Impact Assessment for SB237
Sponsored by Senator A. Clark
Subtitle CONCERNING VEHICLES, BOATS, OR FARMING EQUIPMENT WITH A REMOVED,
DAMAGED, MUTILATED, OR DEFACED SERIAL NUMBER OR VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION
NUMBER.
Impact Summary 1 Minimal. While the proposed bill increases the penalties for various courses of conduct by
which a person can commit offenses concerning the removal or alteration of serial numbers or vehicle
identification numbers, there have been fewer than ten (10) reported convictions for the existing offenses within
the past three years. For this reason, the projected impact of the proposed bill is minimal.
Change from Current Law 2 Amends various provisions of the Arkansas Code Annotated regarding removal
or alteration of serial numbers or vehicle identification numbers. Under the current statutes, the penalty for first
conviction of the following offenses is a Class A misdemeanor:
A.C.A. § 5-37-521. Farm implements – Removal or alteration of serial number.
A.C.A. § 27-14-2212. Mutilation of serial numbers.; and
a subsequent violation of the following offenses constitutes a Class D felony:
A.C.A. § 27-14-2210. Vehicles or engines without manufacturer’s numbers.
A.C.A. § 27-101-703. Boating equipment without identification numbers.
Under the proposed bill, these offenses constitute a Class D felony regardless of the number of prior convictions.
Impact Information The proposed bill increases the penalty for offenses for which there is a low number of
reported convictions for the offenses as currently written. Since there are no new courses of conduct in the
proposed bill, it is unlikely to result in a meaningful increase in convictions. For this reason, the projected impact
of the proposed bill is projected to have a minimal impact on correctional resources.
The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) reports that for the three (3) year period beginning on 1/1/2020
and ending on 12/31/2022, there was one (1) misdemeanor conviction for A.C.A. § 27-14-2210, Vehicles or
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1 This impact assessment was prepared 2/21/2023 8:32 AM by the staff of the Arkansas Sentencing Commission pursuant to A. C. A. § 16-
90-802(d)(6) with data supplied by the Arkansas Department of Corrections and the Administrative Office of the Courts. A micro-simulation
model may be used for bills which have the potential for significant impact on correctional resources. The following designations will be
used: “minimal” = less than 10 offenders per year will be affected; “medium” = would require budgetary increases for ADC inmate costs;
and “major” = would require budgetary increases for ADC inmate costs and construction costs for additional beds.
2
Standard punishment ranges: Misdemeanors
Class Y 10-40 years or life Class C 3-10 years; up to $10,000 Class A Up to 1 year; up to $2,500
Class A 6-30 years; up to $15,000 Class D 0-6 years; up to $10,000 Class B Up to 90 days; up to $1,000
Class B 5-20 years; up to $15,000 Unclassified As specified in statute Class C Up to 30 days; up to $500
engines without manufacturer’s numbers., and zero (0) convictions for A.C.A. § 5-37-521, Farm implements –
Removal or alteration of serial number, A.C.A. § 27-14-2212. Mutilation of serial numbers, and A.C.A. § 27-
101-703, Boating equipment without identification numbers. It is important to note that misdemeanors are often
disposed of in District Court, and that not all District courts report data to the AOC. For this reason, the number
of misdemeanor convictions may be higher than reported. The Division of Correction (ADC) reports that there
are currently zero (0) offenders serving a term of incarceration for the aforementioned offenses.