HB263 Summary

• Establishes the crime of interference with public safety communication, defined as any radio signal, electronic transmission, or broadcast intended for law enforcement, fire service, or emergency personnel on FCC-allocated wavelengths or frequencies.

• Makes it illegal to knowingly and intentionally displace, damage, remove, tamper with, destroy, or render inoperable any transmitter, receiver, tower, antenna, cable, or related infrastructure used for public safety communications.

• Prohibits interference with transmission or reception of public safety communications, operation of apparatus that disrupts such communications, and interception of encrypted public safety transmissions.

• Exempts certified law enforcement officers, public safety agency personnel, individuals with written permission from agency heads, and utility personnel acting within their duties from prosecution.

• Classifies interference with public safety communication as a Class C Felony and requires law enforcement to seize equipment used in violation of the offense, with courts ordering destruction or forfeiture upon conviction.