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S271 FISCAL ESTIMATE
LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
SENATE, No. 271
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
DATED: JULY 13, 2026
SUMMARY
Synopsis:
Upgrades assault on victims who are elderly or disabled.
Type of Impact:
Annual State expenditure and revenue increases.
Agencies Affected:
The Judiciary; Office of the Public Defender; Department
of Corrections; State Parole Board; County Prosecutors.
Office of
Legislative Services Estimate
Fiscal Impact
�
Annual
�
State Cost Increase
Indeterminate
State Revenue
Increase
Indeterminate
�
The
Office of Legislative Services (OLS) concludes that upgrading the offense of
assault in situations where the victim is disabled or elderly will result in an
indeterminate annual increase in State expenditures and revenues.� The OLS
lacks sufficient information to quantify the fiscal impact, as it is not
possible to know how many individuals will be prosecuted, tried, and sentenced
for the upgraded crime established by this bill.
�
The
following State agencies would incur caseload and expenditure increases: a) County
Prosecutors would have to prosecute additional cases; b) the Office of the
Public Defender would have to represent additional low-income criminal
defendants; c) the Department of Corrections would have to house and care for
more individuals who are sentenced to prison terms; d) the Judiciary would have
to adjudicate additional complaints and monitor additional probationers; and e)
the State Parole Board would have to supervise the return to society of
additional convicts.
BILL DESCRIPTION
����� This bill would upgrade the offense of assault in
situations where the victim is disabled or elderly. �Under the bill, a person
who causes bodily injury to a person with a disability or to a senior citizen
who is 60 years of age or older would be guilty of a crime of the third degree,
or a crime of the second degree if the victim suffers serious bodily injury, and
would be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of three years.
����� Under the bill, a "person with a disability"
means a person who by reason of a pre-existing medically determinable physical
or mental impairment is substantially incapable of exercising normal physical
or mental power of resistance, and includes, but is not limited to, a person
determined disabled pursuant to the federal Social Security Act or any other
governmental retirement or benefits program that uses substantially the same
criteria for determining eligibility.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
����� None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
����� The OLS concludes that upgrading the offense of
assault in situations where the victim is disabled or elderly will result in an
indeterminate annual increase in State expenditures and revenues.� The OLS
lacks sufficient information to quantify the fiscal impact, as it is not
possible to know how many individuals will be prosecuted, tried, and sentenced
for the upgraded crime established in this bill.�
����� Generally, a presumption of non-incarceration applies
to first-time offenders of crimes of the third degree.� However, the OLS finds
that under the provisions of this bill, an imposition of a minimum term of
three years during which the defendant is ineligible for parole will apply.
Therefore, to the extent it results in incarceration, the Department of
Corrections will bear the costs of housing additional inmates.� Based on
information provided by the Department of Corrections, the projected average
annual cost of housing, ensuring security for, and providing services to one
incarcerated individual is $78,848 in FY 2026, or approximately $216 per day.
����� The following State agencies would also likely incur
caseload and expenditure increases as a result of the upgrading of assault on
victims who are elderly or disabled: a) County Prosecutors would have to
prosecute additional cases; b) the Office of the Public Defender would have to
represent additional low-income criminal defendants; c) the Judiciary would
have to adjudicate additional complaints and monitor additional probationers; and
d) the State Parole Board would have to supervise the return to society of
additional convicts.
����� According to the State Parole Board, the annual
average marginal cost of supervising one additional parolee is estimated at
$4,002 in FY 2026. �The average annual cost per parolee, including overhead, is
estimated at $6,884 in FY 2026.
����� The OLS also notes that the State may realize an
indeterminate increase in revenue from fines imposed on individuals convicted
under the bill. �However, the State's ability to collect criminal fines has
historically been limited.
����� A crime of the second degree is punishable by five to
ten years of imprisonment, a fine of up to $150,000, or both.� A crime of the
third degree is punishable by a term of imprisonment of three to five years, a
fine of up to $15,000, or both.
Section:
Judiciary
Analyst:
Emely Ramirez
Associate Research Analyst
Approved:
Thomas Koenig
Legislative Budget and Finance Officer
This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the
Office of Legislative Services due to the failure of the Executive Branch to
respond to our request for a fiscal note.
This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980,
c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).