(The Center Square) – The California Department of Finance filed formal opposition against a bill that would create stronger criminal penalties for individuals who solicit sex from children, saying imprisoning more buyers of sex from underage prostitutes would be too expensive.
SB 1414, by State Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, originally would have made attempted or successful solicitation of sex with a minor for money a felony with a prison sentence ranging from 2 to 4 years, a fine not exceeding $25,000, and registration as a sex offender — regardless of whether or not the person knew or reasonably should have known that the person solicited was a minor.
California Democrats forcibly added amendments against Grove’s wishes to protect first-time offenders by making purchasing sex from 16- and 17-year-olds a misdemeanor and making buying sex from children 15 years or younger a “wobbler” that cannot include prison time.
The bill now faces the California Assembly Appropriations Committee, where the DOF submitted a formal opposition letter against the bill.
“We regret that we must oppose your legislation,” wrote the DOF. “This bill expands the definition of crime and could lead to additional cases entering the court system, increase the statewide adult jail population, impact and the of counties to manage their offender population since certain lower-level offenders now serve their sentence in county jails and/or are supervised by county probation departments.”
“By making subsequent solicitation of a minor punishable pursuant to Penal Code section 1170, subdivision (h), this bill could result in certain offenders with prior felony convictions being sentenced to state prison,” continued the DOF. “California has successfully remained below the court-ordered population cap and has even made strides towards closing prisons, resulting in hundreds of millions in annual savings. However, increases to the population threaten the state’s ability to continue making progress in right-sizing California’s prison system.”
DOF also noted higher judicial costs from more cases, saying, “to the extent this bill adds to trial courts’ caseload, court backlogs may increase and could create pressure on the General Fund to handle the increased workload.”
The California Assembly Appropriations Committee’s separate analysis also notes, “The average annual cost to incarcerate one person in county jail is approximately $29,000. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) estimates the average annual cost to incarcerate one person in state prison is $133,000,” and that the state’s “General Fund faces a structural deficit in the tens of billions of dollars over the next several fiscal years.”
“In CA purchasing a child for sex is only a misdemeanor. My bill SB 1414 is trying to make it a felony punishable by prison time,” wrote Grove on X. “The CA Department of Finance openly opposed my bill because they said it costs too much to lock up predators….the ones that like to have sex with children.”
The bill already passed the California Senate and faces a vote in Assembly Appropriations on August 15.