SB63 (2011) Detail

Relative to the list of bail bondsmen and prohibiting law enforcement and corrections officers from indicating preferences for bail bond companies.


CHAPTER 236

SB 63 – FINAL VERSION

03/23/11 0799s

25May2011… 1600h

06/22/11 2514EBA

2011 SESSION

11-0844

04/01

SENATE BILL 63

AN ACT relative to the list of bail bondsmen and relative to forfeiture for failure to appear.

SPONSORS: Sen. Barnes, Jr., Dist 17; Rep. Itse, Rock 9; Rep. Comerford, Rock 9

COMMITTEE: Judiciary

AMENDED ANALYSIS

This bill amends the criteria for the list of bail bondsmen provided to the courts. The bill also provides that a defendant released pending trial who fails to appear within 45 days of the date required shall forfeit all designated property held by the court to secure such defendant’s appearance.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

03/23/11 0799s

25May2011… 1600h

06/22/11 2514EBA

11-0844

04/01

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Eleven

AN ACT relative to the list of bail bondsmen and relative to forfeiture for failure to appear.

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

236:1 List of Professional Bondsmen. Amend RSA 598-A:3 to read as follows:

598-A:3 List of Professional Bondsmen. The secretary of state or designee shall furnish all superior court clerks, all district courts having authority to accept bail, all jails, and all police stations with a list of the names of all persons registered as professional bondsmen and shall notify such clerks, courts, jails, and police stations of any change in a bondsman’s status. The secretary of state shall update the list as necessary, but not less than once per year. [No person, other than the secretary of state or the secretary of state’s designee, shall alter any list furnished under this section.] The list shall include the following statement in bold type: “You are encouraged to contact more than one bail bondsman because not all bail bondsmen charge the same fees or provide the same services.” The unaltered list shall be displayed prominently and visibly to defendants in all courts, jails, and police stations. No other list shall be displayed, furnished, or provided.

236:2 Bail and Recognizances; Release of a Defendant. Amend RSA 597:2, III(b)(1) to read as follows:

(1) Execute an agreement to forfeit, upon failing to appear [as] within 45 days of the date required, such designated property, including money, as is reasonably necessary to assure the appearance of the person as required, and post with the court such indicia of ownership of the property or such percentage of the money as the court or justice may specify;

236:3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.

Approved: July 5, 2011

Effective Date: September 3, 2011