BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 930 Page 1 Date of Hearing: June 17, 2014 Chief Counsel: Gregory Pagan ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY Tom Ammiano, Chair SB 930 (Berryhill) - As Amended: March 28, 2014 SUMMARY : Extends the sunset date until January 1, 2019 on the state's aggravated arson statute, and increases the threshold amount of property damage required from $6.5 million to $7 million. EXISTING LAW : 1)Provides that any person who willfully, maliciously, or deliberately, with premeditation and with intent to cause injury to one or more persons, to cause damage to property under circumstances likely to produce injury to one or more persons, or to cause damage to one or more structures or inhabited dwellings sets fire to, burns, or causes to be burned any residence or structure is guilty of aggravated arson, punishable by 10-years-to-life in the state prison if one or more of the following aggravating factors exist: a) The defendant was previously convicted of arson on one or more occasions within the past 10 years. b) The fire caused property damage and other losses in excess of $6.5 million; or, c) The fire caused damage to, or the destruction of, five or more inhabited structures. (Pen. Code § 451.5.) 2)States legislative intent that property damage provisions be reviewed within five years to consider to consider the effects of inflation on the dollar amount therein. For that reason, these provisions shall only remain in effect until January 1, 2014. (Pen. Code, § 451.5 subd. (a)(2)(B).) 3)Provides that arson that causes great bodily injury is a felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for five, seven, or nine years. (Pen. Code, § 451 subd, (a).) SB 930 Page 2 4)Provides that arson of an inhabited dwelling or inhabited structure is a felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for three, five, or eight years. (Pen. Code § 451 subd. (b).) 5)Provides that arson of a forestland or structure is a felony punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for two, four, or six years. (Pen. Code § 451 subd. (c).) 6)Provides that arson of property is a felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, 2 or 3 years. (Pen. Code § 451 subd. (d).) 7)Provides that any person convicted of arson shall be punished by a three-, four-, or five-year enhancement if one or more of the following circumstances are found to be true: a) The defendant was previously convicted of felony arson; b) A peace officer, firefighter, or other emergency personnel suffered great bodily injury; c) The defendant proximately caused great bodily injury to more than one victim in a single incident; d) The defendants proximately caused multiple structures to burn; or, e) The defendants committed arson by use of a device designed to accelerate the fire, or delay ignition. (Pen. Code § 451.1.) 8)Provides that a person is guilty of unlawfully causing a fire when he or she recklessly sets fire to or causes to be burned any structure, forestland, or property. a) Unlawfully causing a fire that causes great bodily injury is a felony, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for two, four, or six years, or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or by a fine, or by both imprisonment and a fine. b) Unlawfully causing a fire that causes an inhabited structure or property to burn is a felony, punishable by SB 930 Page 3 imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years, or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or by a fine, or by both imprisonment and a fine. c) Unlawfully causing a fire of a structure or forestland is a felony punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, 2, or 3 years, or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or by a fine, or by both imprisonment and a fine. d) Unlawfully causing a fire of property is a misdemeanor. (Pen. Code § 452.) 9)Provides that possession of an incendiary with the intent to set a fire is punishable by 16 months, 2 or 3 years in a county jail, or in a county jail not exceeding one year. (Pen. Code § 453.) FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown COMMENTS : 1)Author's Statement : According to the author, "It is important to preserve this statute to provide law enforcement and prosecutors a valuable tool to deal with the most dangerous arsonists in California. If the cost of fire suppression is no longer considered when calculating the cost of property damage and loss to determine whether to convict a person of aggravated arson, then the state would lose a valuable deterrent for arson caused wildland fires. Additionally, in some cases where a person was not charged with aggravated arson because fire suppression costs were no longer included in the conviction calculation, we would lose the ability to mandate the person to register as an aggravated arsonist, despite causing substantial costs." 2)Argument in Support : The California State Firefighters' Association states, "SB 930 will extend the law of making a person guilty of aggravated arson if fire property damage is caused. The amount was $6.5 million and will be raised to $7 million in this bill to account for inflation. This law helps as a deterrent to those planning to intentionally start a damaging fire that will put firefighters and people at risk. SB 930 Page 4 There have been very few cases over the years and we would like to continue to keep the number low with this deterrent. 3)Prior Legislation : a) AB 1907 (Pacheco), Chapter 135, Statutes of 2004, extended the sunset date on the state's aggravated arson statute until January 1, 2010 and increased the threshold amount of required property damage from $5 million to $5.65 million. b) AB 1995 (Jeffries), of the 2007-08 Legislative Session, extended the sunset date on the state's aggravated arson statute until January 1, 2014, and increased the threshold amount of property damage required from $5.65 million to $6.5 million. AB 1995 was held under submission in the Senate Appropriations Committee. c) AB 27 (Jeffries), Chapter 71, Statutes of 2009, extended the sunset date on the state's aggravated arson statute until January 1, 2010 and increased the threshold amount of property damage required from $5 million to $5.65 million. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION : Support California State Firefighters' Association California Police Chiefs Association California District Attorneys Association California State Sheriffs' Association Opposition None Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744