HB 282 – AS INTRODUCED
2007 SESSION
03/05
HOUSE BILL 282
AN ACT relative to administration of road tolls.
SPONSORS: Rep. J. Flanders, Rock 8
COMMITTEE: Public Works and Highways
This bill:
I. Transfers responsibility for collecting fuel taxes and for administering road tolls within the department of safety from the division of motor vehicles to the division of administration.
II. Expands the department of safety’s inspection authority relating to road tolls.
III. Authorizes the disclosure of certain road toll information to the Internal Revenue Service.
IV. Changes the date for transfers of road tolls revenue to the grant-in-aid program.
This bill is a request of the department of safety.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
07-0506
03/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Seven
AN ACT relative to administration of road tolls.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Department of Safety; Division of Administration. Amend RSA 21-P:6 to read as follows:
21-P:6 Division of Administration. There is established within the department the division of administration under the supervision of an unclassified director of administration who shall, subject to the authority of the commissioner of safety and in accordance with applicable laws, be responsible for the following functions:
I. Accounting, purchasing, and budget control.
II. Personnel management.
III. Property, contracts, and grants management.
IV. Data processing.
V. Assistance to the commissioner with short and long range department level planning activities.
VI. Clerical support for the state advisory board of fire control.
VII. [Repealed.]
VIII. Collecting fuel taxes and administering the provisions of RSA 260 relating to road tolls.
IX. Appointing a road toll administrator, who shall be a classified employee and who shall assume, under the control of the director of administration, the responsibility of the administration of the motor vehicle road toll law. The director of administration may delegate to the road toll administrator authority to sign and execute any documents pertaining to the director’s work and such documents so signed by the administrator shall have the same effect as though signed by the director.
2 Department of Safety; Division of Motor Vehicles; Assistants. Amend RSA 21-P:8 and 21-P:9 to read as follows:
21-P:8 Division of Motor Vehicles. There is established within the department the division of motor vehicles under the supervision of an unclassified director of motor vehicles who shall be responsible for the following functions, subject to the authority of the commissioner of safety and in accordance with applicable law:
I. Motor vehicle and driver regulation, including, but not limited to, driver licensing, vehicle registration, financial responsibility compliance, and title issuance.
II. Registration of commercial and private boats, as provided in RSA 270-E:3.
III. [Collection of fuel taxes and] Administration of the provisions of RSA 260, except for the collection of fuel taxes and administering the provisions of RSA 260 relating to road tolls.
IV. Hazardous materials transportation and truck weight enforcement.
21-P:9 Assistant to the Director; [Road Toll Administrator;] Financial Responsibility Supervisor. The director of motor vehicles, with the approval of the commissioner, shall appoint the following assistants, who shall be classified employees:
I. An assistant to the director of motor vehicles, who shall carry out such duties as may be assigned to him or her by the director.
II. [A road toll administrator who shall assume, under the control of the director of motor vehicles, the responsibility of the administration of the motor vehicle road toll law. The director may delegate to said administrator authority to sign and execute any documents pertaining to his work and such documents so signed by the administrator shall have the same effect as though signed by the director.
III.] A financial responsibility supervisor who shall assume, under the control of the director of motor vehicles, the responsibility of the administration of the motor vehicle financial responsibility law. The director may delegate to said supervisor authority to sign and execute any documents pertaining to his or her work and such documents so signed by the supervisor shall have the same effect as though signed by the director.
3 Road Tolls; Inspection of Records, Hearings. Amend RSA 260:44, II to read as follows:
II. The commissioner shall have the power, in the enforcement of the provisions of this subdivision, to hold hearings, to administer oaths to witnesses, to take the sworn testimony of any person, and to cause [it] sworn testimony to be transcribed into writing, and for such purposes shall be authorized to issue subpoenas and subpoenas duces tecum and compel the attendance of witnesses, and shall have the power to conduct such investigations as [he] the commissioner may deem necessary; provided, that it shall be unlawful for any person to disclose the information acquired by the department or any of its agents under the provisions of this section, except to the Internal Revenue Service or when used by the state or any officer thereof in any proceeding for the collection of the road toll or any prosecution for violation of any of the provisions of this subdivision, and provided, further, that if any distributor, user, or transporter shall refuse access to such records or if any person shall fail or refuse to obey such subpoena or subpoena duces tecum, or shall fail or refuse to testify before the commissioner, then the commissioner may petition the superior court setting forth the circumstances, and the court shall enter such order against such distributor, user, transporter, or person on the premises as the enforcement of this subdivision and justice shall require.
III. Every distributor shall make available for inspection by the department a complete and accurate record of the number of gallons of fuels sold by the distributor, the dates of sales, the names and addresses of purchasers, and the number of gallons used by the distributor. The record shall be in a form prescribed by the department and shall include information pertaining to sales, purchases, and inventory in other states.
IV. The department, or any deputy, employee, or agent authorized by it, may examine and subpoena records deemed necessary to carry out any inspection or examination authorized under this subdivision.
4 Road Tolls; Credit Provided; Grant-in-Aid. Amend RSA 260:61, I to read as follows:
I. Annually on or before [June] September 30 the state treasurer shall transfer, from road tolls collected, an amount equal to the number of licensed OHRVs and snowmobiles for the previous year times the average number of gallons consumed per year per OHRV and snowmobile times the gasoline road toll imposed under RSA 260:32, less any amount refunded for OHRV and snowmobile use for the previous year, to the bureau of trails. For the purposes of this section, “the average number of gallons consumed per year per OHRV or snowmobile” is 50. The bureau shall use 66 2/3 percent of the amount credited for grants under its grant-in-aid program, and 33 1/3 percent for general operating expenses and expenses incurred in administering and supervising the grant-in-aid program. Any balances in the funds hereby transferred shall not lapse at the end of the fiscal year but shall remain in the OHRV and snowmobile fund.
5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.