Honorable Sid Miller, Chair, House Committee on Homeland Security & Public Safety
FROM:
John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB595 by Raymond (Relating to the punishment prescribed for false identification as a peace officer.), As Introduced
The bill would amend the Penal Code related to the punishment for false identification as a peace officer. The bill would enhance the penalty for this offense from a Class B misdemeanor to a third-degree felony if the individual committed the offense with the intent to commit another felony.
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 felony of the third degree is punishable by confinement in prison for a term from 2 to 10 years and, in addition to confinement, an optional fine not to exceed $10,000.
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, 14 people were arrested and 16 people were placed on misdemeanor community supervision for false identification as a peace officer. 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.