The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend the Penal Code to add the use, by certain persons in specified circumstances, of cell site simulators to the list of inchoate offenses. Under the provisions of the bill, the use of such simulators, by certain persons in specified circumstances, to locate or identify a wireless communications device or to intercept the content of an electronic communication would be punishable as a state jail felony.

A state jail felony is punishable by confinement in a state jail for a term from 180 days to 2 years or Class A misdemeanor punishment, and in addition to confinement, an optional fine not to exceed $10,000.

Expanding the list of behaviors for which a penalty can be applied is expected to result in additional demands upon the correctional resources of the counties or of the State due to an increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or sentenced to terms of confinement within state correctional institutions. In fiscal year 2018, 24 people were arrested, fewer than 10 were placed under felony community supervision, and fewer than 10 were admitted into state correctional institutions for inchoate offenses involving either the use of devices to intercept electronic communication or the illicit use of information gained thereby under existing statute. This analysis assumes the provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions would not result in a significant impact on state correctional populations or the demand for state correctional resources.