Office of Legislative Services
State House Annex
P.O. Box 068
Trenton, New Jersey 08625
Legislative Budget and Finance Office
Phone (609) 847-3105
Fax (609) 777-2442
www.njleg.state.nj.us
LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
ASSEMBLY, No. 4532
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
DATED: JULY 3, 2024
SUMMARY
Synopsis: Establishes separate crime of burglary of residential dwelling.
Type of Impact: Annual expenditure and revenue increases to the State.
Agencies Affected: Department of Corrections; State Parole Board; the Judiciary;
Department of Law and Public Safety; Office of the Public Defender.
Office of Legislative Services Estimate
Fiscal Impact Annual
State Expenditure Increase Indeterminate
State Revenue Increase Indeterminate
The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) anticipates that the Department of Corrections would
incur indeterminate annual cost increases under the bill if individuals were given prison
sentences or were sentenced to longer prison terms than they otherwise would have been absent
the bill’s provisions. The State Parole Board would also have to supervise the return to society
of additional formerly incarcerated persons.
Crimes of the second degree carry a presumption of incarceration for all persons convicted of
these crimes, while a presumption of non-incarceration usually applies to first time offenders
of crimes of the third degree. The upgraded offense could create a reluctance on the part of a
defendant to enter a guilty plea, thereby generating additional costs for the Department of Law
and Public Safety to prosecute additional cases, the Judiciary to adjudicate more cases, and the
Office of the Public Defender to represent additional low-income criminal defendants.
The State may receive indeterminate annual revenue from fines and penalties imposed on and
collected from individuals convicted of the upgraded offense. However, the State’s ability to
collect these fines and penalties has historically been limited.
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BILL DESCRIPTION
This bill establishes burglary of a residence as a separate crime from the crime of burglary
pursuant to N.J.S.A.2C:18-2, thus facilitating the tracking of the crime of burglary of
residential dwellings in this State.
Under the bill, “residential dwelling” is defined as: (1) any building or structure, though
movable or temporary, or a portion thereof, which serves primarily as a residence for one or
more persons; or (2) any place adapted for overnight accommodation of persons.
The penalties for burglary of a residence remain the same as under current law. It is a crime
of the third degree to commit a burglary of a residential dwelling under this bill; except that it
is a crime of the second degree if the actor: (1) purposely, knowingly, or recklessly inflicts,
attempts to inflict, or threatens to inflict bodily injury on anyone; (2) is armed with or displays
what appear to be explosives or a deadly weapon; or (3) enters the residential dwelling while
a resident or any other person, other than a person acting in concert with the actor, is present
in the residential dwelling.
A crime of the third degree is punishable by three to five years imprisonment, a fine of up
to $15,000, or both. A crime of the second degree is punishable by five to 10 years
imprisonment, a fine of up to $150,000, or both.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
The OLS anticipates that the Department of Corrections would incur indeterminate annual cost
increases under the bill if individuals were given prison sentences or were sentenced to longer
prison terms than they otherwise would have been absent the bill’s provisions.
Currently, burglary is a crime of the third degree with certain exceptions. This bill establishes
burglary of a residence as a separate crime from the crime of burglary pursuant to
N.J.S.A.2C:18-2. Under the bill, burglary of a residence remains a crime of the third degree,
unless the actor, in the course of committing the offense: (1) purposely, knowingly, or recklessly
inflicts, attempts to inflict, or threatens to inflict bodily injury on anyone; (2) is armed with or
displays what appear to be explosives or a deadly weapon; or (3) enters the residential dwelling
while a resident or any other person, other than a person acting in concert with the actor, is
present in the residential dwelling. In these circumstances, burglary of a residence is a crime
of the second degree.
Crimes of the second degree carry a presumption of incarceration for all persons convicted of
these crimes while a presumption of non-incarceration generally applies to first time offenders of
crimes of the third degree. The OLS notes that to the extent the bill results in additional
incarcerations or longer incarcerations, the department would incur higher costs.
Based on information provided by the department, the FY 2021 average annual cost for
housing an inmate was $55,389, whereas the average daily cost was $151.75. According to
statistics made available on the department’s website, as of January 2022, of the 12,492
incarcerated persons in State facilities, 526, or approximately four percent, were incarcerated for
“property offenses,” which include burglary, arson, theft, forgery, embezzlement, and receiving or FE to A4532
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possessing stolen property. The data do not provide a breakdown by the number of persons
incarcerated for residential burglaries.
The State Parole Board would also have to supervise the return to society of additional formerly
incarcerated persons, which would result in increased utilization of the Parole Board’s resources.
The OLS finds that the upgraded offense could create a reluctance on the part of a defendant
to enter a guilty plea, thereby generating additional costs for the Department of Law and Public
Safety to prosecute additional cases, the Judiciary to adjudicate more cases, and the Office of the
Public Defender to represent additional low-income criminal defendants. According to the
Uniform Crime Report, 12,983 burglaries were reported for the year 2020 and 5,081 for the period
January through July of 2021. The data does not provide details on how many of these were
residential burglaries or how many individuals were sentenced for incarceration in State prisons.
Additional indeterminate annual State revenue may accrue from fines and penalty payments
from convicted violators of the upgraded statutory provision. Crimes of the second degree are
punishable by a term of imprisonment of five to 10 years, a fine of up to $150,000, or both; whereas
crimes of the third degree are punishable by a term of imprisonment of three to five years, a fine
of up to $15,000, or both. The OLS cannot determine the number of convictions the bill may
generate, and by extension, the total of any resultant fines and penalty revenue. The OLS
additionally notes that State’s ability to collect fines has historically been limited.
Section: Judiciary
Analyst: William Lim
Deputy Counsel
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.).