Revision: Jan. 6, 2016, midnight
\t \t\tSB 452-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2016 SESSION
\t16-2724
\t08/10
SENATE BILL\t452-FN
AN ACT\trequiring certain state agencies to conduct an audit of laws governing coastal regions to enable authorities to take appropriate actions.
SPONSORS:\tSen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. Stiles, Dist 24; Sen. Fuller Clark, Dist 21; Rep. F. Rice, Rock. 21; Rep. Cushing, Rock. 21; Rep. Borden, Rock. 24
COMMITTEE:\tEnergy and Natural Resources
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ANALYSIS
\tThis bill requires certain state agencies to conduct an audit of laws governing coastal regions to enable authorities to take appropriate actions.
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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\t\tMatter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
\t16-2724
\t08/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen
AN ACT\trequiring certain state agencies to conduct an audit of laws governing coastal regions to enable authorities to take appropriate actions.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
\t1 Coastal and Great Bay Region Audit; Agency Projects.
\t\tI. The department of environmental services, the department of resources and economic development, the department of transportation, the fish and game department, the division of homeland security and emergency preparedness, and the office of energy and planning shall each conduct an audit of existing state statutes, rules, and agency policies governing state properties, projects, and actions in the coastal and Great Bay regions to determine any changes necessary so that authorities can adequately address and enable appropriate state actions and local actions necessary to prepare for flood risks, such as projected storm surge, sea-level rise, and precipitation events. Agencies shall use the best available projected coastal flooding risks, such as those in the Coastal Risks and Hazards Commission 2014 report, "Sea-level Rise, Storm Surges, and Extreme Precipitation in Coastal New Hampshire: Analysis of Past and Projected Future Trends." This audit shall be completed no later than June 30, 2018.
\t\tII. New Hampshire state agencies involved in planning, siting, and design of state-funded structures and facilities, public works projects, and transportation projects, as well as land acquisition and management and other environmental activities in the coastal and Great Bay regions of New Hampshire, shall reference the 2014 Coastal Risks and Hazards Commission report, "Sea-level Rise, storm surges, and extreme precipitation in Coastal New Hampshire: Analysis of Past and Projected Future Trends," and its successors, for guidance on all potentially affected activities. Agencies shall develop, as possible and appropriate, uniform standards of guidance, in conformity, as may be necessary due to federal funding, with Executive Order 13690, and the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard.
\t2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t16-2724
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t12/21/15
SB 452-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT\trequiring certain state agencies to conduct an audit of laws governing coastal regions to enable authorities to take appropriate actions.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Departments of Fish and Game, Resources and Economic Development, Environmental Services, and Administrative Services state this bill, as introduced, may increase state and local expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2017 and each year thereafter. There will be no impact on state, county and local revenue or county expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Fish and Game Department states this bill would require the Department to audit certain statutes, rules and policies regarding the Great Bay Regions to determine if any changes are necessary to prepare for flood risks. The Department assumes some time and expenditure of money from the Fish and Game Fund would be necessary to comply with the provisions of the bill, but the potential cost cannot be determined.
The Department of Resources and Economic Development assume there would be an indeterminable increase in expenditures. The Department indicates the staff effort required to audit existing statutes, rules, and agency policies and determine what changes are necessary to address flood risks is unknown.
The Department of Environmental Services assumes the fiscal impact to the Department would be negligible. The Department states it has recently completed a climate initiative that accomplished many of the activities required in the bill. The Department routinely reviews and updates its policies and rules and believes this bill will simply provide additional consideration for review. The Department indicates there may be some short term indeterminable costs to municipalities that would be offset in the long run by savings due to risk mitigation.
The Department of Administrative Services believes there would be a cost to the State for the agencies involved to review the statutes, rules and policies and determine any necessary changes, but the Department is not able to determine the cost.
The Department of Transportation states it has a climate change workgroup established over the past several years and some of the analysis required by this bill has already been done. The Department assumes the procedures in place through the existing workgroup will meet the requirements of this bill without any fiscal impact.
The Department of Safety, Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management assumes, based on the time line in the bill, the review and action plan can be completed within current staffing levels without additional cost.
The Office of Energy and Planning indicates this bill would not result in a fiscal impact to the Office or the Council on Resources and Development (CORD).