LEGISLATIVE SERVICES AGENCY
OFFICE OF FISCAL AND MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS
FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
LS 7277 NOTE PREPARED: Jan 3, 2025
BILL NUMBER: SB 429 BILL AMENDED:
SUBJECT: Public Safety and Noncitizen Crimes.
FIRST AUTHOR: Sen. Koch BILL STATUS: As Introduced
FIRST SPONSOR:
FUNDS AFFECTED:XGENERAL IMPACT: State & Local
XDEDICATED
FEDERAL
Summary of Legislation: This bill has the following provisions:
Operating a Vehicle Having Never Received a License: This bill increases the penalty for operating a motor
vehicle without having ever received a driver's license to: (1) a Level 6 felony if the crime results in serious
bodily injury to another person; and (2) a Level 5 felony if the crime results in catastrophic injury or death
to another person. The bill also makes it a Class A misdemeanor to permit an individual who has never
received a driver's license to operate a motor vehicle if the person who owns the vehicle knows that the
individual has never received a license.
Intent to Transfer: The bill makes it a Class A misdemeanor to apply for a driver's license or permit with the
intent to transfer the license or permit to an individual not entitled to the license or permit, and increases the
penalty to: (1) a Level 6 felony if the offense involves at least two but less than 10 individuals, or if the
person uses a business or nonprofit organization to commit the offense; and (2) a Level 5 felony if the
offense involves at least 10 individuals.
Crimes Committed By Noncitizens: It requires the prosecuting attorney of each judicial circuit to collect
certain information relating to crimes committed by noncitizens and to transmit this information to the
Attorney General. It requires a court, when sentencing a noncitizen convicted of a crime, to order custody
of the noncitizen to be transferred to United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) upon
completion of the sentence, unless another jurisdiction has a hold on the individual due to criminal charges
or a conviction.
Effective Date: July 1, 2025.
Explanation of State Expenditures: Operating a Vehicle Having Never Received a License: This bill
enhances the penalty for operating a motor vehicle without a driver’s license from a Class C misdemeanor
to a Level 6 felony or Level 5 felony, for offenses that involve bodily injury, serious bodily injury, or death.
The bill also creates a Class A misdemeanor offense for allowing an individual to operate a motor vehicle
knowing they have never received a valid license. Any impact on state incarceration costs would ultimately
SB 429 1 depend on the offenses prosecuted.
OFMA found no cases in the Abstracts of Judgment where serious or catastrophic bodily injury occurred and
operating a motor vehicle without a driver’s license was the most serious charge. OFMA cannot estimate how
much this bill’s enhancement would add to the Department of Correction (DOC) offender population.
While there is currently no penalty enhancement for causing either a serious or catastrophic bodily injury
while driving without a license, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in serious bodily injury (IC 9-26-1-
1.1), is a Level 6 felony. OFMA found six cases between FY 2017 and 2024 where a person was convicted
of driving without a license and leaving the scene of an accident that resulted in serious bodily injury.
Intent to Transfer: The bill adds three new offenses that are punishable as Class A misdemeanors. These
offenses are enhanced to either a Level 6 or Level 5 felony, depending on the number of individuals involved
in the commission of the crime(s). Increases in criminal convictions for the offenses included in the bill are
indeterminable.
Crimes Committed By Noncitizens: This bill could increase the workload of the Attorney General and DOC
to notify the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice concerning individuals
convicted of crimes in the state. Increases in workload are expected to be accomplished within existing
resources and funding levels.
In FFY 2023, the DOC was awarded $1.13 M from the federal State Criminal Alien Assistance Program
(SCAAP). The SCAAP provides federal payments to states and localities that incurred salary costs for
incarcerating undocumented criminal aliens with at least one felony or two misdemeanor convictions for
violations of state or local law and are incarcerated for at least 4 consecutive days during the reporting
period. As of December 19, 2024, DOC reports that there are 588 illegal aliens in DOC facilities.
Through the inmate intake process, the DOC will verify all inmate records and determine an individual’s
legal status in the United States. If an individual is found to be an illegal alien, DOC will inform ICE agents
of the individual’s confinement in DOC. Before release, DOC will notify ICE of an individual’s impending
release. ICE will either retrieve the individual from the releasing facility or work with local jails to provide
holds until the individual can be transferred to ICE facilities. DOC reports that the transfer times may vary.
