Revision: Jan. 21, 2010, midnight
HB 630-FN – AS INTRODUCED
2005 SESSION
04/03
HOUSE BILL 630-FN
AN ACT relative to computer spam and cyber-security.
SPONSORS: Rep. Morris, Rock 14
COMMITTEE: Legislative Administration
This bill prohibits the transmission of any computer contaminant to another person within the state house complex, without the consent of such other person.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
05-0357
04/03
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Five
AN ACT relative to computer spam and cyber-security.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Subdivision; Computer Security at the State House Complex. Amend RSA 638 by inserting after section 29 the following new subdivision:
Computer Security at the State House Complex
638:30 Computer Security at the State House Complex.
I. A person shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor if such person purposely or knowingly transmits or causes to be transmitted any computer contaminant to or from any computer or computer network at the state house complex to another person, without the consent of such other person.
II. In this section:
(a) “Computer” or “computer network” shall be as defined in RSA 638:16, III and VI, respectively.
(b) “Computer contaminant” shall be as defined in RSA 638:16, IV.
(c) “State house complex” means the state house, the state house annex, and the legislative office building.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2006.
LBAO
05-0357
Revised 2/22/05
HB 630 FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to computer spam and cyber-security.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Judicial Branch, Judicial Council, and Association of Counties state this bill may increase state and county expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2006 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on state, county, and local revenue or local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Judicial Branch states this bill would add RSA 638:30 to statute, which would prohibit any electronic mail or “pop-up” advertisements at the State House complex without the receiver’s consent. A violation of this proposed statute would be a class A misdemeanor. Class A misdemeanors carry the potential of incarceration, and therefore, the potential for de novo appeals to the superior court for a jury trial. Class A misdemeanors can also involve appeals to the supreme court. The Branch cannot predict the number of cases that will result, but states that any fiscal impact will result in increased delays in the processing of other cases.
The Judicial Council assumes that any cases arising from the enactment of this bill for which the Indigent Defense Fund may be liable will, in the first instance, be handled by the public defender or a contract attorney who accepts these cases on a fixed fee basis of $250 per misdemeanor charged. If an assigned counsel attorney must be used, the hourly rate of $60 with a fee cap of $1,000 will apply. If a motion to exceed the fee cap is approved and/or “services other than counsel” are approved, these will also be chargeable to the Indigent Defense Fund. Any charge within the criminal justice system, committed by a juvenile, will be compensated within the flat fee contract system of $250 per case through disposition, plus $187.50 for each and every review hearing following disposition. Assigned counsel will be at the $60 per hour rate with a fee cap of $1,200. The fee cap may be waived upon motion filed with the court and approved in advance. Any case where a defendant has been found guilty may also result in appeals to either the superior court or to the supreme court which would have a cost implication for indigent defense expenditures made by the state. The Council is unable to predict the number of cases which may result from the passage of this bill, and are unable to determine the exact fiscal impact at this time.
The Association of Counties states to the extent individuals are prosecuted, the county may incur the cost of pre-trial detainment at the county department of corrections, as well as the cost of sentenced inmates under the new law. The average annual cost for counties to incarcerate inmates is $21,633.55. The Association states the total exposure to the counties would be dependent on the number of individuals convicted and sentenced under the new law, which cannot be determined at this time.
The Legislative Accounting Office states that based on discussions with General Court Information Systems (GCIS) staff there have been no known occurrences of malicious intent to damage a computer within the State House Complex. It is assumed that any cases arising from this bill would require GCIS staff to provide technical services to remove any contaminant and consequences thereof. It is further assumed that the cost of providing these services mirror those of instances of unintentional contaminants, and could be absorbed within the current budget.
The Department of Justice states this bill should have a negligible fiscal impact, if any, on their Department and any costs can be absorbed within their current budget.