Honorable David Swinford, Chair, House Committee on State Affairs
FROM:
John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB3278 by Isett (Relating to the management, security, and protection of personal information and governmental records; providing a criminal penalty.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
The provision of the bill that is the subject of this analysis would amend the Penal Code by enhancing the punishment for the offense of fraudulent use or possession of a person’s identifying information from a state jail felony to a felony of the third degree. The bill would take effect September 1, 2005.
In fiscal year 2004 there were 234 state jail community supervision placements and 186 state jail admissions for the offense of fraudulent use or possession of a person’s identifying information. For the purposes of this analysis it is assumed that all state jail admissions would serve additional time incarcerated as third degree felons and that 56 percent of the 234 state jail community supervision placements for the offense identified by this bill would be sentenced to a term of incarceration as third degree felons. The bill affects a smaller percentage of the community supervision placements because it is assumed that many of the offenders that were sentenced to community supervision as state jail felons would also be sentenced to community supervision as third degree felons. This assumption is based on an analysis of offenders sentenced to community supervision and incarceration in fiscal year 2004 for offenses punishable as a felony of the third degree. The analysis also reflects the additional parole supervision population that would result from the enhancement of the offense from a state jail felony to a felony of the third degree.
Assuming that sentencing patterns and release policies not addressed in this bill remain constant, the probable impact of implementing the provisions of the bill during each of the first five years following passage, in terms of daily demand upon the adult corrections agencies, is estimated as follows: