HB 551-FN - LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
2005 SESSION
06/01
HOUSE BILL 551-FN-LOCAL
AN ACT relative to the timing of security or assessment in subdivision plat approval.
SPONSORS: Rep. W. P. Campbell, Straf 3
COMMITTEE: Municipal and County Government
This bill provides for posting of security or for assessment before building permits are issued rather than prior to final approval of the plat.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
05-0124
06/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Five
AN ACT relative to the timing of security or assessment in subdivision plat approval.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Subdivision Regulations; Surety and Assessment; Time Changed. Amend RSA 674:36, III(b) and (c) to read as follows:
(b) Shall provide that, in lieu of the completion of street work and utility installations prior to the [final approval of a plat] issuance of building permits, the planning board shall accept a performance bond, irrevocable letter of credit, or other type or types of security as shall be specified in the subdivision regulations; provided that in no event shall the exclusive form of security required by the planning board be in the form of cash or a passbook. As phases or portions of the secured improvements or installations are completed and approved by the planning board or its designee, the municipality shall partially release said security to the extent reasonably calculated to reflect the value of such completed improvements or installations. Cost escalation factors that are applied by the planning board to any bond or other security required under this section shall not exceed 10 percent per year. The planning board shall, within the limitations provided in this subparagraph, have the discretion to prescribe the type and amount of security, and specify a period for completion of the improvements and utilities to be expressed in the bond or other security, in order to secure to the municipality the actual construction and installation of such improvements and utilities. The municipality shall have the power to enforce such bonds or other securities by all appropriate legal and equitable remedies.
(c) May provide that in lieu of the completion of street work and utility installations prior to the [final approval of the plat] issuance of building permits, the subdivision regulations may provide for an assessment or other method by which the municipality is put in an assured position to do said work and to make said alterations at the cost of the owners of the property within the subdivision.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
LBAO
05-0124
1/28/05
HB 551-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to the timing of security or assessment in subdivision plat approval.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The New Hampshire Municipal Association and Office of Energy and Planning state this bill may have an indeterminable fiscal impact on local expenditures in FY 2005 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on state, county, and local revenue or state and county expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The New Hampshire Municipal Association states this bill would amend RSA 674:36, III (b) and (c) to provide for the security for road construction and utility installations in lieu of completing that work prior to final subdivision approval be posted, or assessment against the applicant to be made prior to the issuance of building permits, rather than prior to final subdivision approval. Allowing an applicant to delay the posting of security until the time of building permit issuance, rather than requiring security as a condition of final subdivision approval would increase the risk that roads and utilities needed for a subdivision would never be completed, or that the work could be done poorly. Although this may not necessarily lead to increased municipal costs, a town may complete roads or utility installations at its own expense, when a developer has failed to do so. This bill may have a significant fiscal impact on some municipalities, but it is impossible to quantify that impact.
The Office of Energy and Planning states this bill will have no fiscal impact on either state or county revenue or expenditures. Municipalities may experience an indeterminable fiscal impact based upon the possibility of needing to complete construction of roadwork that is left incomplete by a developer who is unable or unwilling to proceed with a project. At a minimum, municipalities may be required to pay for the cost of stabilizing exposed soil, if there were no surety available to pay for the work. This would be true in situations where the highway improvements are required for an existing municipal roadway.
The Department of Revenue Administration states this bill will have no fiscal impact on the Department.