The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend various codes to remove references to state jail felonies and replace them with a fourth degree felony. Under the provisions of the bill, offenses prosecuted as a fourth degree felony would be punished in the same manner as state jail felonies under existing statute, except individuals would be eligible for parole. The bill also reduces the punishments for several offenses from a state jail felony to a Class A misdemeanor, and the punishment for other offenses from a third degree felony to a Class A misdemeanor or a fourth degree felony, depending upon the circumstances of the offense. The bill would take effect on September 1, 2019, and apply to offenses committed on or after that date.
Decreasing the penalty for any offense is expected to result in fewer demands upon the correctional resources of counties or of the state due to a decrease in the number of people placed under felony community supervision, a decrease in the length of stay on felony community supervision, a decrease in the number of people admitted to state correctional facilities, and a decrease in the length of stay in correctional facilities. From fiscal year 2018 through 2020, an average of 8,580 people were placed on felony direct community supervision and 11,042 people were admitted into a state correctional institution for a state jail felony that would be reduced to a Class A misdemeanor as outlined in the bill. From fiscal years 2018 through 2020, an average of 148 people were placed on felony direct community supervision and 84 were admitted into a state correctional institution for a third degree felony that would be reduced to a fourth degree felony or misdemeanor as outlined in the bill. Additionally, from fiscal years 2018 through 2020, based on the average parole approval rate, an average of 4,727 people were admitted into a state correctional institution for a state jail felony who could potentially be considered for parole supervision as outlined in the bill.
Estimated populations are based on the adult incarceration projections included in the January 2021 Adult and Juvenile Correctional Population Projections report, include a time lag, and assume sentencing patterns and policies not addressed in the bill remain constant. The probable impact on adult correctional populations of implementing the provisions of the bill during each of the first five years following passage is estimated as follows: