Honorable John Whitmire, Chair, Senate Committee on Criminal Justice
FROM:
John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB1098 by McCall (Relating to using the Internet to obtain identifying information of another person for a fraudulent purpose; providing penalties.), As Engrossed
The bill would amend the Business and Commerce Code by providing criminal penalties for using the Internet to obtain identifying information of another person for a fraudulent purpose. An offense under this section would be punishable as a state jail felony unless it is shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant has been previously convicted, in which the case the offense would be punishable as a felony of the third degree.
A state jail felony is punishable by confinement in a state jail for any term of not more than two years or less than 180 days, or in addition to confinement, a fine not to exceed $10,000.
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.
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 or on the demand for resources and services of those agencies.