Committee adopts amendment raising magistrate contempt penalties

A legislative committee adopted a strike-and-insert amendment to committee substitute for House Bill 4893 that raises penalties for contempt of magistrate court and reported the bill to the full Senate with a recommendation that it pass.

Counsel (speaker 2) told the committee the amendment increases the maximum fine for a first contempt offense requiring community service from $50 to $200, raises the second-offense fine from $100 to $500 for community-service orders, and raises the third-offense fine from $100 to $1,000 and permits a sentence through the weekend jail program or a work-release program under the statutory provision cited in the presentation. Counsel also said the bill raises the maximum fine a court may levy without a jury trial to $1,000 from a current maximum of $50, a level that counsel said has not been raised since at least 1923.

Vice Chair (speaker 3) moved to adopt the strike-and-insert amendment as described by counsel; the chair put the question and, after a voice vote, declared the amendment adopted. The vice chair then moved that House Bill 4893, as amended, be reported to the full Senate with a recommendation that it pass; the committee voted by voice and the chair declared the motion adopted. The committee also adopted a title amendment before moving on to the next agenda item.

The transcript records voice votes only; no roll-call tallies were provided. The committee did not record additional amendments or require further committee action before reporting the bill.