Relating to the dissemination and exhibition of obscene material to a minor by the parent or guardian of the minor, and providing penalties

Description

Senate File 241 relates to the dissemination and exhibition of obscene material to a minor by the minor’s parent or guardian and provides penalties. The Bill provides that a parent or guardian who has been convicted of, or adjudicated delinquent for, any sex offense committed against a minor requiring registration on a sex offender registry and who knowingly disseminates or exhibits obscene material to a minor violates Iowa Code section 728.2. A violation of Iowa Code section 728.2 is a Tier I sex offense under Code section 692A.102 and a serious misdemeanor, punishable by confinement for no more than one year and a fine of between $315 and $1,875.

Background

Under current law, parents and guardians who knowingly disseminate or exhibit obscene material to their minor child or ward are exempt from criminal prosecution.

Assumptions

• The following will not change over the projection period: charge, conviction, and sentencing patterns and trends; prisoner length of stay; revocation rates; plea bargaining; and other criminal justice system policies and practices.
• A lag effect of six months is assumed from the effective date of this Bill to the date of first entry of affected offenders into the correctional system.
• Marginal costs for county jails cannot be estimated due to a lack of data. For purposes of this analysis, the marginal cost for county jails is assumed to be $50 per day.

Correctional Impact

Senate File 241 expands an existing offense; therefore, the correctional impact cannot be estimated due to a lack of data. However, based on current conviction rates, the Department of Corrections (DOC) does not expect a correctional impact from this legislation. Correctional data for violations of Iowa Code section 728.2 in FY 2021 is shown in Table 1. Refer to the Legislative Services Agency (LSA) memo addressed to the General Assembly, Cost Estimates Used for Correctional Impact Statements, dated January 18, 2022, for information related to the correctional system.

Table 1 — FY 2021 Correctional DataConviction

Count

Prison

Admissions

Community-Based

Corrections Admissions

10 0 2

Minority Impact

Senate File 241 is not anticipated to have a minority impact. Minority data related to convictions under Iowa Code section 728.2 is shown in Table 2. Refer to the LSA memo addressed to the General Assembly, Minority Impact Statement, dated January 18, 2022, for information related to minorities in the criminal justice system.

Table 2 — Minority Conviction Data

Fiscal Impact

Senate File 241 expands the number of individuals subject to criminal prosecution associated with an existing offense, and the resulting costs to the justice system cannot be estimated. Table 3 shows estimates for the average State cost per offense class type. The estimates include operating costs incurred by the Judicial Branch, the State Public Defender, and the Department of Corrections for one additional conviction.

Table 3 — Average State Cost Per Offense Class Type

Sources

• Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning Division, Department of Human Rights
• Department of Corrections
• Department of Public Safety