Revision: Dec. 2, 2019, 1:46 p.m.
HB 1277-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
2020 SESSION
20-2011
08/06
HOUSE BILL 1277-FN-LOCAL
AN ACT requiring notice to owners of dogs that have failed to license their dog or renew their dog license.
SPONSORS: Rep. Yokela, Rock. 33; Rep. Acton, Rock. 10; Rep. DeSimone, Rock. 14; Rep. Abramson, Rock. 20
COMMITTEE: Municipal and County Government
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ANALYSIS
This bill requires town and city clerks to provide notice to owners of dogs that have failed to license their dog or renew their dog license.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
20-2011
08/06
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty
AN ACT requiring notice to owners of dogs that have failed to license their dog or renew their dog license.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Late Dog Registrations; Notice; Warrant. Amend RSA 466:14 to read as follows:
466:14 Warrants; Proceedings. The town or city clerk or his or her appointed representative shall annually between May 1 and May 10 notify all known dog owners who have failed to register a dog for the upcoming year of the duty to register dogs with the town or city clerk under RSA 466:1. The dog owner shall have 30 days to register such dog or to return the letter to the clerk with a notation that such dog no longer lives at the residence. The town or city clerk shall annually, between June [1] 10 and June [20] 30, present to the local governing body a list of those owners of dogs that have failed to license or not renewed their dog licenses pursuant to RSA 466:1. The local governing body shall, within 20 days from June [20] 30, issue a warrant to a local official authorized to issue a civil forfeiture for each unlicensed dog. The warrant may also authorize a local law enforcement officer to seize any unlicensed dog. The civil forfeiture may be sent by certified mail, or delivered in hand, or left at the abode of the dog owner. The cost of service shall not exceed $7 and may be recovered by the city or town in addition to the amount of the civil forfeiture. If the unlicensed dog is seized, it shall be held in a town or city holding facility for a period of 7 days, after which time full title to the dog shall pass to the facility, unless the owner of the dog has, before the expiration of the period, caused the dog to be licensed. The owner shall pay the facility a necessary and reasonable sum per day, as agreed upon by the governing body of the town or city and the facility, for each day the dog has been kept and maintained by the facility, plus any necessary veterinary fees incurred by the facility for the benefit of the dog. Before a local law enforcement officer seizes any unlicensed dog, a written warning shall be given to the dog owner.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
20-2011
11/12/19
HB 1277-FN-LOCAL- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT requiring notice to owners of dogs that have failed to license their dog or renew their dog license.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ ] State [ ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None
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| |||
| Estimated Increase / (Decrease) | |||
LOCAL: | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
METHODOLOGY:
This bill would require municipalities to annually, between May 1 and May 10, notify all known dog owners who have failed to register their dogs for the upcoming year of the duty to register dogs. Dog owners shall have 30 days to register such dog or return the letter with a notation that the dog no longer lives at the residence. The New Hampshire Municipal Association assumes the notice is to be sent by first class mail. At current first-class postage rates, such notice would therefore cost 55 cents for each notice sent. There is no way to estimate how many such notices would be sent, therefore the fiscal impact on municipal expenditures is indeterminable. There should be no effect on municipal revenues. Though bill is effective 60 days after passage, assume no fiscal impact until FY 2021.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
New Hampshire Municipal Association