HB 1282-FN – VERSION ADOPTED BY BOTH BODIES
12Mar2014… 0698h
05/01/14 1506s
05/15/14 1856s
4Jun2014… 2003CofC
2014 SESSION
05/01
HOUSE BILL 1282-FN
AN ACT relative to prepaid contracts for home heating fuel and relative to reimbursement for towns affected by the Merrimack River flood control compact and making an appropriation therefor.
SPONSORS: Rep. Ford, Graf 3; Rep. Shurtleff, Merr 11; Rep. Spratt, Hills 4
COMMITTEE: Commerce and Consumer Affairs
I. Establishes minimum inventory, registration, and reporting requirements for home heating oil, kerosene, or liquefied petroleum gas dealers who offer prepaid contracts.
II. Makes the failure to deliver home heating fuel in accordance with a prepaid contract a violation of the consumer protection act.
III. Appropriates settlement funds to the department of revenue administration for the purpose of reimbursing towns for the Massachusetts shares of the Merrimack River flood control compact and the Connecticut River flood control compact.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
12Mar2014… 0698h
05/01/14 1506s
05/15/14 1856s
4Jun2014… 2003CofC
14-2375
05/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Fourteen
AN ACT relative to prepaid contracts for home heating fuel and relative to reimbursement for towns affected by the Merrimack River flood control compact and making an appropriation therefor.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Definition of Heating Fuel and Heating Fuel Season. Amend RSA 339:78, II to read as follows:
II. “Heating fuel” means heating oil, kerosene, or liquefied petroleum gas.
III. "Heating [oil] fuel season'' means a period of 12 months beginning no earlier than May 1.
2 Requirements for Guaranteed Price Plans and Prepaid Contracts for Home Heating Fuel. Amend RSA?339:79, III to read as follows:
III. A contract that requires prepayment by the consumer or caps the price of heating [oil] fuel shall comply with paragraphs I and II of this section. Such contract also:
(a) Shall [not require consumers to commit for a term of more than one heating oil season. Such contracts shall be offered no earlier than January 1] not be advertised or solicited earlier than May 1 or later than October 31 of the year in which the heating [oil] fuel season begins. Such contracts may be signed prior to May 1 only at the request of the residential consumer.
(b) Shall require dealers to reimburse consumers at the contract price for any undelivered pre-purchased [oil] fuel, within 30 days after the contract ends, unless the dealer and consumer agree to different terms.
(c) Shall include a clear explanation of the means by which the dealer will meet the obligations of the contract for the entire contract period, including supplier agreements, futures contracts, bonding, [or] a line of credit or liquid product inventory.
(d) Shall not falsely claim coverage. Any dealer who falsely claims coverage or fails to maintain coverage until the completion of the contract shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor, in addition to other penalties as provided in paragraph VI.
3 Guaranteed Price Plans and Prepaid Contracts; Inventory Requirement. Amend RSA 339:79, IV(b) and (c) to read as follows:
(b) A surety bond, made payable to the attorney general, in an amount not less than 50 percent of the total amount of funds paid to the dealer by consumers pursuant to prepaid heating oil, kerosene, or liquefied petroleum gas contracts; [or]
(c) A letter of credit, made payable to the attorney general, from an FDIC-insured institution in an amount that represents 100 percent of the cost to the dealer of the maximum number of gallons that the dealer is committed to deliver pursuant to all prepaid contracts entered into by the dealer. The cost shall be calculated at the time the contracts are entered into[.]; or
(d) A liquid product inventory of home heating oil, kerosene, or liquefied petroleum gas in an amount equal to 75 percent of the outstanding volume in gallons that the dealer is obligated to deliver under the terms of prepaid contracts in force.
4 New Paragraphs; Registration and Reporting Requirement; Dedicated Fund. Amend RSA?339:79 by inserting after paragraph V the following new paragraphs:
V-a. A home heating oil, kerosene, or liquefied petroleum gas dealer who offers prepaid contracts under this section shall register the dealer’s intent to offer such contracts with the secretary of state by May 1 of each year. Registration shall be on a form provided by the secretary of state and shall indicate which securitization method or combination of methods listed in paragraph IV are used to secure the contracts.
V-b. A home heating oil, kerosene, or liquefied petroleum gas dealer who offers prepaid contracts under this section shall file an annual report with the secretary of state by December 1 of each year demonstrating how the dealer has satisfied the requirements of this section, including how the prepaid contracts are secured. The report shall be made on a form provided by the secretary of state. The form shall conspicuously bear the warning that making a false statement on the form shall constitute an unfair or deceptive act or practice in violation of RSA 358-A. The report shall be signed by the dealer. If the dealer is a corporation, the report shall be signed by either the president or an officer of the corporation and shall include a list of all of the members of the board of directors of the corporation. The secretary of state may not charge a fee for the form or for filing the report.
