Fiscal Notes
The probable impact of implementing the bill is indeterminate because data collected at the statewide level do not contain offense location, the information necessary to determine the impact of the bill's enhancement provision.
Bill Analysis
This bill would enhance certain penalties if they were committed in a public transportation vehicle. If this bill passes, crimes related to sexual offenses, assaults, and/or robberies, if committed in a vehicle operated by a county, rural, urban, municipal, or regional transit authoritity, would be enhanced to the next higher category of offense.
Vote Recommendation Notes
As a matter of limited government and equal application of the law, we do not support enhancing penalties based on exogenous factors such as the place the crime was committed. We believe that deterrence through increased penalties (particularly when the penalty increase is based on where the crime happened and not on the crime itself) is not as effective as many believe. Enhancing penalties based on an arbitrary factor such as the location of the offense is inconsistent with limited government. For these reasons we oppose HB 2032.
