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.