california legislature—2023–24 regular session
ASSEMBLY BILL No. 23
Introduced by Assembly Member Muratsuchi
December 5, 2022
An act to amend Sections 459.5, 487, and 490.2 of the Penal Code, relating to theft.
legislative counsel’s digest
AB 23, as introduced, Muratsuchi. Theft: shoplifting: amount.
Existing law, the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, enacted as an initiative statute by Proposition 47, as appro ved by the electors at the November 4, 2014, state wide general election, mak es the theft of money, labor, or property petty theft punishable as a misdemeanor , whenever the value of the property taken does not exceed $950. Under existing law, if the value of the property taken exceeds $950, the theft is grand theft, punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony.
Proposition 47 requires shoplifting, defined as entering a commercial establishment with the intent to commit larcen y if the v alue of the property taken does not exceed $950, to be punished as a misdemeanor.
Under existing law, entering a commercial establishment with the intent to tak e property e xceeding $950 is b urglary, punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony.
This bill w ould amend Proposition 47 by reducing the threshold amount for petty theft and shoplifting from $950 to $400. The bill would provide that it shall become ef fective only when submitted to, and approved by, the voters of California.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
99 The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
line 1 SECTION 1. Section 459.5 of the Penal Code is amended to line 2 read:
line 3 459.5. (a) Notwithstanding Section 459, shoplifting is defined line 4 as entering a commercial establishment with intent to commit line 5 larceny while that establishment is open during re gular business line 6 hours, where the value of the property that is taken or intended to line 7 be taken does not e xceed nine hundred fifty dollars ($950). four line 8 hundred dollar s ($400). Any other entry into a commercial line 9 establishment with intent to commit larceny is burglary. Shoplifting line 10 shall be punished as a misdemeanor, except that a person with one line 11 or more prior convictions for an offense specified in clause (iv) of line 12 subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdi vision (e) of Section line 13 667 or for an offense requiring registration pursuant to subdivision line 14 (c) of Section 290 may be punished pursuant to subdivision (h) of line 15 Section 1170.
line 16 (b) Any act of shoplifting as defined in subdivision (a) shall be line 17 charged as shoplifting. No A person who is charged with shoplifting line 18 may shall not also be charged with burglary or theft of the same line 19 property.
line 20 SEC. 2. Section 487 of the Penal Code, as amended by Section line 21 1 of Chapter 22 of the Statutes of 2022, is amended to read:
line 22 487. Grand theft is theft committed in an y of the follo wing line 23 cases:
line 24 (a) When the money, labor, real property, or personal property line 25 taken is of a v alue exceeding nine hundred fifty dollars ($950), line 26 four hundred dollars ($400), except as pro vided in subdi vision line 27 (b).
line 28 (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), grand theft is committed line 29 in any of the following cases:
line 30 (1) (A) When domestic fo wls, a vocados, oli ves, citrus or line 31 deciduous fruits, other fruits, vegetables, nuts, artichokes, or other line 32 farm crops are taken of a value exceeding two hundred fifty dollars line 33 ($250).
line 34 (B) For the purposes of establishing that the value of domestic line 35 fowls, avocados, olives, citrus or deciduous fruits, other fruits, line 36 vegetables, nuts, artichok es, or other f arm crops under this line 37 paragraph exceeds tw o hundred fifty dollars ($250), that v alue line 38 may be sho wn by the presentation of credible e vidence which 99 — 2 — AB 23
line 1 establishes that on the day of the theft domestic fowls, avocados, line 2 olives, citrus or deciduous fruits, other fruits, v egetables, nuts, line 3 artichokes, or other f arm crops of the same v ariety and weight line 4 exceeded two hundred fifty dollars ($250) in wholesale value. line 5 (2) When fish, shellfish, mollusks, crustaceans, kelp, algae, or line 6 other aquacultural products are tak en from a commercial or line 7 research operation which is producing that product, of a v alue line 8 exceeding two hundred fifty dollars ($250).
line 9 (3) Where the money, labor, real property, or personal property line 10 is taken by a serv ant, agent, or emplo yee from their principal or line 11 employer and aggre gates nine hundred fifty dollars ($950) four line 12 hundred dollar s ($400) or more in an y 12 consecuti ve month line 13 12-consecutive-month period.
line 14 (c) When the property is taken from the person of another. line 15 (d) When the property taken is any of the following:
line 16 (1) An automobile.
line 17 (2) A firearm.
line 18 (e) If the value of the mone y, labor, real property, or personal line 19 property taken exceeds nine hundred fifty dollars ($950) over the line 20 course of distinct but related acts, the v alue of the money, labor, line 21 real property , or personal property tak en may properly be line 22 aggregated to charge a count of grand theft, if the acts are motivated line 23 by one intention, one general impulse, and one plan. line 24 SEC. 3. Section 490.2 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
line 25 490.2. (a) Notwithstanding Section 487 or any other provision line 26 of law defining grand theft, obtaining any property by theft where line 27 the value of the money, labor, real or personal property taken does line 28 not exceed nine hundred fifty dollars ($950) four hundred dollars line 29 ($400) shall be considered petty theft and shall be punished as a line 30 misdemeanor, except that such person may instead be punished line 31 pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 if that person has one line 32 or more prior convictions for an offense specified in clause (iv) of line 33 subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdi vision (e) of Section line 34 667 or for an offense requiring registration pursuant to subdivision line 35 (c) of Section 290.
line 36 (b) This section shall not be applicable to any theft that may be line 37 charged as an infraction pursuant to any other provision of law. line 38 (c) This section shall not apply to theft of a firearm. line 39 SEC. 4. The provisions of this bill af fect an initiative statute line 40 and shall become effective only when submitted to, and approved 99 AB 23 — 3 —
line 1 by, the voters of California, pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section line 2 10 of Article II of the California Constitution.
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99 — 4 — AB 23