Revision: May 12, 2022, 3 p.m.
SB 383-FN - VERSION ADOPTED BY BOTH BODIES
03/17/2022 0827s
4May2022... 1684h
2022 SESSION
22-3048
08/10
SENATE BILL 383-FN
AN ACT relative to land surveying services.
SPONSORS: Sen. Ricciardi, Dist 9; Rep. Dolan, Rock. 5
COMMITTEE: Executive Departments and Administration
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AMENDED ANALYSIS
This bill provides for land surveying nonresident licensure and changes the penalties for unlicensed land surveyor practice.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
03/17/2022 0827s
4May2022... 1684h 22-3048
08/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two
AN ACT relative to land surveying services.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Violations and Penalties. Amend RSA 310-A:72 to read as follows:
310-A:72 Violations and Penalties.
I. Any person who shall practice or offer to practice land surveying in this state for others without being licensed in accordance with this subdivision, or any person presenting or attempting to use as one's own the license or the seal of another, or any person who shall give any false or forged evidence of any kind to the board or to any board member in obtaining or attempting to obtain a license, or any person who shall falsely impersonate any other licensee of like or different name, or any person who shall attempt to use an expired or non-existent or revoked license or authorization, or any person who shall violate any of the provisions of this subdivision shall be guilty of a class [B] A misdemeanor if a natural person, or guilty of a felony if a business organization.
II. The board may investigate any actual, alleged, or suspected unlicensed activity and report the findings of such investigations to the attorney general for prosecution.
2 Nonresident Licensure. RSA 310-A:69, I is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
I. The board may, upon application and payment of the required fee, issue a license as a licensed land surveyor to any person of any state, territory, or possession of the United States or of any country provided that:
(a) The applicant is registered or licensed in another state, territory, possession or country whose requirements are equal to, or greater than, the requirements of this state, and is in good standing with the registering or licensing body; and
(b) The applicant has met the requirements for licensure as set forth in RSA 310-A:63, I-II.
3 Repeal. RSA 310-A:63, III, relative to licensure of nonresident land surveyors, is repealed.
4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2023.
22-3048
Amended 5/9/22
SB 383-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE (AMENDMENT #2022-1684h)
AN ACT relative to land surveying services.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ X ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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STATE: | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ ] Other | |||
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COUNTY: |
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Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
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METHODOLOGY:
This bill contains penalties that may have an impact on the New Hampshire judicial. There is no method to determine how many charges would be brought as a result of the changes contained in this bill to determine the fiscal impact on expenditures. However, the entities impacted have provided the potential costs associated with these penalties below.
Judicial Council | FY 2022 | FY 2023 |
Public Defender Program | Has contract with State to provide services. | Has contract with State to provide services. |
Contract Attorney – Misdemeanor | $300/Case | $300/Case |
Assigned Counsel – Misdemeanor | $60/Hour up to $1,400 | $60/Hour up to $1,400 |
It should be noted that a person needs to be found indigent and have the potential of being incarcerated to be eligible for indigent defense services. Historically, approximately 85% of the indigent defense caseload has been handled by the public defender program, with the remaining cases going to contract attorneys (14%) or assigned counsel (1%). Beginning in March of 2021, the public defender program has had to close intake to new cases due to excessive caseloads. Due to these closures, the contract and assigned counsel program have had to absorb significantly more cases. The system is experiencing significant delays in appointing counsel and the costs of representation have increased due to travel time and multiple appointments. | ||
NH Association of Counties | FY 2022 | FY 2023 |
County Prosecution Costs | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
Estimated Average Daily Cost of Incarcerating an Individual | $105 to $125 | $105 to $125 |
This bill contains penalties that will have an indeterminable impact on the Judicial Branch system. There is no method to determine how many charges would be brought as a result of the changes contained in this bill to determine the fiscal impact on expenditures. In the past the Judicial Branch has used averaged caseload data based on time studies to estimate the fiscal impact of proposed legislation. The per case data on costs for routine criminal cases currently available to the Judicial Branch are based on studies of judicial and clerical weighted caseload times for processing average routine criminal cases that are more than fifteen years old so the data does not have current validity. A new case study is being conducted and updated estimates will be available in the future.
Many offenses are prosecuted by local and county prosecutors. When the Department of Justice has investigative and prosecutorial responsibility or is involved in an appeal, the Department may be able to absorb the cost within its existing budget. However, if the Department needs to prosecute significantly more cases or handle more appeals, then costs will increase by an indeterminable amount.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Judicial Branch, Departments of Justice, Judicial Council, and New Hampshire Association of Counties