The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are the subject of this analysis. The bill would amend the Alcoholic Beverage Code as it relates to the offense of providing an alcoholic beverage to a minor. Under the provisions of the bill, the penalty would be enhanced to a third degree felony if the person provided an alcoholic beverage to a minor resulting in the death of the minor due to the consumption of the beverage. Under current statute, purchasing or furnishing an alcoholic beverage to a minor is punishable as a Class A misdemeanor.
A third degree felony is punishable by confinement in prison for a term from 2 to 10 years and, in addition to confinement, an optional fine not to exceed $10,000. A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by confinement in county jail for a term not to exceed one year and, in addition to confinement, an optional fine not to exceed $4,000.
Increasing the criminal penalty for an offense is expected to result in additional demands upon the correctional resources of counties or of the State due to an increase in the number of individuals placed onto supervision in the community or sentenced to a term of confinement within state correctional institutions. From fiscal years 2018 through 2020, an average of 416 people were arrested and 85 were placed onto misdemeanor community supervision for the offense modified by the bill under existing statute. Data do not exist that would allow the number of cases that resulted in the death of the minor due to the consumption of alcoholic beverages to be separated from all other cases in which an alcoholic beverage was purchased or furnished to a minor. This analysis assumes implementing the provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions would not result in a significant impact on state correctional populations or on the demand for state correctional resources.