hb 0251

CHAPTER 16

HB 251 - FINAL VERSION

AN ACT relative to official ballot procedures.

SPONSORS: Rep. Brundige, Hills 18; Rep. Batula, Hills 18; Rep. Fesh, Rock 13; Rep. Leone, Sull 2

This bill makes changes to the laws regarding local political subdivisions which have adopted official ballot voting, including:

IV. Enabling certain political subdivisions to coordinate their annual meetings with school districts that have matching or partly matching voter checklists.

V. Amending the wording of the question to be put before the legislative body of a municipality regarding adoption of the official ballot referendum form of meeting.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

AN ACT relative to official ballot procedures.

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

39:1 Meetings, When Held. A meeting of every town shall be held annually on the second Tuesday of March, or in accordance with RSA 40:13 if that provision is adopted in the town, for the choice of town officers and the transaction of all other town business. A town meeting may be warned by the selectmen, when, in their opinion, there shall be occasion therefor. In no event shall a special town meeting be held on the biennial election day.

16:2 Reference to Meeting Time Lines. Amend RSA 40:13, II and II-a to read as follows:

II. The warrant for any annual meeting shall prescribe the place, day and hour for each of 2 separate sessions of the meeting, and notice shall be given [~~in accordance with paragraph II-a~~] as otherwise provided in this section. Final budgets and ballot questions shall be printed in the annual report made available to the legislative body at least one week before the date of the second session of the annual meeting.

II-a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all local political subdivisions which adopt this subdivision, who have not adopted an April or May election date under RSA 40:14, X, shall comply with the following schedule pertaining to notice, petitioned articles, hearings, and warrants for the annual meeting:

(a) The final date for posting notice of budget hearings under RSA 32:5 and RSA 195:12 and hearings under RSA 33:8-a shall be the first Tuesday in January.

(b) The "budget submission date" as defined in RSA 273-A:1, III and the final date for submission of petitioned articles under RSA 39:3 and RSA 197:6 shall be the second Tuesday in January.

(c) Budget hearings under RSA 32:5 and RSA 195:12 and hearings under RSA 33:8-a and RSA 675:3 shall be held on or before the third Tuesday in January.

(d) Warrants under RSA 39:5 and RSA 197:7 and budgets shall be posted and copies available to the general public on or before the last Monday in January.

16:3 New Paragraphs; April Time Line; May Time Line; Voter Checklist. Amend RSA 40:13 by inserting after paragraph II-a the following new paragraphs:

II-b. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all political subdivisions which hold their annual meetings in April shall comply with the following schedule pertaining to notice, petitioned articles, hearings, and warrants for the annual meeting.

(a) The final date for posting notice of budget hearings under RSA 32:5 and RSA 195:12 and hearings under RSA 33:8-a shall be the first Tuesday in February.

(b) The "budget submission date" as defined in RSA 273-A:1, III and the final date for submission of petitioned articles under RSA 39:3 and RSA 197:6 shall be the second Tuesday in February.

(c) Budget hearings under RSA 32:5 and RSA 195:12 and hearings under RSA 33:8-a and RSA 675:3 shall be held on or before the third Tuesday in February.

(d) Warrants under RSA 39:5 and RSA 197:7 and budgets shall be posted and copies available to the general public on or before the last Monday in February.

II-c. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all political subdivisions which hold their annual meetings in May shall comply with the following schedule pertaining to notice, petitioned articles, hearings, and warrants for the annual meeting:

(a) The final date for posting notice of budget hearings under RSA 32:5 and RSA 195:12 and hearings under RSA 33:8-a shall be the first Tuesday in March.

(b) The "budget submission date" as defined in RSA 273-A:1, III and the final date for submission of petitioned articles under RSA 39:3 and RSA 197:6 shall be the second Tuesday in March.

(c) Budget hearings under RSA 32:5 and RSA 195:12 and hearings under RSA 33:8-a and RSA 675:3 shall be held on or before the third Tuesday in March.

(d) Warrants under RSA 39:5 and RSA 197:7 and budgets shall be posted and copies available to the general public on or before the last Monday in March.

II-d. The voter checklist shall be updated in accordance with RSA 669:5 for each session of the annual meeting.

16:4 Reference to April and May Meetings. Amend RSA 40:13, III to read as follows:

III. The first session of the annual meeting, which shall be for the transaction of all business other than voting by official ballot, shall be held between the first and second Saturdays following the last Monday in January, inclusive of those Saturdays[,]; between the first and second Saturdays following the last Monday in February, inclusive of those Saturdays; or between the first and second Saturdays following the last Monday in March, inclusive of those Saturdays at a time prescribed by the local political subdivision's governing body.

