BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1176
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GOVERNOR'S VETO
AB
1176 (Cooper, et al.)
As Enrolled July 1, 2016
2/3 vote. Urgency
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|ASSEMBLY: | | (June 3, |SENATE: |34-1 | (June 30, 2016) |
| | |2015) | | | |
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(vote not relevant)
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|ASSEMBLY: | 77-0 |(June 30, | | | |
| | |2016) | | | |
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Original Committee Reference: TRANS.
SUMMARY: Calls for a special election to amend Proposition 47
and make the theft of a firearm grand theft in all cases and
punishable by a state prison term.
The Senate amendments delete the Assembly version of this bill,
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and instead:
1)Declare that the theft of a firearm is grand theft in all
cases, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for 16
months, or two or three years.
2)State that every person who buys or receives a stolen firearm
is guilty of an alternate felony/misdemeanor offense
punishable by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of
not more than one year, or by imprisonment in the county jail
pursuant to realignment.
3)Call for a special election to be held on November 8, 2016,
for voter approval of these provisions.
4)Require consolidation of the special election with the
statewide general election to be held on that date.
5)Require the consolidated election be held and conducted in all
respects as if there were only one election, and only one form
of ballot shall be used.
6)Waive specified Election Code requirements to submit these
provisions to the voters on the November 8, 2016 election.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Divides theft into two degrees, petty theft and grand theft.
(Penal Code Section (PC) 486.)
2)Defines grand theft as when the money, labor, or real or
personal property taken is of a value exceeding $950 dollars,
except as specified. (PC 487.)
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3)States that notwithstanding any provision of law defining
grand theft, obtaining any property by theft where the value
of the money, labor, real or personal property taken does not
exceed $950 shall be considered petty theft and shall be
punished as a misdemeanor, except in the case where a person
has prior serious, violent, or sex convictions, in which case
the offense is punished as a felony by imprisonment in the
county jail pursuant to realignment. (PC 490.2(a).)
4)Prohibits carrying a concealed firearm upon the person or in a
vehicle, and punishes that crime as a felony under certain
circumstances, including if the person is an ex-felon or a
gang member, or if the firearm was stolen. (PC 25400.)
5)Prohibits carrying a loaded firearm on the person or in a
vehicle while in any public place or on any public street and
punishes that crime as a felony under certain circumstances,
including if the person is an ex-felon or a gang member, or if
the firearm was stolen. (PC 25850.)
6)Prohibits any person previously convicted of a felony from
owning, purchasing, receiving, possessing, or having in his or
her custody a firearm, and punishes that offense as a felony.
(PC 29800(a)(1).)
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill created the Advanced
Low-Carbon Diesel Fuels Access Program, administered by the
State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission
(Commission) to fund advanced low-carbon diesel fueling
infrastructure projects in disadvantaged communities
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee:
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1)Ballot costs: One-time costs in the range of $414,000 to
$552,000 (General Fund) to the Secretary of State (SOS) for
printing and mailing costs to place the measure on the ballot
in the next statewide election.
2)State prisons: To the extent the voters approve the
amendments to the Proposition, significant increase in state
incarceration costs potentially in the millions of dollars
(General Fund) annually for a) felony convictions for theft of
a firearm, b) felony convictions for receipt of a stolen
firearm for persons with a current or prior serious or violent
felony conviction, and c) potential future violations of the
lifetime firearms ban imposed for these felony convictions
that otherwise may have been charged as misdemeanors.
Separate from the initiative, potential increase in felony
violations of the 10-year firearms ban under the expanded list
of misdemeanor offenses. To the extent the 10-year
prohibition is applied retroactively could significantly
increase the potential fiscal impact to the state. Staff
notes commitments to state prison for both a) theft of a
firearm and b) receipt of stolen property as a principal
offense decreased by about 70% after passage of Proposition
47. To the extent some defendants continue to be committed to
prison for other felony convictions, while not resulting in
new commitments, this bill could result in longer prison
sentences for these cases.
3)County jails: To the extent the voters approve the amendments
to the Proposition, potentially major increase in
non-reimbursable local costs (Local Funds) for felony jail
sentences for receipt of stolen property violations that
previously would have been subject to misdemeanor penalties,
offset in minor part due to fewer jail terms for petty theft
of a firearm that would be subject to a state prison term.
Separate from the initiative, potentially significant
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increases or decreases in local costs (Local Funds) resulting
from violations of the 10-year firearms ban (See Staff
Comments). To the extent the 10-year firearms ban is applied
retroactively would significantly increase the potential
fiscal impact to counties. To the extent local agencies incur
a net increase in overall costs, funding could be required
from the State (Proposition 30 General Fund).
4)Reduction in Proposition 47 savings: Potential reduction in
future funds allocated to the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools
Fund (SNSF) to the extent raising the criminal penalties for
the specified firearm offenses results in a reduction in
future calculated savings under Proposition 47 by the
Department of Finance.
5)Department of Justice (DOJ): Potentially significant increase
in DOJ administration and enforcement costs in the hundreds of
thousands of dollars (Special Fund*) due to increases to the
Armed Prohibited Persons System (APPS) list resulting from the
expanded application of the firearms prohibition. It is
unclear how the DOJ would determine the convictions for
receipt of stolen property that are specific to firearms
(should the voters choose not to approve amendments to the
initiative that would make the offense a wobbler), given that
level of detail is not currently available with regard to
arrests/convictions under existing law.
*Dealers Record of Sale Special Account (DROS) - Staff notes the
DROS is structurally imbalanced, with less than a $1 million
reserve balance projected by year-end Fiscal Year 2016-17. As a
result, an appropriation from another fund source, potentially
the General Fund, may be required to support the activities
resulting from this bill.
COMMENTS: According to the author, "Current law makes the theft
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of a firearm a misdemeanor if it is valued under $950.
Handguns, shotguns, rifles and AR-15 types of weapons are easy
to find for sale for under the $950 at most retail gun stores.
When these guns are stolen they are often sold or traded at
below market value on the street. Many times these stolen guns
are found to have been used in other crimes such as robberies
and shootings. AB 1176 will serve as a deterrent and apply the
proper criminal consequences to those who steal and transfer any
type of firearm."
This bill was substantially amended in the Senate and the
Assembly-approved version of this bill was deleted. This bill,
as amended in the Senate, is inconsistent with Assembly actions
and the provisions of this bill, as amended in the Senate, have
not been heard in an Assembly policy committee.
GOVERNOR'S VETO MESSAGE:
I am returning Assembly Bill 1176 without my signature.
This bill proposes to add an initiative that is nearly identical
to one which will already appear on the November 2016 ballot.
While I appreciate the authors' intent in striving to enhance
public safety, I feel that the objective is better attained by
having the measure appear before the voters only once.
Analysis Prepared by:
Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN:
0003610
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