Honorable Charles Perry, Chair, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Water & Rural Affairs
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2817 by González, Mary (relating to the prosecution of, punishment for, and deterrence of certain offenses involving cattle, bison, or horses; authorizing an administrative penalty; authorizing an assessment; increasing a criminal penalty.), Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted
The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend the Penal Code as it relates to the punishment for the offense of criminal mischief involving the death of a head of cattle, bison, or horses. Certain criminal penalties would not be applicable if certain animals were killed by certain individuals while in the discharge of certain official or regular duties. Under the provisions of the bill, criminal mischief involving the death of one or more head of cattle, bison, or horses would be punishable by a third degree felony.
A third degree felony is punishable by confinement in prison for a term from 2 to 10 years, in addition to confinement, an optional fine not to exceed $10,000.
Expanding the list of behaviors for which a criminal penalty is applied is expected to result in increased demands on the correctional resources of counties or of the State due to a potential increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or sentenced to a term of confinement within state correctional institutions. In fiscal year 2016, 56 individuals were arrested, fewer than 10 were placed under felony community supervision, and fewer than 10 were admitted into state correctional institutions for the offense of criminal mischief under existing statute punishable as a third degree felony. This analysis assumes the provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions would not result in a significant impact on the demand for state correctional resources.