BILL ANALYSIS
AB 491
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 21, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Paul Fong, Chair
AB 491 (Garrick) - As Amended: April 14, 2009
SUBJECT : Vandalism: political signs.
SUMMARY : Establishes a $1,000 fine for knowingly destroying,
marking, tearing down, or otherwise defacing a sign supporting
or opposing a candidate for elective office or a ballot measure.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides that a person who knowingly destroys, marks, tears
down, or otherwise defaces a sign supporting or opposing a
candidate for elective office without authorization from the
campaign responsible for the production or creation of the
sign is subject to a fine not to exceed $1,000, in addition to
any other penalty provided by law.
2)Provides that any fines collected for a violation of this bill
shall be distributed as follows:
a) An amount payable to the campaign responsible for the
production or creation of the sign not to exceed 50 percent
of the fine, and when added to the amount of any prior
fines paid during the calendar year to the owner of the
sign, not to exceed the amount of any applicable campaign
contribution limit for the calendar year.
b) The balance of the fine payable to the local law
enforcement agency in the city or county in which the
offense was committed.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Makes vandalism a crime, punishable as follows:
a) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
less than $400, imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding
one year, or a fine of not more than $1,000, or by both the
fine and imprisonment;
b) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
less than $400 and the person previously has been convicted
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of vandalism or other enumerated crimes, imprisonment in a
county jail not exceeding one year, or a fine of not more
than $5,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment;
c) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
$400 or more, but less than $10,000, imprisonment in the
state prison or in a county jail not exceeding one year, or
a fine of not more than $10,000, or both the fine and
imprisonment; or,
d) If the amount of defacement, damage, or destruction is
$10,000 or more, imprisonment in the state prison or in a
county jail not exceeding one year, or a fine of not more
than $50,000, or both the fine and imprisonment.
2)Makes petty theft - the theft of property valued at $400 or
less - a crime punishable by a fine not exceeding one thousand
dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not
exceeding six months, or both the fine and imprisonment.
3)Requires a court, with limited exceptions, to order a person
who is convicted of a crime to pay restitution to the victim
or victims of that crime based on the amount of loss claimed
by the victim or victims.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. State-mandated local program; contains
a crimes and infractions disclaimer.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of the Bill : According to the author:
Over the past decade, candidates for elective office have
experienced an increase in political vandalism. Specially,
vandals have struck a series of campaign signs raising
local and national support for increased penalties. While
we recognize vandalism is a criminal offense punishable by
law, this problem continues to plague campaigns throughout
the state. Currently, no specific penal code addresses
political signs in particular; instead the crimes usually
fall under vandalism or theft. A prosecuted vandal could
face fines of up to $1,000 depending on whether or not the
case is considered a misdemeanor or a felony once the
amount of damage property is taken into account. In
addition, the campaign responsible for the production or
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creation of the sign is financially impacted and has to
replace the damaged or stolen sign.
This bill, in addition to any other penalty provided by
law, would create an auxiliary $1,000 fine for vandalism to
campaign or political signs. This consists of any person
who knowingly destroys, marks, tears down, or otherwise
defaces a sign in support or opposition to a candidate for
elective office or ballot measure without authorization
from the campaign responsible for the production or
creation of the sign. The additional fine enhancement
would be split 50/50 between the local law enforcement
agency in the city or county in which the offense was
committed and the campaign.
Political signs allow citizens to represent their position
on a given issue and exercise their first amendment right.
When some issues touch an emotional or ethical chord,
vandals feel entitled to steal or deface the sign rather
than leave it as it is. Regardless of motive, infringing
on someone else's personal property is illegal.
Our civil society prides itself on the right of all
citizens to voice their opinions. That right of
expression should be honored. This legislation would
discourage vandals from intentionally destroying, defacing
or stealing political signs.
2)Is This Bill Necessary ? Under existing law, theft or
vandalism of a campaign sign may already be subject to
criminal and civil penalties for a violation of laws against
vandalism, theft or petty theft, and possession of stolen
property. A violation of these laws generally is punishable
by six months or longer in county jail or time in state
prison, and by fines of $1,000 or more. Additionally,
existing law generally requires a court to order a person who
is convicted of a crime to pay restitution to the victim or
victims of that crime.
As such, a person who vandalizes or steals a political sign
already faces potential jail or prison time and significant
fines. Additionally, a candidate or campaign whose signs are
vandalized may be entitled to receive restitution for the
value of those signs under existing law. Given these facts,
the extent to which the additional penalty provided for in
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this bill would deter individuals from vandalizing or stealing
campaign signs, or otherwise help campaigns recover the costs
for vandalized signs, is unclear.
3)Illegally Placed Signs : It is not uncommon during the course
of an election for campaign signs to be placed on private
property without the property owner's consent or to be placed
on public property in an area where local ordinances do not
permit the placement of signs. Under the provisions of this
bill, a person who removed or destroyed such a sign
conceivably could be required to pay a fine of up to $1,000.
4)Steal This Sign : Under the provisions of this bill, it is
possible that a campaign could receive a financial windfall by
having one of its campaign sign vandalized or torn down.
Because the campaign responsible for the production of the
sign is entitled to up to $500 of the $1,000 in fine revenues
that would be imposed by this bill, the campaign could come
out ahead financially if the sign that was stolen or
vandalized cost less than $500.
5)Argument in Opposition : In opposition to this bill, the
American Civil Liberties Union writes:
[AB 491] as written is vague and overinclusive. This
raises significant constitutional concerns. A law is
unconstitutionally vague if a reasonable person cannot tell
what is prohibited and what is permitted. For instance,
the phrase "authorization from a campaign" may be
ambiguous. Legislation is also overinclusive when it
regulates substantially more than the Constitution allows
to be regulated. For instance, although the Constitution
permits the regulation of vandalism, this legislation may
also cover a person who wanted to write their name on the
back of a political sign they had purchased.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file.
Opposition
American Civil Liberties Union
AB 491
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Analysis Prepared by : Ethan Jones / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094