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Bills · 2009-2010 Regular Session

SB 443

Died at session end Official bill text Atom feed

theft of communication and video services, civil damages resulting from the theft of certain services, and providing penalties.

  1. Introduced, stopped here
  2. Passes Senate, not reached
  3. Passes Assembly, not reached
  4. Governor signs, not reached
  5. Law, not reached

Unfamiliar terms? Glossary

What this bill does

Plain-language analysis by the nonpartisan Legislative Reference Bureau

Current law prohibits a person from obtaining without payment

telecommunications service and from obtaining without payment video service. A

person who violates either prohibition for the first time is subject to a Class C

forfeiture. Under this bill, a person who violates either prohibition for the first time

is guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.

Under current law if a person who incurs injury as a result of theft of

telecommunications service, commercial mobile service, video service, or satellite

cable programming prevails in a civil suit against the person who committed the

theft, the court must grant the injured person actual damages, costs, and

disbursements. The court is not permitted to grant attorney fees unless the person

who committed the theft did it willfully and for commercial advantage or was

previously convicted for the same violation. This bill permits the court to grant

reasonable attorney fees for a first violation without regard to commercial

advantage.

Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime,

the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a

report concerning the proposed penalty and the costs or savings that are likely to

result if the bill is enacted.

What it would cost

Fiscal estimates filed by state agencies, as official PDFs

Sponsors

Introduced by: Hopper (R) , Kreitlow (D) , Plale (D) , Sullivan (D)

10 cosponsors

Hixson (D) , Hraychuck (D) , Mason (D) , Montgomery (R) , Soletski (D) , Suder (R) , Townsend (R) , Turner (D) , Zepnick (D) , Zigmunt (D)

Full history

  1. Jan 7, 2010 · Senate

    Introduced by Senators Plale, Kreitlow, Sullivan and Hopper;Cosponsored by Representatives Zepnick, Soletski, Turner, Hraychuck, Hixson, Mason, Zigmunt, Montgomery, Suder and Townsend

  2. Jan 7, 2010 · Senate

    Read first time and referred to committee on Judiciary, Corrections, Insurance, Campaign Finance Reform, and Housing

  3. Jan 13, 2010 · Senate

    Fiscal estimate received

  4. Jan 26, 2010 · Senate

    Fiscal estimate received

  5. Jan 27, 2010 · Senate

    Fiscal estimate received

  6. Apr 13, 2010 · Senate

    Report of joint review committee on Criminal Penalties requested pursuant to s. 13.525 (5) Wisconsin Statutes

  7. Apr 28, 2010 · Senate

    Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1