Via a press release from the KY Smart on Crime Coalition
Today, the Kentucky Smart on Crime Coalition released the following statement after the House Judiciary Committee advanced HB 126, sponsored by Chairman C. Ed Massey. The bill is aimed at bringing Kentucky’s felony theft threshold statutes to the national median of states at $1,000. The bill would also increase the threshold for several fraud-related crimes to $1,000, some of which currently have amounts as low as $100 for the offense to be a felony.
“The Kentucky Smart on Crime Coalition applauds Chairman Massey for his leadership,” said Mandy Simpson, Director of Public Policy for the Metro United Way of Kentucky on behalf of the Kentucky Smart on Crime Coalition.
“Kentucky’s felony theft threshold has failed to keep pace with inflation and modernization of the criminal legal system, remaining unchanged for more than a decade.
“Texas has a threshold that is five times larger than ours. For even more context, Georgia and Alabama’s thresholds stand at $1,500, with Tennessee’s at $1,000. Kentucky’s current system does not provide proportionate consequences for community members, especially as we work to address high incarceration rates and corrections costs impacting the wellbeing of Kentucky children and families.
“Kentucky ranks third nationally for children who experience parental incarceration. The Commonwealth is imposing life-changing consequences on parents and children for what other states consider petty theft. Our coalition urges the full House to approve HB 126.”
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