Connecticut HB 5563: AN ACT CONCERNING VARIOUS CRIMINAL LAW AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROPOSALS, CERTIFICATES OF APPROVAL FOR AIRPORTS, HELIPORTS, VERTIPORTS, RESTRICTED LANDING AREAS AND OTHER AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES, POLICE COLLABORATION WITH SOCIAL WORKERS, SURVEILLANCE PRICING, EDUCATION COST SHARING AND WITHHOLDING OF TAXES FROM LUMP SUM PAYMENTS.

Bill Text

House Bill No. 5563 
 
Public Act No. 26-130 
 
 
AN ACT CONCERNING VARIOUS CRIMINAL LAW AND CRIMINAL 
JUSTICE   PROPOSALS,   CERTIFICATES   OF   APPROVAL   FOR 
AIRPORTS,  HELIPORTS,  VERTIPORTS,  RESTRICTED  LANDING 
AREAS   AND   OTHER   AIR   NAVIGATION FACILITIES,   POLICE 
COLLABORATION   WITH   SOCIAL   WORKERS,   SURVEILLANCE 
PRICING,  EDUCATION  COST  SHARING  AND  WITHHOLDING  OF 
TAXES FROM LUMP SUM PAYMENTS. 
Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  in  General 
Assembly convened: 
 
Section 1. Section 53-142k of the general statutes is repealed and the 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 
(a) As used in this section: 
(1) "Retail  property"  means  any  new  article,  product,  commodity, 
item or component intended to be sold in retail commerce; 
(2) "Value"  means  the  retail  value  of  an  item  as  advertised  by  the 
affected retail establishment, including applicable taxes; and 
(3) "Retail property fence" means a person who buys retail property 
when  such  person  knows  or  should  know  the  property  is  stolen  and 
with  the  intent  to  unlawfully  distribute  the  property  or  to  promote, 
manage, carry on or facilitate a violation of subsection (b) of this section. 

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(b) Any person who, for financial gain and in conjunction with one or 
more  other persons,  commits  larceny  by  shoplifting,  as  defined  in 
section  53a-119,  as  amended  by  this  act,  of  retail  property  having  an 
aggregate  value  exceeding  two  thousand  dollars  and  (1)  wrongfully 
takes  such  property  during  a  period  of [one  hundred  eighty] three 
hundred sixty-five days, or (2) sells, delivers or otherwise transfers such 
property to a retail property fence, shall have committed the offense of 
organized retail theft. 
(c) Any person who receives, possesses, conceals, stores, barters, sells 
or disposes of any retail property acquired in violation of subsection (b) 
of this section, including through the use of an online platform, Internet 
web site or electronic device, with the intent to distribute the proceeds 
or otherwise promote, manage, carry on or facilitate a violation of said 
subsection, shall have committed the offense of accessory to organized 
retail theft. 
(d) It shall not be a defense to a charge of accessory to organized retail 
theft in violation of subsection (c) of this section that the retail property 
was obtained by means other than through a violation of said subsection 
if the property was explicitly represented to the person charged under 
said  subsection  (c)  as  being  obtained  through  the  commission  of 
organized retail theft. 
(e) Any person who violates subsection (b) or (c) of this section shall 
be  guilty  of  a  class  D  felony,  except  that,  if  such  person  derives  a 
financial  benefit  of  ten  thousand  dollars  or  more  as  a  result  of  such 
violation, such person shall be guilty of a class C felony. 
Sec.  2.  Section  53a-119  of  the  general  statutes  is  repealed  and  the 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 
A  person  commits  larceny  when,  with  intent  to  deprive  another  of 
property or to appropriate the same to [himself] such person or a third 

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person, [he] such  person wrongfully  takes,  obtains  or  withholds  such 
property from an owner. Larceny includes, but is not limited to: 
(1) Embezzlement. A person commits embezzlement when [he] such 
person wrongfully  appropriates  to [himself] such  person's  self or  to 
another property of another in [his] such person's care or custody. 
(2) Obtaining property by false pretenses. A person obtains property 
by false pretenses when, by any false token, pretense or device, [he] such 
person obtains from another any property, with intent to defraud [him] 
such other person or any other person. 
(3) Obtaining property by false promise. A person obtains property 
by  false  promise  when,  pursuant  to  a  scheme  to  defraud, [he] such 
person obtains  property  of  another  by  means  of  a  representation, 
express  or  implied,  that [he] such  person or  a  third  person  will  in  the 
future  engage  in  particular  conduct,  and  when [he] such  person does 
not intend to engage in such conduct or does not believe that the third 
person intends to engage in such conduct. In any prosecution for larceny 
based upon a false promise, the defendant's intention or belief that the 
promise would not be performed may not be established by or inferred 
from the fact alone that such promise was not performed. 
(4) Acquiring  property  lost,  mislaid  or  delivered  by  mistake.  A 
person  who  comes  into  control  of  property  of  another  that [he] such 
person knows to have been lost, mislaid, or delivered under a mistake 
as to the nature or amount of the