HB1450 (2022) Detail

Including agricultural resources under the land and community heritage investment program.


HB 1450-FN - AS INTRODUCED

 

 

2022 SESSION

22-2116

08/05

 

HOUSE BILL 1450-FN

 

AN ACT including agricultural resources under the land and community heritage investment program.

 

SPONSORS: Rep. Caplan, Merr. 6; Rep. Bixby, Straf. 17; Rep. Stavis, Graf. 13

 

COMMITTEE: Ways and Means

 

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ANALYSIS

 

This bill includes agricultural resources under the land and community heritage investment program and requires an annual transfer from the real estate transfer tax revenue to the land and community heritage investment program trust fund.

 

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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

22-2116

08/05

 

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two

 

AN ACT including agricultural resources under the land and community heritage investment program.

 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 

1  Purpose; Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.  Amend RSA 227-M:1 to read as follows:

227-M:1 Purpose. The general court finds that in order to maintain New Hampshire's quality of life and economic vitality for its citizens, growth and development should be balanced with careful protection of the state's most important natural, agricultural, cultural, and historical resources. Permanent protection of these resources, through acquisition of lands, buildings, and other physical assets, or interests in these assets, must be accomplished along with their planned long-term stewardship. The general court further recognizes the importance of public-private partnerships to achieve these ends. To protect and preserve New Hampshire's natural, agricultural, cultural, and historical resources for this and future generations, the general court establishes in this chapter the New Hampshire land and community heritage investment program. The intent of the program is to conserve and preserve this state's most important natural, agricultural, cultural, and historical resources through the acquisition of lands, and cultural and historical resources, or interests therein, of local, regional, and statewide significance, in partnership with the state's municipalities and the private sector, for the primary purposes of protecting and ensuring the perpetual contribution of these resources to the state's economy, environment, and overall quality of life.

2  Eligible Resource; Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.  Amend RSA 227-M:2, V to read as follows:

V. "Eligible resource" means a natural, agricultural, cultural, or historical resource including archaeological sites; historic buildings and structures which house cultural events and programs; historic properties including buildings and structures; historic and cultural lands and features; ecologically significant lands; existing and potential public water supply lands; farmland; forestland; habitat for rare species or important wildlife; wildlife corridors and habitat strongholds as defined in RSA 207:1; lands for recreation; riverine, lake, estuarine, and ocean shorelands; scenic areas and viewsheds; and wetlands and associated uplands.

3  Stewardship; Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.  Amend RSA 227-M:2, VIII to read as follows:

VIII. "Stewardship" means planning for and taking the necessary actions over the long term to successfully preserve and protect the natural, agricultural, cultural, or historical value of a resource asset. Such actions include, as applicable, managing the resource asset in accordance with all legal obligations entered into under this chapter, performing regular maintenance and upkeep, providing for necessary monitoring, educating or informing those that might negatively impact upon the resource asset about the need and/or legal obligation to protect and preserve it, paying tax or in-lieu-of tax obligations, obtaining liability insurance, and securing sufficient levels of financial resources to carry out all such necessary actions.

4  Board of Directors; Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.  Amend RSA 227-M:4, II (c) to read as follows:

(c) [Eight] Nine public members, to be appointed by the governor and council:

(1)  Two of whom shall represent cultural and historic resource interests;

(2) One of whom shall represent natural resources interests;

(3) One of whom shall represent outdoor recreation interests;

(4) One of whom shall represent business or real estate interests;

(5) One of whom shall represent municipal interests;

(6) One of whom shall represent local planning interests; [and]

(7) One of whom shall represent regional planning commissions[.] ; and

(8)  One of whom shall represent agricultural and local interests.

5  Aquisition, Restoration, and Protection Criteria and Guidelines.  Amend RSA 227-M:9, II(d) to read as follows:

(d) Extent to which project meets multiple objectives of the program (natural, agricultural, historic, and cultural);

6  New Section; Funding.  Amend RSA 227-M by inserting after section 17 the following new section:

227-M:18 Funding.  Each July 1, 1/4 of a percent of the revenue from the New Hampshire real estate transfer tax under RSA 78-B:13 shall be transferred to the land and community heritage trust fund for the purposes of land and community heritage investment program land and resource acquisition. Whatever portion of this deposit to the land and community heritage investment program is not used by June 30 of the following year for the funding of concrete historic, agricultural, natural, or cultural resource acquisition shall lapse to the general fund.