5 New Paragraph; Acts Prohibited Under the Consumer Protection Act; Failure to Provide Timely Delivery of Home Heating Fuel. Amend RSA 358-A:2 by inserting after paragraph XIV the following new paragraph:
XV. Failing to deliver home heating fuel in accordance with a prepaid contract.
6 Findings. The general court finds that:
I. On January 17, 2014 the state of New Hampshire and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts reached a settlement agreement relative to moneys owed to the state of New Hampshire under the Merrimack River flood control compact under RSA 484:7. The settlement agreement resulted in a payment of $1,112,377.74 to the state of New Hampshire to resolve all outstanding debt under the compact up to and including state fiscal year 2012.
II. The state received a check for this amount on January 31, 2014.
7 Department of Revenue Administration; Appropriation.
I. The sum of $542,672 from the $1,112,377.74 settlement agreement dated January 17, 2014 under the Merrimack River flood control compact is hereby appropriated to the department of revenue administration. The governor is authorized to draw a warrant for the purpose of reimbursing the towns for the Massachusetts shares of the Merrimack River flood control compact and the Connecticut River flood control compact for state fiscal year 2012. The department shall distribute the moneys in the manner prescribed in RSA 122:4, I. This appropriation is in addition to any other appropriations to the department. The remainder of the settlement moneys shall lapse to the general fund.
II. The department of revenue administration shall fund, under RSA 122:4, I, any shortfall in fiscal year 2015 flood control payments.
8 Repeal. 2013, 144:126, relative to flood control payments, is repealed.
9 Effective Date.
I. Sections 1-5 of this act shall take effect January 1, 2015.
II. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
LBAO
14-2375
11/26/13
HB 1282-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to consumer protection for propane fuel users.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Judicial Branch, Department of Justice and New Hampshire Association of Counties state this bill, as introduced, may increase state and county expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2015 and each year thereafter. There is no impact on state, county or local revenue, or local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Judicial Branch states this bill would add RSA 339:80 through 83 to regulate contracts for propane services. A violation of this would constitute an unfair and deceptive act under the Consumer Protection Act. The Branch has no information on which to estimate the potential volume of cases that could result from this bill. Any Consumer Protection Act case has the potential to increase state expenditures as these cases are typically hard fought because they carry with them the potential for enforcement actions by the attorney general (RSA 358-A:4), criminal prosecution (RSA 358-A:6), and private actions with the potential of treble damages (RSA 358-A:10).
The Department of Justice states it is responsible for administering and enforcing the Consumer Protection Act. In 2012, the Department received 30 consumer complaints against propane dealers and as of 10/25/13, has received 18 consumer complaints. The Department states this bill will result in the need for new resources to develop the required rules, provide closer scrutiny of consumer complaints to ensure there are no violations of this new section, and handle the potential increase of enforcement actions. Initially the Department estimates it will need to add one attorney and one paralegal (LG 19) to write and enact the required rules associated with this bill. The personnel costs are as follows:
FY 2015 |
FY 2016 |
FY 2017 |
FY 2018 | |
Attorney position |
$34,480 |
$68,959 |
$71,027 |
$73,158 |
Paralegal position (LG 19) |
18,493 |
37,739 |
39,329 |
40,979 |
Benefits |
27,872 |
58,153 |
61,282 |
64,590 |
Current Expenses |
1,000 |
1,000 |
1,000 |
1,000 |
Equipment |
5,000 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Computer software |
2,400 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Total |
$89,244 |
$165,851 |
$172,638 |
$179,727 |
This bill does not contain an appropriation or authorization for new positions.
The New Hampshire Association of Counties states to the extent more individuals are charged, convicted, and sentenced to incarceration in a county correctional facility, the counties will have increased expenditures. The Association is unable to determine the number of individuals who may be charged, convicted or incarcerated as a result of this bill to determine an exact fiscal impact. The average annual cost to incarcerate an individual in a county correctional facility is approximately $35,000. There is no impact on county revenue.
The Judicial Council states this bill have no impact on the indigent defense system. The Council states the offense for a violation is classified as an unspecified misdemeanor, which is deemed a class B misdemeanor unless prosecution files notice in advance of the trial to seek a class A misdemeanor. Class B misdemeanors do not carry a potential for incarceration, therefore no right to counsel for the indigent accused. If the charge is treated as a class A misdemeanor with the potential for incarceration, the Council does not believe that a person charged with violation of this bill would require or receive counsel through the indigent defense system.