Kansas bills would increase severity for livestock, grain theft

Randy Stookey, senior vice president with the Kansas Grain and Feed Association, testified Tuesday before the House Judiciary Committee about the importance of increasing penalties for people caught stealing grain. (Photo by Morgan Chilson/Kansas Reflector)

TOPEKA — Kansas penalties for livestock, grain and ranch equipment theft are significantly less than surrounding states, frustrating farmers and ranchers whose livelihoods are affected long-term, legislators heard Tuesday.

Multiple proponents spoke to the House Judiciary committee Tuesday about two proposals — House Bill 2413, focused on cattle and farm equipment theft, and House Bill 2422 on grain theft — sharing the sometimes long-term effects of agricultural theft. Several pointed out that Kansas penalties are less severe than surrounding states. 

No neutral or opponent testimony was submitted.

The two bills would increase the severity of penalties for theft to level 5 or 6 nonperson felonies and set new thresholds for implementing penalties. 

 

Cattle and implement theft

Jason Thompson, revisor of statutes office, summarized HB 2413 and changes that would

• Define livestock as cattle and horses only
• Change theft of livestock or agriculture equipment used in caring for livestock to a severity level 5, nonperson felony, no matter what the value of the stolen items; and 
• Allow for the forfeiture of items used in the theft under criminal forfeiture procedures. 

Currently, severity of the crime is based on value, with increasing penalties depending on the value of the items stolen, Thompson said. 

Rep. Megan Steele, R-Manhattan, testified in favor of the bill, saying the issue came to light when two calves and a trailer were stolen from a friend. 

“This is an important and necessary step to address the growing problem of cattle and agricultural equipment theft here in Kansas,” she said. “This issue extends far beyond just the property issue, but it strikes at the heart of our rural communities, our rural agricultural communities that we have here in the state of Kansas.”

The criminal in her friend’s case was caught but received only a misdemeanor “slap on the hand,” Steele said, while her friend lost an entire year’s worth of income because of the cost of the trailer that had to be replaced. 

Sam Johnson, a rancher  and crop farmer in Wabaunsee, Lyon and Osage counties, told the committee that his small operation could be harmed by even a minor theft, which might be a misdemeanor under current law. 

“I am a small producer, so my cattle herd is roughly 40 pairs. Just the theft of a calf today, that calf goes to market to bring as much as $3,000, a mama cow over her productive life, well over $15,000,” he said. 

Theft of equipment, which in his smaller operation may mean the $20,000 tractor he uses to feed animals, can have long-term effects.  

“When I have to take care of my herd, if there’s a health issue or something like that needs to be addressed within my cattle, and those (implements) are gone or animals are stressed due to criminal activity, the impact is even greater to a small producer such as myself,” he said. “This bill is long overdue.”

Matthew Steele, CEO and executive director of the Kansas Cattlemen’s Association, told legislators that states surrounding Kansas have much harsher penalties for cattle theft. 

“It is easier to steal them in Kansas and get rid of them in Oklahoma. Why? Because it’s a slap on the wrist in Kansas, and when you go to Oklahoma, it’s a slap on the wrist for selling stolen property,” he said. “There’s a reason that they steal cattle in Kansas, because our penalty does not match our neighboring states and other neighboring cattle states.”

In Oklahoma, the penalty is a mandatory three to 10 years in jail per head stolen and up to three times the value, or $500,000, fine per head, Matthew Steele said. Some trailer loads of cattle stolen in Kansas would lead to a life sentence in Oklahoma, he said. 

 

Grain theft

House Bill 2422 would set the penalty for stealing crops at a severity level 6 nonperson felony and defines the theft of 400 bushels of grain as the threshold, rather than determining the penalty based on value, Thompson said.  

Valuing grain theft so that it meets current standards of value can mean the crime doesn’t rise to the level of a felony, testified Randy Stookey, senior vice president with the Kansas Grain and Feed Association.

For instance, a grain truck holds between 400 and 500 bushels of grain, whereas a semi-truck holds about 1,000 bushels. Assuming the grain is corn, which sells for about $4.50 per bushel, Stookey said someone would have to steal nearly six semi-trucks of corn before the crime would rise out of the level of presumptive probation.  

“That’s why these aren’t charged,” he said. “That’s why the prosecutor says, ‘Look, I’ve got drug crimes I’m dealing with. I’m not going to prosecute.’” 

Mike Schmidt, who recently retired as CEO of Pride Ag Resources in Dodge City, testified about a situation that resulted in losses from theft. 

In the industry for nearly four decades, Schmidt said he was overseeing operations at a co-op where theft began gradually with a few hundred pounds of stolen grain and ended with a group of six people at several co-ops working together and stealing about 4,000 bushels. 

“They did end up prosecuting two of the six people that were involved in it, and the gentleman that worked for myself, he ended up spending more time in jail for a DUI that he got,” Schmidt said, adding that the man also was ordered to pay restitution of $52,000 and never paid anything. 

“To a small company, $52,000 is a big thing, and he got nothing but a slap on the wrist,” he said.

Correction: This article was updated to correct Mike Schmidt’s name and business.