Relating to the dissemination and exhibition of obscene material to minors and providing penalties

Description

House File 306 increases penalties for a person 18 years of age or older who disseminates or exhibits obscene material to a minor. The Bill maintains a serious misdemeanor for a first offense. A second offense is an aggravated misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum term of confinement of one year. A third or subsequent offense is a Class D felony with a mandatory minimum term of confinement of three years. No portion of the mandatory minimum sentence may be deferred or suspended.

Under the Bill, a person under the age of 18 who knowingly distributes obscene material to another minor commits a serious misdemeanor.

Background

Under Iowa Code section 728.2, the dissemination or exhibition of obscene material to a minor is a serious misdemeanor.

A serious misdemeanor is punishable by up to one year of confinement and a fine of at least $430 but not more than $2,560. An aggravated misdemeanor is punishable by up to two years in confinement and a fine of at least $855 but not more than $8,540. A Class D felony is punishable by up to five years of confinement and a fine of at least $1,025 but not more than $10,245. A violation of Iowa Code section 728.2 is a Tier I sex offense, and a person convicted of this offense is required to register as a sex offender for a period of 10 years. In FY 2024, there were 13 individuals convicted under Iowa Code section 728.2, none of whom had a prior conviction dating back to FY 2020.

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 306 increases the penalty for an existing offense under Iowa Code section 728.2. It is not known how many additional convictions may result from the changes under the Bill. However, due to the low number of convictions for the existing offense, the correctional impact is anticipated to be minimal. 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 a serious misdemeanor, aggravated misdemeanor, and Class D felony. 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 Months

Minority Impact

House File 306 increases the penalty for an existing offense under Iowa Code section 728.2. The minority impact cannot be estimated due to the low number of convictions for the existing offense. 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

The fiscal impact for HF 306 cannot be determined, but is anticipated to be minimal. Figure 2 shows the average State cost per offense for a serious misdemeanor, aggravated misdemeanor, and Class D felony. 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). The cost would be incurred across multiple fiscal years for prison and parole supervision.

Figure 2 — Average State Cost Per Offense

Sources

• Department of Corrections
• Department of Management (DOM) Criminal Justice Planning