AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 21 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO VEHICLE SECURITY CIRCUMVENTION DEVICES.
Summary
HB351 amends Delaware Title 21 to create a new offense related to vehicle security circumvention devices. The bill defines these devices broadly to include key programming devices, emulators, relay-attack devices, and other hardware, software, applications, or programs used to intercept a key fob signal or electronically communicate with a vehicle to program or emulate a key fob capable of unlocking or starting the vehicle.
The bill generally prohibits a person from knowingly manufacturing, selling, offering to sell, transferring, or possessing such a device, or aiding or permitting another person to use one. It also requires authorized possessors to report a lost or stolen device to law enforcement within 48 hours of learning of the loss or theft. The bill does not add a separate penalty provision because existing misdemeanor penalties in the chapter would apply.
Impact
HB351 would add a new criminal prohibition to Chapter 67 of Title 21 of the Delaware Code, expanding state law enforcement tools against auto theft-related technology and limiting access to devices used to bypass modern vehicle security systems. It would also impose a reporting duty on certain authorized users if a device is lost or stolen. The bill includes exemptions for law enforcement, the National Insurance Crime Bureau, licensed dealers, distributors, manufacturers, mechanic shops, locksmith companies, and repossession agencies, preserving legitimate commercial and investigative uses.
Sentiment
The available materials suggest broad support for the bill’s public-safety purpose, with the synopsis framing it as a response to vehicle security circumvention and related criminal activity. No committee transcript or vote record is provided, so there is no direct evidence of opposition or amendment debate in the supplied record. The bill’s requirement of a two-thirds vote indicates it was treated as the creation of a new crime under the Delaware Constitution.
Contention
The main potential points of contention are the breadth of the device definition and the criminalization of mere possession, which could affect locksmiths, dealers, mechanics, repossession agents, and others who lawfully use such tools. The bill addresses those concerns by carving out exemptions for specified authorized users and by limiting the offense to knowing conduct. Another possible issue is the reliance on existing misdemeanor penalties rather than a tailored penalty scheme, though the synopsis indicates that was intentional and consistent with current chapter penalties.
Enacts the "New York state vehicle security circumvention device act" to prohibit the manufacturing, sale, offering to sell, or possession of devices outside of lawful and reasonable purposes.
Enacts the "New York state vehicle security circumvention device act" to prohibit the manufacturing, sale, offering to sell, or possession of devices outside of lawful and reasonable purposes.