BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1869
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Date of Hearing: April 20, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
AB
1869 (Melendez) - As Introduced February 10, 2016
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| |Elections and Redistricting | | 6 - 1 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires an initiative statute be put before the
voters to amend Proposition 47 to make the theft of a firearm,
valued at $950 or less, a felony. Specifically, this bill:
AB 1869
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1)Includes theft of a firearm, without regard to dollar value,
in the definition of grand theft, and makes the crime
punishable in state prison for 16 months, or two or three
years.
2)States 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)Provides that this bill amends Proposition 47, the Safe
Neighborhoods and Schools Act, and shall become effective only
when submitted to and approved by the voters.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)One-time General Fund (GF) costs of at least $220,000 to
include a measure on the statewide ballot. The current
estimate for including a measure on the ballot is
approximately $55,000 per page and this measure will require
at least four pages, in the voter information guide.
2)Likely minor ongoing GF costs for increased state prison
commitments for persons with a current or prior violent felony
conviction who are convicted of buying or receiving a stolen
firearm. The universe of these individuals is expected to be
very small, there are several statutes providing for conduct
related to firearm possession.
COMMENTS:
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1)Background. Proposition 47, also known as the Safe
Neighborhoods and Schools Act, was approved by the voters in
November 2014. Proposition 47 reduced the penalties for
certain drug and property crimes. Specifically, the
initiative reduced the penalties for theft, shoplifting,
receiving stolen property, writing bad checks, and check
forgery valued at $950 or less from felonies to misdemeanors.
However, the measure limited the reduced penalties to
offenders who do not have prior convictions for serious or
violent felonies and who are not required to register as sex
offenders.
Proposition 47 put in a blanket $950 threshold for conduct to
be considered grand theft. Previously, there were a number of
carve-outs which made conduct grand theft based on the conduct
involved or the manner in which the crime is committed or
based on the value being less than $950. However, the
drafters of Proposition 47 stated that they did not intend to
reduce the penalty for the theft of a firearm. The rebuttal
to the argument against Proposition 47 contained in the ballot
arguments stated: "Proposition 47 maintains penalties for gun
crimes. Under Prop. 47, possessing a stolen concealed gun
remains a felony. Additional felony penalties to prevent
felons and gang members from obtaining guns also apply."
2)Purpose. This bill restores the penalties that were in place
prior to the passage of Proposition 47 by making theft of a
firearm a felony grand theft in all cases, and making buying
or receiving a stolen firearm a felony/misdemeanor offense.
However, the proposed amendments to statute do require a
simple majority of the electorate at the next statewide
election, after enactment of this measure.
3)Support. A co-sponsor, the California District Attorneys
Association, argues stolen firearms are often used in other
serious and violent crimes because they are difficult to trace
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back to the perpetrator. The penalty for the theft of a gun
should be the same, regardless of dollar value of the firearm.
4)Opposition. According to The American Civil Liberties Union,
"The arguments in favor of the initiative [Proposition 47]
were true in 2014 and remain true today: there are already
numerous state and federal laws that impose felony penalties
on those who steal guns or use stolen guns to commit crimes.
Proposition 47 did nothing to change those laws. California
voters understood the decision they made when they approved
Proposition 47, and there is no justification for nullifying
their decision."
5)Related Legislation:
a) AB 2369 (Patterson) authorizes the prosecutor to charge
a defendant with a felony if the person has been convicted
twice or more in a 12-month period of the crimes reduced to
a misdemeanor by Proposition 47. AB 2369 also makes it a
felony when stolen items include a firearm. AB 2369 is
pending referral.
b) AB 2854 (Cooper) is substantially similar to this bill,
but calls for a special election to be held in June 2016.
AB 2854 is pending referral.
1)Prior Legislation:
a) AB 150 (Melendez) of the 2015 Legislative session, which
was substantially similar to this bill, was held on this
Committee's Suspense file.
b) Proposition 47 of the November 2014 general election,
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the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, reduced the
penalties for certain drug and property crimes.
Analysis Prepared by:Pedro Reyes / APPR. / (916)
319-2081