The bill would amend the Penal Code as it relates to the punishment for burglary of a vehicle. Under the provisions of the bill, the Penal Code would be amended by making the offense of burglary of a vehicle punishable as a state jail felony. The offense of burglary of a vehicle is currently punishable as a state jail felony if the defendant has been previously convicted two or more times or the vehicle/part is a rail car; otherwise the offense is punishable as a Class A Misdemeanor. The bill would become effective September 1, 2013 and apply only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of the act.

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 supervision in the community, or longer terms of confinement in county jail, state jail 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. The population impact as a result of the provisions of the bill will come from defendants whose offenses were previously punished as a Class A Misdemeanor but would now be punished as a state jail felony. In fiscal year 2012, there were 1,368 offenders placed on misdemeanor community supervision for a Class A Misdemeanor offense of burglary of a vehicle.

Under the provisions of the bill, it is estimated that approximately 45 percent of the individuals convicted for the offense of burglary of a vehicle previously punished as a Class A Misdemeanor would now be sentenced to a term of incarceration in a state jail, resulting in an increase in demand for state jail capacity. 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: