BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin Murray, Chairman
1318 (Cedillo)
Hearing Date: 4/24/06 Amended: 3/27/06
Consultant: Nora Lynn Policy Vote: Public Safety 5-0
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BILL SUMMARY: SB 1318 creates a two-year sentence enhancement
for defendants found guilty of trafficking cocaine, heroin,
methamphetamine or phencyclidine (PCP) within 1,000 feet of a
drug treatment center, a detoxification facility or a homeless
shelter, with certain exceptions.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 Fund
Incarceration Unknown costs, potentially in
excessGeneral
of $800 annually, beginning in 2008-09
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STAFF COMMENTS: This bill meets the criteria to be placed on the
Suspense file.
Under current law the penalties for the possession for sale or
distribution of, or the sale or distribution of, specified
controlled substances is as follows:
Crime Penalty
Possession of cocaine or heroin for sale or distributionFelony
(2/3/4 years)
Possession of cocaine base (crack) for sale Felony (3/4/5
years)
Sale or distribution of cocaine, heroin, crackFelony (3/6/9
years)
Possession of methamphetamine for sale or distributionFelony (16
mos/2 or 3 yrs)
Sale or distribution of methamphetamine Felony (2/3/4
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SB 1318 (Cedillo)
years)
Possession of PCP for sale or distribution Felony (2/3/4
years)
Sale or distribution of PCP (in one county) Felony (3/4/5
years)
Sale or distribution of PCP (multiple counties)Felony (3/6/9
years)
Current law also contains provisions for these sentences to be
enhanced if they occur in specified places (on the grounds of a
church, school, playground, child care facility, or youth
center) or if a minor is involved in the commission of the
crime.
SB 1318 creates a separate enhancement for those found guilty of
trafficking the aforementioned controlled substances if the
crime was committed within 1,000 feet of a homeless shelter,
detoxification facility or drug treatment center unless certain
circumstances apply - if one of the enhancements found in
current law is applied or if the court determines there are
mitigating factors (such as the defendant is homeless or lacks
resources for the necessities of life; if the defendant is
addicted to or dependent on controlled substances or if the
defendant's motive was to maintain a steady supply of drugs for
his or her personal use; or if the defendant was recruited or
exploited by a more culpable person to commit the crime).
According to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation,
there were 8,864 prison admissions in 2004-05 for violations of
the trafficking statutes cited in SB 1318. It is unknown how
many of these violations took place near one of the state's
estimated 3,000 drug treatment centers, detoxification
facilities and homeless shelters or, of the portion that did,
how many defendants would not be eligible to receive the
enhancement based on SB 1318's exceptions. If as few as one-half
of 1% of those committed to state prison for violating drug
trafficking statutes in 2004-05 (or, 44 defendants) were to be
given enhanced sentences each year as a result of SB 1318,
however, incarceration costs tied to the measure would exceed
$800,000 annually beginning in 2009.
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SB 1318 (Cedillo)
STAFF NOTES SB 1318 defines "homeless shelter" (page 4, line 12)
in such a way as to include domestic violence shelters. This is
potentially problematic since the location of these shelters is
generally confidential. STAFF RECOMMENDS that SB 1318 be amended
to exempt domestic violence shelters specifically. STAFF
RECOMMENDS also that the word "helping" be struck from page 4,
line 19 to correct a drafting error.