Fiscal Note
Fiscal Services Division
HF 283 – Synthetic Urine Prohibition (LSB1216HV.1)
Staff Contact: Laura Book (515.205.9275) laura.book@legis.iowa.gov
Fiscal Note Version – Final Action
Description
House File 283 creates the criminal offense of defrauding a drug or alcohol test given in a
private-sector workplace or by a public employer. The Bill prohibits a person from:
• Manufacturing, marketing, selling, distributing, using, or possessing synthetic urine or a
urine additive for the purpose of defrauding a drug or alcohol test.
• Knowingly using a person’s own urine expelled or withdrawn prior to the collection of urine
for the purpose of defrauding a drug or alcohol test.
• Knowingly using the urine of another person for the purpose of defrauding a drug or alcohol
test.
A person who violates the provisions of the Bill commits a simple misdemeanor for a first
offense and a serious misdemeanor for all subsequent offenses. The court may require a
substance abuse evaluation and treatment through a program licensed by the Iowa Department
of Public Health in lieu of or in addition to other penalties.
The Bill allows a person who collects a urine sample from another person for a drug or alcohol
test, having knowledge or a reasonable suspicion that the other person has used synthetic urine
or a urine additive in violation of the Bill, to report such information to law enforcement
authorities. The Bill applies to both public and private-sector workplaces.
Background
A simple misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than 30 days or a fine of at
least $105 but not more than $855 or both. A serious misdemeanor is punishable by
confinement for no more than one year and a fine of at least $130 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 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
House File 283 establishes a new criminal offense, and the correctional impact cannot be
estimated due to a lack of existing conviction data. In addition, it is unknown how many drug
tests are currently defrauded through synthetic urine.
Table 1 provides estimates for sentencing to State prison, parole, probation, or Community-
Based Corrections (CBC) residential facilities; LOS under those supervisions; and supervision
marginal costs per day for all convictions of serious misdemeanors. The LOS data is not
applicable to simple or serious misdemeanors. Refer to the Legislative Services Agency (LSA)
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memo addressed to the General Assembly, Cost Estimates Used for Correctional Impact
Statements, dated January 22, 2021, for information related to the correctional system.
Table 1 — LOS and Sentencing Estimates
Avg
Avg Percent FY 20 Percent Length FY 20
Length FY 20 Percent Avg Cost Sentenced Marginal Ordered of Stay Average
Conviction of Stay Marginal Ordered Avg LOS Per Day to CBC Cost to in Marginal Avg Cost
Offense Percent Prison Cost/Day to on on Residential CBC Per County County Cost LOS on Per Day
Class to Prison (months) Prison Probation Probation Probation Facility Day Jail Jail Per Day Parole Parole
Serious
Misdemeanor 2.0% 5.0 $20.33 56.0% 13.4 $5.38 1.0% $14.78 69.0% N/A $50.00 2.4 $5.38
Minority Impact
House File 283 establishes a new criminal offense, and it is unknown how often drug tests are
defrauded through synthetic urine currently. As a result, the Criminal and Juvenile Justice
Planning Division (CJJP) of the Department of Human Rights cannot use prior existing data to
estimate the minority impact of HF 283. In addition, there is no data available to account for any
differences between races seeking the types of employment that would require such a test.
Refer to the LSA memo addressed to the General Assembly, Minority Impact Statement, dated
January 27, 2021, for information related to minorities in the criminal justice system.
Fiscal Impact
House File 283 establishes a new criminal offense, and the fiscal impact cannot be estimated
due to the lack of existing conviction data. Table 2 contains cost estimates for the average
State cost per offense class type for one conviction. The cost estimate includes operating costs
incurred by the Judicial Branch, the State Public Defender, and the Department of Corrections
for one conviction. The cost would be incurred across multiple fiscal years for prison and parole
supervision.
Table 2 — Average State Cost Per Offense Class Type
Total Cost
Offense Class Minimum Maximum
Simple Misdemeanor $ 40 $ 350
Serious Misdemeanor 410 7,500
Sources
Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning Division, Department of Human Rights
Judicial Branch
Department of Corrections
/s/ Holly M. Lyons
June 8, 2021
Doc ID 1219784
The fiscal note for this Bill was prepared pursuant to Joint Rule 17 and the Iowa Code. Data used in
developing this fiscal note is available from the Fiscal Services Division of the Legislative Services
Agency upon request.
www.legis.iowa.gov
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Statutes affected:
Introduced: 715A.1
Reprinted: 715A.1
Enrolled: 715A.1