It is unknown how long persons are held in county jails before ICE transfer.
Additional Information -
Intent to Transfer: Current law includes criminal penalties for motor vehicle fraud pertaining to (1)
counterfeiting and falsely reproducing certificates of title and (2) fake credentials. No such penalties
currently exist pertaining to BMV-issued credentials that are legally obtained and then transferred to
someone else with criminal intent.
Operating a Vehicle Having Never Received a License: The bill adds criminal enhancements for operation
of a motor vehicle without a valid driver’s license. Most vehicle offenses that involve an element of bodily
injury, serious bodily injury, catastrophic bodily injury, or death currently are currently punishable as either
a Class A infraction, Class A misdemeanor, or a Level 6, Level 5, Level 4, or Level 3 felony, depending on
the nature of the crime committed. The table at the end of this note shows current statutory provisions
governing motor vehicle violations associated with bodily injury, serious bodily injury, catastrophic bodily
injury, and death. By enhancing the Class C misdemeanor penalty for operating a motor vehicle having never
SB 429 2 received a valid license to a potential Level 6 felony or Level 5 felony, the bill could increase incarceration
costs to the extent offenders are convicted of the enhanced offenses in the bill.
The following table shows the sentencing ranges for these misdemeanors and felonies.
Offense: MinimumAdvisoryMaximum
Level 6 - serious bodily injury 6 months 1 year 2.5 years
Level 5 - catastrophic injury or death 1 year 3 years 6 years
The sentence depends on mitigating and aggravating circumstances. Assuming offenders can be housed in
existing facilities with no additional staff, the marginal cost for medical care, food, and clothing is
approximately $4,719 annually, or $12.93 daily, per prisoner. However, any additional expenditures are
likely to be small.
[Serious bodily injury is defined as bodily injury that creates a substantial risk of death or that causes: (1)
serious permanent disfigurement; (2) unconsciousness; (3) extreme pain; (4) permanent or protracted loss
or impairment of the function of a bodily member or organ; or (5) loss of a fetus. (IC 35-31.5-2-292)]
Explanation of State Revenues: The bill could increase state revenue from (1) the addition of four offenses
that are punishable as Class A misdemeanors pertaining to intent to transfer credentials and allowing an
individual who never obtained credentials to operate a motor vehicle, Level 6 and Level 5 felony
enhancements. The bill could also impact revenue distributions from Class A infraction violations that might
be prosecuted as felonies under the bill.
The maximum fine for a (1) Class A infraction is $10,000, (2) Class A misdemeanor is $5,000, and (3) Level
6 and Level 5 felony is $10,000. Infractions are deposited in the General Fund while criminal penalties are
deposited in the Common School Fund.
Court fee revenue (1) for infraction cases currently ranges between $85.50 and $103, whereas (2)
misdemeanor and felony cases would range between $113 and $138. The amount of court fees deposited will
vary depending on whether the case is filed in a court of record or a municipal court. The following linked
document describes the fees and distribution of the revenue: Court fees imposed in criminal, juvenile, and
civil violation cases.
Explanation of Local Expenditures: Summary - The bill could increase local incarceration costs to the
extent the bill increases the number of Class A misdemeanor convictions or if more defendants are detained
in county jails prior to their court hearings. However, any additional expenditures would likely be small.
Crimes Committed By Noncitizens: This bill will increase the workload of local prosecuting attorneys, county
sheriffs, community corrections programs, probation and parole departments, and trial courts to collect
noncitizen information. Increases in workload are expected to be accomplished within existing resources and
funding levels.
[If a noncitizen is charged with or convicted of an offense in another jurisdiction, the court shall order the
person transferred to the other jurisdiction upon the completion of the person’s sentence.]
SB 429 3 Additional Information - OFMA found 2,697 convictions between FY 2020 and 2024 in the Odyssey Case
Management System for operating a motor vehicle without a driver’s license as either a Class A or Class C
misdemeanor. It is unknown how many of these convictions involved at least an element of bodily injury or
serious bodily injury.
