LEGISLATIVE SERVICES AGENCY
OFFICE OF FISCAL AND MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS
200 W. Washington St., Suite 301
Indianapolis, IN 46204
(317) 233-0696
iga.in.gov
FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
LS 6555 NOTE PREPARED: Dec 18, 2021
BILL NUMBER: HB 1132 BILL AMENDED:
SUBJECT: Firearms Matters.
FIRST AUTHOR: Rep. Lucas BILL STATUS: As Introduced
FIRST SPONSOR:
FUNDS AFFECTED:XGENERAL IMPACT: State & Local
XDEDICATED
FEDERAL
Summary of Legislation: Voluntary License– The bill allows a person to possess or carry a handgun without
a license unless the person: (1) has been convicted of certain crimes or delinquent offenses; (2) has been
prohibited by a court from possessing a handgun or has been found by a court to be dangerous; or (3) has
been found by a court to be mentally incompetent, has been involuntarily committed, or has been the subject
of a 90 day or regular commitment.
Penalty Provisions– The bill repeals the current offense of carrying a handgun without a license and makes
it a Class A misdemeanor for certain persons to possess or carry a handgun. The bill increases the penalty
to a Level 5 felony in some instances. It makes conforming amendments and repeals obsolete provisions. It
makes a technical correction.
Effective Date: July 1, 2022.
Explanation of State Expenditures: Voluntary License– This provision would likely reduce the number
of license applications the Indiana State Police (ISP) would have to process in a given year. The ISP could
reassign staff currently used for handgun licensing to other priorities within the agency, or eliminate some
or all of the positions if they are no longer needed.
Penalty Provisions– Removing the handgun license violations in current law and replacing them with
unlawful carrying of a handgun would likely reduce the number of individuals committed to state
correctional facilities based on current arrest and prosecution practices. Department of Correction (DOC)
commitment rates would depend on the number of arrests made in future years for unlawful carrying of a
handgun. For FY 2021, the marginal cost for medical care, food, and clothing is approximately $4,333
HB 1132 1 annually, or $11.67 daily, per offender, assuming offenders can be housed in existing facilities with no
additional correction staff.
Additional Information– Analysis of DOC intake data from FY 2013 through FY 2021 found 2,657
individuals charged with a felony handgun license violation. The following tables illustrate pre- and post-
sentence experiences and average years of sentence served in jail or a DOC facility.
Table A. Pre- and Post-Trial Sentencing of Individuals Violating Handgun Licensing Laws With a Felony
Charge (FY 2013 - FY 2021)
Total Offenders
Sentenced
Percentage With
Pre-Trial Jail
Credit*
Percentage
Committed to
DOC Post-
Trial**
Percentage In
Jail Post-
Trial***
Percentage In
Post Sentence
Probation
2,657 77% 45% 10% 79%
*The percentage of offenders who received credited time against their sentence that was served in jail prior to and during their
trial and sentencing phase.
**These are offenders serving time on their sentence in a DOC facility after they are sentenced.
***The “post-trial jail percentage” provides a rough estimate of the number of offenders who finished their sentences in jail
rather than going to a DOC facility to finish their sentence.
Table B. Average Sentence Years for Individuals Violating Handgun Licensing Laws with a Felony Charge
(FY 2013 - FY 2021)
Post-Trial Jail Time DOC Commitment Time
Post Sentence
Supervision
Average Years 0.7 2.5 2.9
Note: Not all persons serving a sentence in this table necessarily spent time in a DOC facility, so these averages should not be
summed for total sentence estimate. Most offenders will serve all or part of their sentence in county jail. Some offenders will
be sent on to a DOC facility to complete their sentence.
The post trial average sentence for a handgun violation carried out in jail was about 8.4 months. Average time served in a
DOC facility was 2.5 years with probation afterwards lasting on average almost three years.
Explanation of State Revenues: Handgun Licensing– Given that the state fee for handgun licenses is
currently $0, there would be no revenue reduction at the state level as a result of this provision.
Penalty Provisions– There would likely be a reduction in court fees and judgments collected from violations
for unlawful carrying of handguns instead of violations to current handgun license statute based on current
arrest and prosecution practices. The state’s share of court fees are deposited into the state General Fund.
Criminal fines are placed in the Common School Fund.
Additional Information– When a criminal case is filed in a circuit or superior court, 70% of the $120 criminal
costs fee that is assessed and collected when a guilty verdict is entered is deposited into the state General
Fund. In addition, some or all of the following revenue is deposited into the state General Fund: automated
record keeping fee ($20), judicial salaries fee ($20), public defense administration fee ($5), court
HB 1132 2 administration fee ($5), judicial insurance adjustment fee ($1), and the DNA sample processing fee ($3).
Explanation of Local Expenditures: Voluntary License– If fewer licenses are applied for as a result of this
provision, local law enforcement agencies would have a reduced workload to process fewer fingerprint and
other application paperwork from license applicants.
Penalty Provisions– County jails would likely see a reduction in individuals held as a result of this provision.
The average cost per day to house a person is approximately $54 based on the per diem payments reported
by U.S. Marshals to house federal prisoners in 16 county jails across Indiana during federal FY 2017.
Explanation of Local Revenues: Voluntary License– There would be no impact to county revenues as the
fee for handgun licenses is currently $0.
Penalty Provisions– Counties’ share of court fee revenue from criminal trials would likely be reduced by the
changes in criminal penalties within the bill.
Additional Information– The county general fund receives 27% of the $120 criminal costs fee that is
assessed in a court of record. Cities and towns maintaining a law enforcement agency that prosecutes at least
50% of its ordinance violations in a court of record may receive 3% of the criminal costs fee. Persons found
guilty of a felony or misdemeanor are also required to pay the document storage fee ($5), which is deposited
into the clerk record perpetuation fund, and the jury fee ($2) and the law enforcement continuing education
fee ($4), which are both deposited in the county user fee fund.
State Agencies Affected: ISP; DOC.
Local Agencies Affected: Local law enforcement agencies, trial courts.
Information Sources: Abstracts of Judgment; U.S. Department of Justice Marshals Service.
Fiscal Analyst: Chris Baker, 317-232-9851.
HB 1132 3