HBA-RBT H.B. 2111 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2111 By: Bonnen Criminal Jurisprudence 4/16/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current Texas law defines a penalty range for a class A misdemeanor under the Texas Penal Code of up to one year in jail and/or a $4,000 fine and for a class B misdemeanor of up to 180 days in jail and/or a $2,000 fine. In the past, under Section 12.44 of the Texas Penal Code one could recommend a felony conviction to be punished as a class A misdemeanor with up to one year in jail and the corresponding fine availability. When the state jail system was developed in the recent past, the Penal Code reflected that a third degree felony could be punished as a class B misdemeanor with up to 180 days in jail and the corresponding fine. At the present time, the only code provision under Section12.44 of the Texas Penal Code is to punish state jail felonies with up to one year in jail and the corresponding fine. In many cases involving third degree felonies, prosecutors would rather see the individual receive a felony conviction and serve one year in the county jail with a fine as opposed to only having a penitentiary option or a probation option. H.B. 2111 allows a court the option of sentencing a defendant to the punishment for a class A misdemeanor punishment for a third degree felony and a class B misdemeanor punishment for a state jail felony, as has been available in the past. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 12.44, Penal Code, as follows: Sec. 12.44. New title: REDUCTION OF FELONY PUNISHMENT TO MISDEMEANOR PUNISHMENT. Authorizes a court to impose the punishment for a Class A misdemeanor on a defendant convicted of a felony of the third degree. SECTION 2. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 4. Emergency clause.