The following table shows the number of people convicted, average sentences in days, and the percentage
of people confined and/or supervised between FY 2020 and FY 2024 for driving without a driver’s license
(IC 9-24-18-1).
Average Convictions Per YearAverage Sentence in DaysPercentage of People Confined
and/or Supervised*
Misdemeanor A 437 174 20.1%
Misdemeanor C 2,260 53 12.6%
*A person can be confined in county jail or supervised on probation, community corrections, or both.
A person convicted of operating a motor vehicle without a driver’s license as either a Class A or C
misdemeanor were more likely to have their sentences suspended and supervised in the community. Between
FY 2020 and 2024, OFMA found on average about 20% of people convicted for driving without a license
as a Class A misdemeanor were more likely to be confined in county jail and/or supervised in the community.
A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by up to one year in a county jail while a Class C misdemeanor is
punishable by up to 60 days in a county jail. The average cost per day to incarcerate a prisoner is $64.53
based on the per diem payments reported by U.S. Marshals to house federal prisoners in 11 county jails
across Indiana during CY 2021.
A person who is convicted and sentenced for a misdemeanor is more likely to be confined for less time or
their sentence is suspended and placed on community supervision (either probation, community corrections,
or both) at sentencing. However, if an offender is sentenced to state prison rather than to a county jail, the
costs to the county may be reduced.
Explanation of Local Revenues: Local governments could receive additional revenues from any court fees
that are collected for cases that were prosecuted as infractions that are now prosecuted as misdemeanors. In
instances where an additional misdemeanor or felony charge created by the bill is already an offense that is
currently prosecuted as a felony or misdemeanor, it is expected local units of government will not receive
any additional court fee revenue.
Additional Information - If a felony or misdemeanor case is filed in a court of record, the county general fund
will receive $47.40 and qualifying municipalities will receive a share of $3.60. If the case is filed in a
municipal court, the county receives $30, and the municipality will receive $46. The following linked
document describes the fees and distribution of the revenue: Court fees imposed in criminal, juvenile, and
civil violation cases.
State Agencies Affected: Department of Correction.
Local Agencies Affected: Trial courts, local law enforcement agencies.
SB 429 4 Information Sources: Indiana Supreme Court, Indiana Trial Court Fee Manual, BMV Citation Dat FY 2018
- 2023; Odyssey Data FY 2020-FY2024; Federal Department of Justice, State Criminal Alien Assistance
Program (SCAAP), https://bja.ojp.gov/program/state-criminal-alien-assistance-program-scaap/overview.
Fiscal Analyst: Bill Brumbach, 317-232-9559; Corrin Harvey, 317-234-9438
Existing Motor Vehicle Criminal Penalties for Bodily Injury, and/or Death
Statute Offense Criminal Penalty
IC 9-21-3-7 Traffic signal violation resulting in bodily injury Class A infraction
IC 9-21-3-8 Flashing red or yellow traffic signal violation resulting in bodily
injury
Class A infraction
IC 9-21-3-8.5 Bicycle traffic control signal violation resulting in bodily injuryClass A infraction
IC 9-21-3-9 Individual lane use control signal violation resulting in bodily
injury
Class A infraction
IC 9-21-8-52(a) Reckless driving, causing bodily injury Class A misdemeanor
IC 9-21-8-52(b) Passing a school bus with a stop arm extended resulting in
bodily injury
Level 6 felony
IC 9-21-8-52(b) Passing a school bus with a stop arm extended resulting in
bodily injury resulting in death
Level 5 felony
IC 9-26-1-1.1(b)(1)Leaving the scene of an accident involving bodily injury Class A misdemeanor
IC 9-26-1-1.1(b)(2)Leaving the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injuryLevel 6 felony
IC 9-26-1-1.1(b)(3)Leaving the scene of an accident involving death or catastrophic
injury
Level 4 felony
IC 9-26-1-1.1(b)(4)Leaving the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury
while the operator was operating while intoxicated
Level 3 felony
IC 9-30-5-4 Operating while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury Level 5 felony
IC 9-30-10-17 Operating with forfeited privileges or as a habitual traffic
violator causing bodily injury, catastrophic injury, or death
Level 5 felony
SB 429 5