Revision: March 27, 2014, midnight
HB 1362-FN – AS INTRODUCED
2014 SESSION
04/10
HOUSE BILL 1362-FN
AN ACT prohibiting enforcement of any federal law which bans certain firearms or limits firearm magazine size and establishing a criminal penalty for such enforcement.
SPONSORS: Rep. Peterson, Hills 21; Rep. Hoell, Merr 23; Rep. LeBrun, Hills 32; Rep. Hikel, Hills 6; Rep. Murotake, Hills 32; Rep. Burt, Hills 6
COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
This bill establishes a class B felony for a public servant or firearms dealer who enforces or attempts to enforce any federal restriction on firearms manufactured or owned exclusively in this state which remain within the borders of this state. The bill also declares any federal ban or other restriction on the ownership, possession, or registration of a firearm, firearm accessory, or magazine to be unenforceable.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
14-2422
04/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Fourteen
AN ACT prohibiting enforcement of any federal law which bans certain firearms or limits firearm magazine size and establishing a criminal penalty for such enforcement.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Chapter; Felonious Enforcement of Federal Firearm Restrictions. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 650-C the following new chapter:
CHAPTER 650-D
FELONIOUS ENFORCEMENT OF FEDERAL FIREARMS RESTRICTIONS
650-D:1 Prohibited Acts; Penalty.
I. No public servant, as defined in RSA 640:2, II(a), selling any firearm in this state shall enforce or attempt to enforce any statute, rule, regulation, or order of the United States government relating to a personal firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition that is owned or manufactured commercially or privately in this state and that remains exclusively within the borders of this state.
II. Any official, agent, or employee of the United States government who enforces or attempts to enforce any statute, rule, regulation, or order of the United States government on an act that is expressly allowed by New Hampshire law shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
650-D:2 Defense of Citizen Prosecuted by Federal Government. The attorney general shall defend a citizen of this state who is prosecuted by the United States government for violation of a federal law relating to the manufacture, sale, transfer, or possession of a firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition owned or manufactured and retained exclusively within the borders of this state.
650-D:3 Federal Restrictions Unenforceable. Any statute, rule, regulation, or order of the United States government created or effective on or after January 1, 2015 restricting the individual possession, sale, or purchase of ammunition of any kind shall be unenforceable within the borders of this state, and any agent of the United States government who attempts to enforce such a restriction against an individual, including a federally-licensed firearms dealer, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2015.
LBAO
14-2422
12/04/13
HB 1362-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT prohibiting enforcement of any federal law which bans certain firearms or limits firearm magazine size and establishing a criminal penalty for such enforcement.
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 will be no fiscal impact on local expenditures, or state, county, and local revenue.
METHODOLOGY:
The Judicial Branch states this bill adds RSA 650-D to prohibit enforcement of any federal law which bans certain firearms or limits firearm magazine size. Violation of this proposed law would be an unspecified misdemeanor. The Branch has no information to estimate how many additional misdemeanor prosecutions may result but does have the average cost to process each type of case. An unspecified misdemeanor can be either class A or class B, with the presumption being a class B misdemeanor. The Branch estimates a class A misdemeanor will cost $66.17 per case in FY 2015 and $67.64 per case in FY 2016 and each year thereafter, and a class B misdemeanor will cost $46.99 per case in FY 2015 and $48.02 per case in FY 2016 and each year thereafter. Any appeals will result in an increase in expenditures. All costs are estimated based on case weight information from the last needs assessment completed in 2005. Since that timeframe there have been various changes that may impact the costs, such as the creation of the circuit court, the increase in self-represented litigants, and the change to presume that an unspecified misdemeanor can be treated as a class B misdemeanor.
The Department of Justice states this bill will have an indeterminable increase on state expenditures. The Department states its Public Integrity Unit investigates and prosecutes criminal conduct undertaken by certain public officials in their official capacity. This bill may result in an increase in the number of investigations and prosecutions by the Unit. This bill would require the Department to defend any New Hampshire citizen against charges for a violation of federal law relating to firearms, firearm accessories, and ammunition owned or manufactured in the state that remain exclusively within the state.
The New Hampshire Association of Counties states to the extent individuals are charged, convicted, and sentenced to incarceration in a county correctional facility, the counties will have 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 that anyone prosecuted under this proposed law would be a government official acting in his or her official capacity. In the event of criminal prosecution, the government official would be defended and indemnified by his or her employer, and would not seek the assistance of appointed counsel. The Council states this bill will not have a fiscal impact on the indigent defense delivery system.