7  New Paragraph; Tax on Transfer of Real Property; Land and Community Heritage Investment Program.  Amend RSA 78-B:13 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:

IV.  The commissioner shall determine the annual amount of revenue each fiscal year and deposit 1/4 of a percent of such annual revenue into the land and community heritage trust fund established in RSA 227-M:7 as provided in RSA 227-M:18.

8  Trust Fund Established; Administration.  Amend RSA 227-M:7, III to read as follows:

III.  Notwithstanding the procedures of RSA 227-M:18, no funds of any state agency shall be transferred to the trust fund without specific authorization from the general court.  Federal funds accepted by the fiscal committee and governor and council for purposes similar to those of this chapter may be deposited in the trust fund.

9  Effective Date.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.

 

LBA

22-2116

Redraft 11/17/21

 

HB 1450-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

 

AN ACT including agricultural resources under the land and community heritage investment program.

 

FISCAL IMPACT:      [ X ] State              [    ] County               [ X ] Local              [    ] None

 

 

 

Estimated Increase / (Decrease)

STATE:

FY 2022

FY 2023

FY 2024

FY 2025

   Appropriation

$0

$0

$0

$0

   Revenue

$0

Indeterminable Decrease

Indeterminable Decrease

Indeterminable Decrease

   Expenditures

$0

$0

$0

$0

Funding Source:

  [ X ] General            [    ] Education            [    ] Highway           [    ] Other

 

 

 

 

 

LOCAL:

 

 

 

 

   Revenue

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

   Expenditures

$0

$0

$0

$0

 

METHODOLOGY:

This bill expands the Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) to include agricultural resources.  It also requires an annual transfer of 1/4 percent of Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT) to the LCHIP trust fund on July 1st each year starting July 1, 2022.

 

The Department of Revenue Administration (DRA)states the fiscal impact is an indeterminable decrease on the General and Educational Trust Funds as they are unable to predict the total revenues from RETT in future years.  However, using FY 2021 cash basis RETT revenue data, the DRA can calculate the fiscal impact of the proposed legislation had the legislation been in place in a prior fiscal year.  In FY 2021, total cash basis RETT revenue was $202.7M.  One quarter of one percent of total cash basis RETT revenue for FY 2021 is $506,750.  Thus, if the proposed legislation had been in place in a prior fiscal year, General and Education Trust Fund revenue would have been reduced by $506,750.  However, to the extent the LCHIP trust fund revenues are not used they will be lapsed back into the General Fund.

 

LCHIP states there would be an indeterminable decrease in RETT revenue and an indeterminable increase in the LCHIP Trust Fund.  They also state there would be an indeterminable increase in local revenue as some of the additional LCHIP funds might go to municipalities thus increasing their revenues.

 

New Hampshire Association of Counties states there would be no fiscal impact on county revenue or expenditures.

 

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

NH Department of Revenue Administration, New Hampshire Association of Counties and LCHIP

 

Links


Date Body Type
Jan. 20, 2022 House Hearing
House Floor Vote

Bill Text Revisions

HB1450 Revision: 34092 Date: Dec. 1, 2021, 3:01 p.m.

Docket


March 11, 2022: Inexpedient to Legislate: MA VV 03/10/2022 HJ 5


Feb. 24, 2022: Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate (Vote 19-0; CC)


Feb. 3, 2022: Full Committee Work Session: 02/10/2022 09:30 am LOB 202-204


Jan. 26, 2022: Full Committee Work Session: 02/02/2022 09:00 am LOB 202-204


Jan. 19, 2022: Full Committee Work Session: 01/26/2022 09:30 am LOB 202-204


Jan. 13, 2022: Public Hearing: 01/20/2022 01:30 pm LOB 202-204


Dec. 1, 2021: Introduced 01/05/2022 and referred to Ways and Means