Revision: Jan. 15, 2025, 10:50 a.m.
HB 546-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2025 SESSION
25-0285
06/11
HOUSE BILL 546-FN
AN ACT relative to financial disclosures to legislative ethics committee.
SPONSORS: Rep. Ohm, Hills. 10; Rep. Andrus, Merr. 5; Rep. Almy, Graf. 17; Rep. Manohar, Hills. 9
COMMITTEE: Legislative Administration
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ANALYSIS
This bill requires public officials to file financial disclosure forms for contributions of $1,000 or more and mandates that candidates with receipts exceeding $1,000 file monthly receipt statements, with the secretary of state preparing monthly summaries for the legislative ethics committee.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
25-0285
06/11
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five
AN ACT relative to financial disclosures to legislative ethics committee.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Financial Disclosure Form. Amend RSA 14-B:8 to read as follows:
14-B:8 Financial Disclosure Form. Every representative, senator, and officer of the house of representatives and the senate, shall file with the legislative ethics committee a financial disclosure form no later than the third Friday of January in the first legislative session of the biennium. In the case of any contributions of $1,000 or more, individually or cumulatively, from any industry or political action committee, a new financial disclosure form shall be filed with the legislative ethics committee within 30 days of receiving the contributions. If the legislator's or legislative officer's financial circumstances change, he or she shall file a new financial disclosure form prior to participation in any official activity which would have been affected by the change.
2 Registering and Reporting by Candidates. Amend RSA 664:7 to read as follows:
664:7 Registering and Reporting by Candidates.
I. Prior to filing any campaign finance statements, each candidate at the primary or general election for governor, councilor, state senator, state representative, or county officer shall register with the secretary of state through the secretary of state's online campaign finance system. Additionally, any candidate, who has receipts or expenditures exceeding $1,000 in an election cycle, shall file statements as required in RSA 664:9-a through 664:9-c before and after an election in like manner and detail as prescribed in RSA 664:6, I-VI.
II. Each candidate who has receipts exceeding $1,000 in an election cycle shall also file monthly receipt statements with the secretary of state. These monthly statements shall detail all campaign receipts received within the preceding month.
III. The secretary of state shall prepare monthly summaries of all individual reports received under this section and submit these summaries to the legislative ethics committee. The summaries shall be based on the reports filed by the candidates and shall be submitted on or before the last day of each month.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
25-0285
Revised 1/15/25
HB 546-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT relative to financial disclosures to legislative ethics committee.
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 | $50,000 to $100,000 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | General Fund | |||||
Appropriations* | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
*Expenditure = Cost of bill *Appropriation = Authorized funding to cover cost of bill | ||||||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill requires certain public officials to submit a monthly report to the Secretary of State if they receive more than $1,000 in campaign contributions within the current election cycle. Additionally, the bill requires the Secretary of State to prepare and send a report of all the mentioned summaries to the Legislative Ethics Committee each month.
The Department of State indicates that in order to accommodate the reports and the summary of reports there would have to be updates made to the online campaign finance system estimated at a cost of $50,000 to $100,000.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of State