Honorable John Whitmire, Chair, Senate Committee on Criminal Justice
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
SB236 by Schwertner (Relating to the punishment of certain controlled substance offenses committed in a drug-free zone.), As Introduced
The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend the Health and Safety Code to enhance the penalty for possession, manufacture, or delivery of a Penalty Group 1-A substance in a drug-free zone.
Under the provisions of the bill certain state jail felony offenses would be enhanced to a third degree felony and certain second degree felony offenses would be enhanced to a first degree felony if an individual possessed, manufactured, or delivered a Penalty Group 1-A substance in a drug-free zone. The bill would also add these offenses to the list of offenses for which the minimum term of confinement would be increased five years and for which the maximum fine would be doubled if the offenses were committed in a drug-free zone. A first-degree felony is punishable by confinement in prison for life or five to 99 years, a second-degree felony for two to 20 years, a third-degree felony for two to ten years, and a state jail felony is punishable by confinement in a state jail for 180 days to two years. In addition to confinement all felony level offenses are subject to an optional fine not to exceed $10,000.
In fiscal year 2014, 377 people were arrested, 16 were placed under felony community supervision, and fewer than ten were admitted to state correctional institutions for possession, manufacture, or delivery of substances in Penal Group 1-A. This analysis assumes the provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions for criminal offenses would not result in a significant impact on state correctional agencies.