HB 509-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2025 SESSION
25-0587
09/11
HOUSE BILL 509-FN
SPONSORS: Rep. Popovici-Muller, Rock. 17; Rep. D. McGuire, Merr. 14; Rep. Wheeler, Hills. 33
COMMITTEE: Judiciary
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ANALYSIS
This bill changes the requirements for the annual report from the attorney general concerning forfeitures of personal property.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
25-0587
09/11
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Forfeitures of Personal Property; Report. Amend RSA 617:12, I to read as follows:
I. The attorney general, no later than 120 days after the close of the fiscal year, shall post a report on the department of justice website detailing state forfeiture activity[,] for the preceding fiscal year, including [the type, approximate value, and disposition of each property seized, and the amount of any proceeds received or expended at the state and local levels. The report shall provide a categorized accounting of all proceeds expended.] the following information:
(a) Name of the law enforcement agency that seized the property or the name of the lead agency, if the property is seized by a multi-jurisdictional task force;
(b) Date of the seizure;
(c) Type of property seized, except that reporting is not required for seized contraband including alcohol, drug paraphernalia, and controlled substances;
(d) Place of seizure, such as a house, business, or, if a traffic stop, the location including road number and direction of traffic flow;
(e) Estimated value of the seizure;
(f) Criminal offense alleged that led to the seizure;
(g) Crime for which the suspect was charged either under state or federal law;
(h) Criminal case number and court in which the case was filed;
(i) The outcome of the suspect’s criminal case such as no charge was filed, charges dropped, acquittal, plea agreement, jury conviction, or other;
(j) Whether forfeiture is sought under federal law;
(k) If forfeiture is sought under federal law, whether a joint state-federal task force made the seizure of property;
(l) If forfeiture is sought under federal law, whether a federal government agency adopted a seizure that a state or municipal agency made without the federal agency’s involvement in the seizure;
(m) Forfeiture case number and court in which the case was filed;
(n) If a property owner filed a claim or counterclaim, and if so, who it was filled by, such as the suspect, innocent owner, creditor, or other owner;
(o) Estimated value of property returned to owner, sold, destroyed, retained by a law enforcement agency, or still pending disposition;
(p) Total value of property forfeited under state law including currency, proceeds from sale of non-currency property, and distributions received from the federal government, but excluding the value of contraband;
I-a. Data on seizures, forfeitures, and expenditures of forfeiture proceeds shall be provided by the law enforcement agency in disaggregated form to the attorney general.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
25-0587
Revised 2/3/25
HB 509-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
FISCAL IMPACT: This bill does not provide funding, nor does it authorize new positions.
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Estimated State Impact | ||||||
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | FY 2028 | ||
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Revenue Fund(s) | None | |||||
Expenditures* | $0 | $59,000 | $58,000 | $60,000 | ||
Funding Source(s) | Federal Funds (75%)/General Fund (25%) | |||||
Appropriations* | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
*Expenditure = Cost of bill *Appropriation = Authorized funding to cover cost of bill | ||||||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill amends the annual report for the Department of Justice (DOJ) in relation to forfeiture of personal property. The DOJ states this bill introduces more comprehensive and detailed reporting requirements for forfeiture data and assessments. As a result, the DOJ would have increased costs associated with additional administrative work. Furthermore, the DOJ indicates this bill necessitates the hiring of an investigative paralegal, which would be federally funded as most of the additional requirements pertain to federal law. The estimated costs for this position would be $59,000 in FY 2026, $58,000 in FY 2027, and $60,000 in FY 2028.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Justice
| Date | Body | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Feb. 12, 2025 | House | Hearing |
| March 7, 2025 | House | Exec Session |
Feb. 20, 2025: Executive Session: 03/07/2025 10:00 am LOB 206-208
Jan. 23, 2025: Public Hearing: 02/12/2025 11:00 am LOB 206-208
Jan. 14, 2025: Introduced (in recess of) 01/09/2025 and referred to Judiciary HJ 3 P. 13