The Texas Crime Victim Bill of Rights mandates the use of the VIS, which is a description of how the offense affected the victim and the victim's family. The 1988 survey of VIS use involved four phases: a prosecutor survey, a selected metropolitan district attorneys' offices survey, a judicial region survey, and a postsentencing procedure survey. The survey found that awareness of the VIS has increased during the past 2 years, as evidenced by the significant increases in the number of VIS's distributed, returned, and forwarded by the courts to the Texas Department of Corrections and the Board of Pardon and Parole. Some problems remain, however. Not enough followup is being done on statements not returned, and only 35.7 percent of the completed statements were received by the Board of Pardons and Parole in 1988, indicating procedural gaps in statement transmittals. Although more statements are being routed through the system, VIS information is not being adequately considered by the appropriate decisionmakers in the process. To improve VIS use, this report recommends changes for prosecutors' offices, for the courts, and for post sentencing procedures. Appended sample VIS, flow chart, and verification form recommended for statewide use.