16:5 Reference to April and May Meetings. Amend RSA 40:13, VII to read as follows:

VII. The second session of the annual meeting, to elect officers of the local political subdivision by official ballot, to vote on questions required by law to be inserted on said official ballot, and to vote on all warrant articles from the first session on official ballot, shall be held on the second Tuesday in March, the second Tuesday in April, or the second Tuesday in May, as applicable. Notwithstanding RSA 669:1, 670:1, or 671:2, the second session shall be deemed the annual election date for purposes of all applicable election statutes including, but not limited to, RSA 669:5, 669:19, 669:30, 670:3, 670:4, 670:11, 671:15, 671:19, and 671:30 through 32; and votes on zoning ordinances, historic district ordinances, and building codes under RSA 675.

16:6 Method of Adopting Official Ballot Referendum Form of Meeting; Wording of Question. Amend RSA 40:14, V to read as follows:

V. The wording of the question shall be: "Shall we adopt the provisions of RSA 40:13 (known as SB 2) to allow official ballot voting on all issues before the (local political subdivision) on the second Tuesday of (month)?"

16:7 New Paragraphs; Date for Local Elections and Second Session of the Annual Meeting. Amend RSA 40:14 by inserting after paragraph IX the following new paragraphs:

X. In a local political subdivision which has not adopted RSA 40:13 and in which the adoption of RSA 40:13 is to be voted on, the question shall specifically state whether the date for local elections and the second session shall be the second Tuesday in March, the second Tuesday in April, or the second Tuesday in May.

XI. A local political subdivision which has adopted the provisions of RSA 40:13 may change the date for local elections and the second session as follows:

(a) The question may be inserted on the warrant for either an annual or special meeting, either by the local governing body or by petition under RSA 39:3 or RSA 197:6.

(b) A public hearing shall be held by the local governing body on the question at least 15 days, but not more than 30 days, before the question is to be voted on. In multi-town districts, a public hearing shall be held in each town embraced by the district, none of which shall be held on the same day. Notice of the hearing shall be posted in at least 2 public places in the town, or in at least 2 public places in each town of multi-town districts, and published in a newspaper of general circulation at least 7 days prior to the date of the hearing.

(c) The wording of the question shall be substantially similar to the following: "Shall we change the date for elections and the second session from the second Tuesday in ____________ to the second Tuesday in _________, which would change the date for the first session to a date between the first and second Saturdays after the last Monday in ___________, inclusive?"

(d) A simple majority in the affirmative of those voting on the question shall be required to change the date; provided, however, that if the question appears on the ballot for a multi-town school district, the vote in each town or city comprising the district shall be tallied separately, and this section shall not be deemed adopted by the district unless it receives a majority vote from each and every such town and city, tallied separately. Only votes in the affirmative or negative shall be included in the calculation of the majority.

(e) A vote to change the dates of the meeting shall apply to the annual meeting next following the vote.

16:8 Teacher Nomination Notification Date. Amend RSA 189:14-a, I(a) to read as follows:

I.(a) Any teacher who has a professional standards certificate from the state board of education and who has taught for one or more years in the same school district shall be notified in writing on or before April 15 or within 15 days of the adoption of the district budget by the legislative body, whichever is later, if that teacher is not to be renominated or reelected, provided that no notification shall occur later than the Friday following the second Tuesday in May.

I. All towns shall hold an election annually for the election of town officers on the second Tuesday in March, except those towns which have adopted an alternative date under RSA 40:14 or those towns which have adopted the provisions of RSA 31:94-a and have, by majority vote at [~~the~~] a previous town meeting, decided to elect officers on the second Tuesday in May.

16:10 New Paragraph; Optional Change of Election Dates; Official Ballot Referendum. Amend RSA 669:1 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:

IV. Any local political subdivision which has not adopted RSA 40:13, the official ballot referendum form of meeting, but whose voting checklist comprises all or part of the checklist for a school district which has adopted an April or May election date under RSA 40:14, may, by vote of the legislative body, vote to coordinate its elections with the school district's elections and to hold its elections on the same April or May date as the school district. Such local political subdivision may, in addition, vote to hold the second session of its annual meeting, for transacting all business not required to be voted on by official ballot, within 2 weeks of the election date at a time and date determined by the governing body. The joint elections shall be held at a time and place determined by, and shall be supervised by, the election officials of the local political subdivision, coordinated as set forth in RSA 671:25 and RSA 671:26, with costs allocated in the same manner as in previous years or as may be mutually agreed upon by the governing bodies. A vote under this paragraph may be rescinded by the local political subdivision in like manner. No vote under this section shall take effect until the annual election next following such vote.