According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), SB 745 is not expected to have any significant fiscal implications for the state. While the reclassification of the offense could result in longer sentences and potentially increased correctional resource demands, the expected number of affected cases is sufficiently low to avoid a measurable budgetary impact.

Similarly, for local governments, the costs associated with enforcement, prosecution, and incarceration are not expected to be significant.

SB 745 responds directly to concerns raised by victims' families in cases where drunk drivers have killed multiple people but received a sentence as if only one life were lost. In some instances, judges do not “stack” sentences, and plea deals further restrict sentencing options. The bill gives prosecutors another statutory tool to seek justice commensurate with the harm done.

SB 745 addresses a gap in existing law, enhances prosecutorial flexibility, and provides a proportional penalty for multi-fatality intoxication manslaughter. It does so without expanding the underlying criminal offense or compromising constitutional protections.

As such, Texas Policy Research recommends that lawmakers vote YES on SB 745.

• Individual Liberty: The bill does not infringe upon protected individual liberties. It increases the penalty only when a person’s voluntary and unlawful behavior results in multiple deaths — a circumstance already well within the criminal law tradition.
• Personal Responsibility: The bill advances the principle of personal responsibility by holding offenders more fully accountable when their actions result in catastrophic loss of life. It ensures that the punishment more accurately reflects the gravity of the harm.
• Free Enterprise: The bill is neutral toward private enterprise. It imposes no mandates, restrictions, or indirect burdens on business activity or commercial freedom.
• Private Property Rights: There are no implications for property rights.
• Limited Government: The bill represents a measured enhancement of existing sentencing structures without expanding the scope of government authority. It targets a specific high-harm scenario and relies on traditional prosecutorial discretion to implementation.

• HB 1789 (Same As)