HB 1679-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2016 SESSION
\t16-2334
\t03/09
HOUSE BILL\t1679-FN
AN ACT\trelative to electioneering by a public official.
SPONSORS:\tRep. Lachance, Hills. 8
COMMITTEE:\tElection Law
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ANALYSIS
\tThis bill expands the prohibition on electioneering by public employees to include additional employees and officials.
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Explanation:\tMatter added to current law appears in bold italics.
\t\tMatter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
\t\tMatter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
\t16-2334
\t03/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen
AN ACT\trelative to electioneering by a public official.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
\t1 Electioneering by Public Employees and Officials. Amend RSA 659:44-a to read as follows:
\t659:44-a Electioneering by Public Employees and Officials.
\t\tI. No public employee, as defined in RSA 273-A:1, IX or RSA 15-B:2, IX, shall electioneer while in the performance of his or her official duties or use government property, including, but not limited to, telephones, facsimile machines, vehicles, and computers, for electioneering.
\t\tII. No elected official as defined in RSA 15-B:2, III, constitutional official as defined in RSA 15-B:2, II, or person elected to any office under the provisions of RSA 669, RSA 670, or RSA 671 shall electioneer while in his or her official capacity as an elected or constitutional official or use government property or taxpayer funding for electioneering.
\t\tIII. For the purposes of this section, "electioneer'' means to act in any way specifically designed to influence the vote of a voter on any question or office. Any person who violates this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
\t2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2017.
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t16-2334
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t12/23/15
HB 1679-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT\trelative to electioneering by a public official.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Judicial Branch and Department of Justice state this bill, as introduced, may increase state expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2017 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact to state, county, and local revenue or county and local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Judicial Branch states this bill expands the class of individuals to include elected and constitutional officials, who are prohibited from electioneering while functioning in his or her official duties or through the use of government property. This bill contains an unspecified misdemeanor, which can be either class A or class B, with the presumption being a class B misdemeanor. There is no method to determine how many charges would be brought as a result of this bill to determine the fiscal impact on expenditures. The Judicial Branch states that no prosecutions have been brought forward under RSA 659:44-a during the most recent ten fiscal years. The table below provides the potential costs associated with each penalty included in this bill:
| FY 2017 | FY 2018 |
Judicial Branch* |
|
|
Class B Misdemeanor | $50 | $53 |
Class A Misdemeanor | $70 | $73 |
Appeals | Varies | Varies |
*It should be noted average case cost estimates for FY 2017 and FY 2018 are based on data that is more than ten years old and does not reflect changes to the courts over that same period of time or the impact these changes may have on processing the various case types. | ||
The Department of Justice states the Department does not have an investigator or a full-time attorney assigned to election enforcement which would limit its ability to enforce the provisions in this bill. It is difficult to estimate how many cases would be generated by this bill or the associated fiscal impact on the Department. The Department states it would need the following staffing resources to enforce election law, both related to and unrelated to the requirements of this bill:
| FY 2017 | FY 2018 | FY 2019 | FY 2020 |
Investigator | $99,000 | $101,000 | $106,000 | $112,000 |
Attorney (80%) | $86,000 | $86,000 | $87,000 | $89,000 |
Secretary (20%) | $1,300 | $12,000 | $13,000 | $14,000 |
Total | $186,300 | $199,000 | $206,000 | $215,000 |
The Judicial Council and the Secretary of State state this bill will have no fiscal impact to their operations.
This bill does not contain an appropriation or authorization for new positions.