Honorable Dan Patrick, Lieutenant Governor, Senate
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
SB1343 by Hughes (Relating to the prosecution of criminal offenses regarding unauthorized recordings.), As Passed 2nd House
The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend the Business and Commerce Code as it relates to prohibited practices in unauthorized recordings. The bill would expand the types of devices on which improperly labeled recordings could be made. The bill would also no longer require the name of the performer or group to be clearly and conspicuously disclosed on the outside cover, box, or jacket of a recording. The bill would also permit the punishment for improper labeling to be based on commercial equivalents of improperly labeled recordings, rather than the number of improperly labeled recordings only. Punishment would vary based on the specific circumstances of the offense but could include a term of imprisonment not to exceed two or five years, a fine not to exceed $250,000, or both imprisonment and the fine.
Expanding the list of behaviors for which a criminal penalty is applied is expected to result in increased demands on the correctional resources of the 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, 29 individuals were arrested, 10 were placed under felony community supervision, and fewer than 10 were admitted into state correctional institutions for the offense of unauthorized labeling of recordings under existing statute punishable by a felony. However, 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.