Honorable Terry Keel, Chair, House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence
FROM:
John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB402 by Villarreal (Relating to the punishment for the offense of prohibited sexual conduct.), As Introduced
The bill would amend the Penal Code by enhancing the punishment for the offense of prohibited sexual conduct from a felony of the third degree to a felony of the second degree.
A third degree felony is punishable by imprisonment in the institutional division for any term of not more than 10 years or less than 2 years, or, in addition to confinement, a fine not to exceed $10,000.
A second degree felony is punishable by imprisonment in the institutional division for any term of not more than 20 years or less than 2 years, or, in addition to confinement, a fine not to exceed $10,000.
For fiscal year 2004, there were seven admissions to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) for the offense of prohibited sexual conduct. Therefore, it is assumed that the number of offenders convicted under this statute would not result in a significant impact on the programs and workload of state corrections agencies.