A new Fresno County ordinance allows law enforcement to arrest anyone caught with an unattached catalytic converter.

Even though catalytic converter thefts have dropped significantly since highs in 2023, insurers still reported more than 2,000 claims in California for the first half of 2024, according to a January article from State Farm.

California consistently has the highest theft rates in the nation.

State law, however, only forbids a person from having more than eight catalytic converters before they can be arrested.

Now, anyone with a catalytic converter they can’t prove is theirs can be punished with a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

“The city of Fresno initiated this similar ordinance and they had a reduction of 63% catalytic converter thefts,” said Fresno County Supervisor Garry Bredefeld. “Under existing state law, you need to have nine or more catalytic converters in order to seize the property and have an infraction. We’ve changed that.”

Trucks and Hybrid Vehicles Targeted the Most: State Farm

From 2022 to 2024, the sheriff’s office reported 634 catalytic converter thefts totaling more than $736,000 in losses. Ninety percent of victims were private residents, and 10% were commercial or ag related.

But thefts affect commercial enterprises as well, according to Deputy Isaac Torres of the Ag Theft Task Force.

“I’ve had commercial businesses along the Central and Golden State corridor park their vehicle fleets out in their parking lots. Thieves come in, steal all their cat converters, it’s a huge loss for those businesses,” Torres said.

Farmers will often have catalytic converters stolen from wind machines. The wind machines can keep citrus crops from freezing, so not only do farmers have to pay for new equipment, but they can also experience significant crop loss, Torres said.

Trucks and SUVs with high ground clearance are often targeted as are hybrid vehicles, State Farm reported. Hybrid vehicles contain higher quantities of platinum, palladium, and rhodium that thieves want.