The bill would amend the Penal Code and Occupations Code as they relate to failure to report or provide information on coin operated machines, gambling promotion, and engaging in organized criminal activity. The provisions of the bill that create new punishment or enhance existing punishment for criminal offenses are the subject of this analysis. Under the provisions of the bill, failure to report or provide required information on coin-operated machines would now be a Class A Misdemeanor and gambling promotion would now be a state jail felony. Under current statute, failure to report or provide information on coin-operated is a Class B Misdemeanor and the offense of gambling promotion is punishable as a Class A Misdemeanor. The bill would also amend the engaging in organized criminal activity statute to conform with the enhancement to gambling promotion as proposed in the bill.
 
A Class B Misdemeanor is punishable by confinement in county jail for a term not to exceed 180 days and/or a fine not to exceed $2,000. A Class A Misdemeanor is punishable by confinement in county jail for a term not to exceed one year and/or a fine not to exceed $4,000. A state jail felony is punishable by confinement in a state jail for a term from 180 days to 2 years and, in addition to confinement, an optional fine not to exceed $10,000 or Class A Misdemeanor punishment (mandatory post conviction community supervision).
 
Increasing the penalty for any criminal offense is expected to result in increased demands upon the correctional resources of counties or of the State due to longer terms of probation, or longer terms of confinement in county jails or prison. When an offense is changed from a misdemeanor to a felony, there is a transfer of the burden of confinement of convicted offenders from the counties to the State. In fiscal year 2010, 96 people were arrested and 9 people were placed on misdemeanor community supervision for gambling promotion. For this analysis, it is assumed 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.