HB902 (2007) Detail

Establishing a committee to study the costs and benefits of the drug prohibition policy on the people of New Hampshire.


HB 902 – AS INTRODUCED

2007 SESSION

07-1107

04/05

HOUSE BILL 902

AN ACT establishing a committee to study the costs and benefits of the drug prohibition policy on the people of New Hampshire.

SPONSORS: Rep. Ingbretson, Graf 5

COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety

ANALYSIS

This bill establishes a committee to study the costs and benefits of the drug prohibition policy on the people of New Hampshire.

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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

07-1107

04/05

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Seven

AN ACT establishing a committee to study the costs and benefits of the drug prohibition policy on the people of New Hampshire.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Committee Established. There is established a committee to study the costs and benefits of the drug prohibition policy on the people of New Hampshire.

2 Membership and Compensation.

I. The members of the committee shall be as follows:

(a) Three members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.

(b) Three members of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.

II. Members of the committee shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the committee.

3 Duties.

I. The committee shall the weigh the costs and benefits of the drug prohibition policy on the people of New Hampshire, including but not limited to determining the net effect such policy has had, in the last 25 years on the following:

(a) Crime, including but not limited to, incidents of violent crime, property crime, prostitution, drug distribution and possession, theft, and crime rate.

(b) Health, including but not limited to, rate of drug-related AIDS, rate of addiction, rate of drug-related hepatitis, rate of overdose deaths and injuries, and pain management for terminal and chronic sufferers.

(c) Economy, including but not limited to, the following sectors: judiciary, prison, law enforcement, foster care, and other social costs, and taxes.

(d) Families, including but not limited to, the number of parent-deprived families, the number of children in foster care, and broken homes.

(e) Civil rights, including but not limited to, seizures, and the First and Fourth Amendments to the United States Constitution.

(f) Youth, including but not limited to, ease of access to drugs, percentage of youths experimenting with drugs, injury due to drug use, and injury due to felony status.

(g) Public safety, including but not limited to, enforcement-related deaths and injuries, proliferation of special weapons and tactics (SWAT) teams, and drug-related deaths and injuries.

(h) Law enforcement, including but not limited to, corruption of officials, and ethical issues in law enforcement.

(i) Justice, including but not limited to, number of cases on court dockets, costs of judicial proceedings, equity in sentencing, and mandatory minimum sentences.

(j) Drugs, including but not limited to, availability, quality, contamination, and profitability.

(k) Incarceration, including but not limited to, rates of incarceration for drug-related offenses compared with other offenses, drug availability in prison, the number of people in prison, the number of people under the age of 25 in prison, and the number of women in prison.

II. The committee shall determine whether or not such policy has made our state a better place to live.

III. The committee shall recommend legislation to implement any statutory changes that might correct any cost-benefit inequities created by the drug prohibition policy.

IV. The committee shall solicit input from all involved agencies, individuals, and organizations which might provide relevant data and expertise to assist the committee in their objectives.

4 Chairperson; Quorum. The members of the study committee shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the committee shall be called by the first-named house member. The first meeting of the committee shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section. Four members of the committee shall constitute a quorum.

5 Report. The committee shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation to the speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the senate, the house clerk, the senate clerk, the governor, and the state library on or before November 1, 2008.

6 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.