BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 24
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   July 1, 2009

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Kevin De Leon, Chair

                    SB 24 (Oropeza) - As Amended:  June 11, 2009 

          Policy Committee:                              Public  
          SafetyVote:  7-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:               

           SUMMARY  

          This bill eliminates the January 2010 sunset date on cargo theft  
          as a separately defined form of grand theft, and clarifies that  
          the elements of cargo theft are the same as other forms of grand  
          theft defined in the Penal Code.

           FISCAL EFFECT

           Negligible state costs as cargo theft could be charged under  
          similar statutes if the cargo theft statute sunset as currently  
          scheduled. In 2008, only one person was sentenced to state  
          prison under this section. 
           
          COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale.  AB 1814 (Oropeza), Statutes of 2004, created a  
            specific statute providing that theft of cargo of a value in  
            excess of $400 is grand theft. This statute contained a  
            January 1, 2010 sunset.   This bill simply deletes the sunset  
            and makes this statute permanent in order to more easily track  
            grand theft at California's ports for purposes of data  
            collection and qualifying for federal port security funding.
           
          2)Current law  provides that every person who steals cargo with a  
            value greater than $400 is guilty of grand theft. Cargo is  
            defined as any goods, wares, products, or manufactured  
            merchandise that has been loaded into a trailer, railcar, or  
            cargo container, and is awaiting or is in transit. Grand theft  
            is generally punishable by up to 1 year in county jail, or by  
            16 months, 2, or 3 years in state prison.  









                                                                  SB 24
                                                                  Page  2

           

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Geoff Long / APPR. / (916) 319-2081