' Rights Act of 1998; enact

First Reader Summary

A BILL to amend Article 5 of Chapter 10 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to offenses related to judicial and other proceedings, so as to impose a tax upon certain individuals' profits derived from accounts, descriptions, publishing a book or article, making a public appearance, or participating in any commercial activity concerning a crime committed within the State of Georgia; and for other purposes.

Page Numbers - 1/ 2/ 3

Code Sections - 48-1-10

HB 1483                                           LC 26 0784S 
 
               The House Ways and Means Committee offers the 
      following substitute to HB 1483: 
 
 
 
                        A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 
                               AN ACT 
 
 
  1- 1  To amend Chapter 1 of Title 48 of the Official Code of 
  1- 2  Georgia Annotated, relating to general provisions related to 
  1- 3  revenue and taxation, so as to impose a tax upon certain 
  1- 4  individuals' profits derived from accounts, descriptions, 
  1- 5  publishing a book or article, making a public appearance, or 
  1- 6  participating in any commercial activity concerning certain 
  1- 7  crimes committed within the State of Georgia; to define the 
  1- 8  time period affected; to provide for a short title; to 
  1- 9  provide for exceptions; to provide for related matters; to 
  1-10  provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and 
  1-11  for other purposes. 
 
  1-12       BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA: 
 
  1-13                           SECTION 1. 
 
  1-14  Chapter 1 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia 
  1-15  Annotated, relating to general provisions related to revenue 
  1-16  and taxation, is amended by inserting a new Code section to 
  1-17  be designated Code Section 48-1-10 to read as follows: 
 
  1-18    "48-1-10. 
 
  1-19    (a) This Code section shall be known and may be cited as 
  1-20    'The Victims' Reimbursement Act of 1998.' 
 
  1-21    (b) Any individual, partnership, corporation, or other 
  1-22    entity which produces for profit a factual account of any 
  1-23    serious violent felony as defined in Code Section 
  1-24    17-10-6.1 committed within the State of Georgia as to 
  1-25    which the perpetrator or perpetrators have been convicted 
  1-26    and sentenced to imprisonment or execution shall be 
  1-27    subject to a tax on the gross revenue derived from such 
  1-28    production in the following amounts: 
 
  1-29      (1) A convicted perpetrator shall be taxed 100 percent 
  1-30      of all gross revenue derived from such production, 
  1-31      including sale of rights or any other form of 
  1-32      remuneration to the perpetrator whatsoever. 
  1-33      Seventy-five percent of the tax so imposed shall be paid 
 
 
 
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  2- 1      to the Georgia Crime Victims Emergency Fund. 
  2- 2      Notwithstanding any other provision of law, such moneys 
  2- 3      shall, thereafter, be paid pro rata to the victim or 
  2- 4      victims of such serious violent felony, or the victim's 
  2- 5      or victims' families heirs, or next of kin if such 
  2- 6      victim or victims are deceased. Twenty-five percent 
  2- 7      shall be paid into the general fund of the county in 
  2- 8      which the serious violent felony of which the 
  2- 9      perpetrator was convicted was committed; and 
 
  2-10      (2) All other proceeds derived from factual accounts of 
  2-11      any such serious violent felony shall be subject to a 
  2-12      tax of 10 percent of all gross revenue derived from such 
  2-13      production, to be paid to the Georgia Crime Victims 
  2-14      Emergency Fund. Notwithstanding any other provision of 
  2-15      law, such moneys shall, thereafter, be paid, pro rata to 
  2-16      the victim or victims of such serious violent felony, or 
  2-17      the victim's or victims' families, heirs, or next of kin 
  2-18      if such victim or victims are deceased. 
 
  2-19      (c)(1) The provisions of this Code section shall be 
  2-20      applicable to every individual, partnership, 
  2-21      corporation, or other entity residing, domiciled, 
  2-22      incorporated, or otherwise found within the state and to 
  2-23      any such entity which establishes contacts within the 
  2-24      State of Georgia sufficient to confer jurisdiction over 
  2-25      such entity to the courts of this state but shall not be 
  2-26      applicable to victims of the serious violent felonies 
  2-27      depicted or portrayed. 
 
  2-28      (2) This Code section shall be inapplicable to wholly 
  2-29      fictional accounts of serious violent felonies in which 
  2-30      no actual name of a victim or perpetrator who was a 
  2-31      victim of or the perpetrator of a similar serious 
  2-32      violent felony is used. 
 
  2-33      (3) This Code section shall be inapplicable to proceeds 
  2-34      derived from descriptions or accounts of serious violent 
  2-35      felonies committed more than 20 years prior to the date 
  2-36      of any agreement for the payment of such proceeds. 
 
  2-37      (4) This Code section shall be inapplicable to factual 
  2-38      accounts of serious violent felonies reported in any 
  2-39      media as news reports or news items or to reprints or 
  2-40      rebroadcasts of such accounts." 
 
  2-41                           SECTION 2. 
 
  2-42  This Act shall become effective on July 1, 1998. 
 
 
 
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  3- 1                           SECTION 3. 
 
  3- 2  All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are 
  3- 3  repealed. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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