Establishing the criminal offense of unlawful electronic transmission of sexually explicit visual material, and providing penalties

Description

House File 899 relates to indecent exposure, including the unsolicited electronic transmission of sexually explicit visual material.

Under the Bill, a person who is 18 years of age or older commits a serious misdemeanor if the person knowingly sends a picture or video containing sexually explicit material, which the person knows or reasonably should know is unsolicited and unwanted by the recipient, by electronic means.

Background

A serious misdemeanor is punishable by no more than one year of confinement and a fine of at least $430 but not more than $2,560.

Assumptions

• The following will not change over the projection period: charge, conviction, and sentencing patterns and trends; prisoner length of stay (LOS); revocation rates; plea bargaining; and other criminal justice system policies and practices.
• A delay 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

House File 899 creates a new criminal offense, and the correctional impact cannot be estimated due to a lack of existing conviction data. Figure 1 shows estimates for sentencing to State prison, parole, probation, or Community-Based Corrections (CBC) residential facilities; LOS in months under those supervisions; and supervision marginal costs per day for serious misdemeanors. Refer to the Legislative Services Agency (LSA) memo addressed to the General Assembly, Cost Estimates Used for Correctional Impact Statements, dated January 13, 2025, for information related to the correctional system.

Figure 1 — Sentencing Estimates and Length of Stay (LOS) in MonthsConviction Offense Class

Percent

Ordered to

State Prison

FY 2024 Avg

LOS in

Prison (All Releases)

Marginal

Cost Per

Day Prison

Percent

Ordered to

Probation

FY24 Field

Avg LOS on

Probation

Avg Cost

Per Day on

Probation

Marginal

Cost Per

Day CBC

Marginal

Cost Per

Day Jail

FY24 Field

Avg LOS on

Parole

Marginal

Cost Per

Day Parole

Serious Misdemeanor 2.4% N/A $24.51 53.4% 18.8 $7.68 $18.37 $50.00 N/A $7.68

Minority Impact

House File 899 creates a new criminal offense. As a result, the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning (CJJP) of the Department of Management (DOM) cannot use existing data to estimate the minority impact of the Bill. Refer to the LSA memo addressed to the General Assembly, Minority Impact Statements, dated January 13, 2025, for information related to minorities in the criminal justice system.

Fiscal Impact

House File 899 creates a new criminal offense, and the fiscal impact is unknown. Figure 2 shows the average State cost per offense for a serious misdemeanor. The estimated impact to the General Fund includes operating costs incurred by the Judicial Branch, the Indigent Defense Fund, and the Department of Corrections (DOC).

Figure 2 — Average State Cost Per Offense

Offense Class Average Class

Serious Misdemeanor $420 to $5,000

Sources

• Department of Corrections
• Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning (CJJP), Department of Management (DOM)