HB 1309 - AS INTRODUCED
2020 SESSION
20-2220
06/01
HOUSE BILL 1309
AN ACT relative to the effect of warrant articles.
SPONSORS: Rep. Notter, Hills. 21
COMMITTEE: Municipal and County Government
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ANALYSIS
This bill requires towns and school districts to be bound by votes on petitioned warrant articles.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
20-2220
06/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty
AN ACT relative to the effect of warrant articles.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Petitioned Warrant Articles; Effect. Amend RSA 39:3 to read as follows:
39:3 Articles. Upon the written application of 25 or more registered voters or 2 percent of the registered voters in town, whichever is less, although in no event shall fewer than 10 registered voters be sufficient, presented to the selectmen or one of them not later than the fifth Tuesday before the day prescribed for an annual meeting, the selectmen shall insert in their warrant for such meeting the petitioned article with only such minor textual changes as may be required. Such corrections shall not in any way change the intended effect of the article as presented in the original language of the petition. Unless restricted by any other provision of law, the vote on a petitioned warrant article shall be binding upon the town. For the purposes of this section, the number of registered voters in a town shall be the number of voters registered prior to the last state general election. The right to have an article inserted in the warrant conferred by this section shall not be invalidated by the provisions of RSA 32. In towns with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants upon the written application of 50 or more voters or 1/4 of the voters in town, whichever is fewer, and in towns with 10,000 or more inhabitants upon the written application of 5 percent of the registered voters in the town, so presented not less than 60 days before the next annual meeting, the selectmen shall warn a special meeting to act upon any question specified in such application. The checklist for an annual or special town meeting shall be corrected by the supervisors of the checklist as provided in RSA 654:25-31. Those persons qualified to vote whose names are on the corrected checklist shall be entitled to vote at the meeting. The same checklist used at a recessed town meeting shall be used at any reconvened session of the same town meeting. In no event shall a special town meeting be held on the biennial election day.
2 School Meetings; Petitioned Warrant Articles. Amend RSA 197:6 to read as follows:
197:6 Warrant and Articles. Upon the written application of 25 or more voters or 2 percent of the voters of the school district, whichever is less, although in no event shall fewer than 10 registered voters be sufficient, presented to the school board or one of them not later than 30 days before the date prescribed for the school district meeting or the second Tuesday in March, whichever is earlier, the school board shall insert in the school district warrant for such meeting the petitioned article with only such minor textual changes as may be required. No article may be inserted after posting of said warrant. Corrections to petitioned warrant articles shall not in any way change the intended effect of the article as presented in the original petition. The right to have an article inserted in the warrant conferred by this section shall not be invalidated by the provisions of RSA 32. Unless restricted by any other provision of law, the vote on a petitioned warrant article shall be binding upon the school district.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
| Date | Body | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Feb. 18, 2020 | House | Hearing |
| March 3, 2020 | House | Exec Session |
| House | Floor Vote | |
| March 11, 2020 | House | Floor Vote |
: Died on Table
March 12, 2020: Lay on Table (Rep. Ley): MA DV 185-105 03/12/2020 HJ 8 P. 175
: Minority Committee Report: Ought to Pass
: Majority Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate (Vote 10-7; RC)
March 11, 2020: Majority Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate for 03/11/2020 (Vote 10-7; RC) HC 10 P. 68
March 3, 2020: Executive Session: 03/03/2020 10:00 am LOB 301
Feb. 18, 2020: Public Hearing: 02/18/2020 09:30 am LOB 301
Jan. 8, 2020: Introduced 01/08/2020 and referred to Municipal and County Government HJ 1 P. 17