Homefront: Details of Sept. 11 Victims Payments

— -- Victims of those killed in the Sept. 11 attacks will get at least $500,000 in federal aid, in addition to money from private charities, the government announced; the FBI is advising people to keep up their guard over the holiday season, saying there is an ongoing potential for terrorist attacks; a statue of a common man at Ground Zero has taken on symbolic value, as it survived the collapse of the World Trade Center.

Families and Survivors Can Apply for Fed. AidW A S H I N G T O N, Dec. 20 — The victims' families and survivors of theSept. 11 terrorist attacks can begin applying for federal aidFriday and will be eligible for at least $500,000 each in aid, theJustice Department announced today. Kenneth Feinberg, the lawyer named to oversee the federalvictims' money, said offices would open Friday in New York andWashington to begin taking applications, and that eligibleAmericans could receive a $50,000 advance quickly. "We do not want to drag our feet with red tape andbureaucracy," Feinberg said, noting he wants money distributedwithin 120 days of receiving applications. Feinberg said he has received input on the fund from manysources, but singled out comments from victims' families. "They have given me more valuable input than anybody, and I amdeeply appreciative," he said. According to the rules, Feinberg will develop a method forcalculating how much victims and families should get to ensure that"similarly situated claimants should not receive dramaticallydifferent treatment." While families can receive more than $500,000 depending on theircircumstances, the rules make clear that families of those whoearned high wages wouldn't necessarily receive more than familiesof victims who earned modest wages. "A claimant should not assume that he or she will receive anaward greater than the presumed award simply because the victim hadan income that exceeded the income for the 98th percentile," therules say. Life insurance and pension fund payments would be subtractedfrom the awards, but not charitable contributions. The rules do not mention whether same sex partners of victimsare eligible. David Smith of Human Rights Campaign, a gay and lesbian advocacygroup, said it appears same-sex partners could apply but whetherthey would be eligible to receive awards would depend on a numberof factors, including whether domestic partner laws in the stateswhere the partner resides. Under the program, much of Theresa Riccaradelli's economicfuture rests with Feinberg, who will ultimately have the final sayin how much each family touched by the tragedy receives. "It's the first step in making some big decisions,"Riccaradelli said. Feinberg said aid given to families through charitableorganizations will not be counted for or against the federal aid. "Charity will be considered separate," Feinberg said. The fund was set up in September as part of the $15 billionairline bailout bill. Its eventual size will be determined by thenumber of families that apply and the size of their awards. The law establishing the fund makes clear that a portion of theaward must be based on the victim's income and earning potential.That ranges from the millions of dollars earned by some bondtraders to the far smaller salaries of janitors and other low-wageworkers. The "non-economic" portion of the assistance, which includespain and suffering, offers more flexibility to equalize payments,Feinberg has indicated. But a half-dozen family members who met with Feinberg asrecently as this week disagreed over the figures he provided tothem. For the "non-economic" portion of the award, the minimumranged from $100,000 to $250,000, they said. That amount could beadjusted upward to account for dependent children, they said.