Crimes: false reporting.

Assembly Member Ta's legislation addressing false emergency reporting would allow courts to charge repeat offenders with felonies rather than misdemeanors when they knowingly make false emergency reports or misuse the 911 system. The enhanced penalties would apply to individuals who were 18 or older when committing prior offenses, while maintaining existing misdemeanor penalties for first-time violations and juvenile offenders.

The bill expands financial liability for those convicted of false reporting, requiring them to cover both emergency response costs and any property damage resulting from the response. Under current law, convicted individuals are only responsible for reimbursing agencies' emergency response expenses. The legislation maintains existing penalties for first offenses - up to one year in jail and $1,000 in fines for false emergency reports, and up to six months in jail and $1,000 in fines for harassing 911 calls.

The measure preserves current provisions that establish intent to harass through proof of repeated unreasonable communications, regardless of timeframe. It also retains exemptions for Emergency Alert System activations made in good faith by parents or guardians searching for missing children. While the bill creates new felony penalties, it specifies that local agencies and school districts will not require state reimbursement for associated costs, as the changes relate to crime classification rather than mandating new government services.