CHAPTER 55
HB 617-FN-A-LOCAL - FINAL VERSION
5jan00.....2058h
2000 SESSION
HOUSE BILL 617-FN-A-LOCAL
AN ACT relative to funding and monitoring seacoast harbor issues.
SPONSORS: Rep. Leber, Merr 1; Rep. Vaughn, Rock 35; Rep. Calawa, Hills 17; Rep. Winston McCarty, Hills 38; Rep. Alukonis, Hills 23; Sen. Gordon, Dist 2; Sen. F. King, Dist 1; Sen. D'Allesandro, Dist 20
COMMITTEE: Public Works and Highways
This bill:
I. Changes the dredging projects fund to the harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund.
II. Establishes a surcharge for boats registered for tidal and coastal waters to be paid into the harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund.
III. Requires the port authority to set slip fees equal to mooring fees.
IV. Transfers the commercial fish piers in Portsmouth, Rye Harbor, and Hampton Harbor from the department of resources and economic development to the port authority.
V. Establishes a committee to study unrefunded road bills.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
5jan00.....2058h
99-0423
03/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand
AN ACT relative to funding and monitoring seacoast harbor issues.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
55:1 State Treasurer and State Accounts; Application of Receipts; General Revenue Exceptions; Reference Changed. Amend RSA 6:12, I(vvv) to read as follows:
(vvv) Moneys deposited in the harbor dredging [projects] and pier maintenance fund established in RSA 271-A:21.
55:2 Department of Resources and Economic Development; Bureau of Marine Services; Exception Added. Amend RSA 12-A:7-a to read as follows:
12-A:7-a Bureau of Marine Services. There is hereby established in the division of parks and recreation of the department of resources and economic development, a bureau of marine services, which shall have the responsibility for and jurisdiction over recreational activities at state-owned [commercial] fishing piers and facilities.
55:3 Navigation; Vessel Registration and Numbering; Registration Required; Application; Tidal and Coastal Waters. Amend the introductory paragraph of RSA 270-E:3, III to read as follows:
III. Application for registration shall be in such form and contain such information as the commissioner shall determine. The fees required by RSA 270-E:5 shall accompany the application. The application shall request the principal use of the vessel and ask whether the vessel is to be registered for tidal and coastal waters. The application shall also contain the following statements:
55:4 New Subparagraph; Navigation; Vessel Registration and Numbering; Registration Fees; Surcharge for Vessels Registered for Tidal or Coastal Waters. Amend RSA 270-E:5, II by inserting after subparagraph (d) the following new subparagraph:
(e) $2 for each registration for tidal or coastal waters. The surcharge collected under this subparagraph shall be paid into the harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund established under RSA 271-A:21.
55:5 Navigation; New Hampshire State Port Authority; Powers and Duties; Fees for Mooring and Slip Permits. Amend RSA 271-A:3, V(a) to read as follows:
(a) Be authorized to set and collect fees for mooring and slip permits and waiting lists for such permits. The authority shall establish fees for slips in harbors and tidal rivers that are equal to or proportional to the fees for moorings in harbors. Fees shall not be charged for slips at industrial piers along the Piscataqua River or at state-owned piers in harbors. The fees for slips shall be paid into the harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund established under RSA 271-A:21.
55:6 New Paragraph; Navigation; New Hampshire State Port Authority; Powers and Duties; Piers in Portsmouth, Rye Harbor, and Hampton Harbor. Amend RSA 271-A:3 by inserting after paragraph VI the following new paragraph:
VII. Have the responsibility for and jurisdiction over the state-owned commercial fishing piers and facilities at Portsmouth, Rye Harbor, and Hampton Harbor except as provided in RSA 12-A:7-a.
55:7 Navigation; New Hampshire State Port Authority; Dredging Projects Fund Changed to Harbor Dredging and Pier Maintenance Fund. Amend RSA 271-A:21 to read as follows:
271-A:21 Harbor Dredging [Projects] and Pier Maintenance Fund Established.
I. There is hereby established a harbor dredging [projects] and pier maintenance fund to be used by the New Hampshire state port authority to meet its obligation to initiate and implement dredging projects to maintain channels and harbors, and to initiate projects to maintain public piers in safe and efficient condition.
II. The fund shall be nonlapsing and continually appropriated for the purposes of initiating and implementing harbor dredging projects and maintaining public piers. The New Hampshire state port authority shall, in each biennium, request annual appropriations to the fund in an amount sufficient to provide for the funding of the authority's periodic harbor dredging and pier maintenance efforts. The state treasurer shall invest the moneys deposited in the fund as provided by law. Interest earned on moneys deposited in the fund shall be deposited into the fund.
III. The New Hampshire state port authority shall not encumber, obligate, or expend any funds from the harbor dredging [projects] and pier maintenance fund without the prior approval of the capital budget overview committee.
55:8 Commercial Fish Piers in Portsmouth, Rye Harbor, and Hampton Harbor; Transfer from Department of Resources and Economic Development to New Hampshire State Port Authority. The department of resources and economic development shall transfer the commercial fish piers in Portsmouth, Rye Harbor, and Hampton Harbor to the New Hampshire state port authority. Upon such transfer, the port authority shall have responsibility for and jurisdiction over each such pier and shall assume control of the management, operation, and maintenance of each respective pier. The transfer of the commercial fish pier in Portsmouth shall be completed within 60 days of the effective date of this section and after proper coordination with the city of Portsmouth and the commercial fishing industry lessees of the pier. The transfer of the commercial fish piers in Rye Harbor and Hampton Harbor shall be completed by June 30, 2001 and after a plan is developed by the port authority, the department of resources and economic development, and the long range capital planning and utilization committee to separate the recreational and commercial elements in the use of these facilities. The port authority shall certify to the secretary of state the date that each transfer is completed pursuant to this section.
55:9 Applicability. The provisions of RSA 271-A:3, VII, as inserted by section 6 of this act shall take effect with respect to each of the commercial fish piers in Portsmouth, Rye Harbor, and Hampton Harbor as the New Hampshire state port authority assumes control of the management, operation, and maintenance of each respective pier pursuant to the provisions of section 8 of this act.
55:10 Committee to Study Unrefunded Road Tolls.
I. Committee Established. There is established a committee to study unrefunded road tolls.
II. Membership and Compensation.
(a) The members of the committee shall be as follows:
(1) Three members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.
(2) Three members of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.
(b) Members of the committee shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the committee.
III. Duties. The committee shall study unrefunded road tolls, including, but not limited to, the calculation, distribution, and uses of unrefunded road toll balances.
IV. Chairperson; Quorum. The members of the study committee shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the committee shall be called by the first-named house member. The first meeting of the committee shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section. Four members of the committee shall constitute a quorum.
V. Report. The committee shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation to the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate president, the house clerk, the senate clerk, the governor, and the state library on or before November 1, 2000.
55:11 Effective Date.
I. Sections 1 and 4 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2000.
II. Section 10 of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
III. The remainder of this act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
(Approved: April 17, 2000)
(Effective Date: I. Sections 1 and 4 take effect July 1, 2000.
II. Section 10 takes effect April 17, 2000.
III. Remainder of act takes effect June 16, 2000)
LBAO
99-0423
2/10/99
HB 617-FN-A-LOCAL - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to funding and monitoring seacoast harbor issues.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The N.H. Port Authority and Department of Resources and Economic Development stated this bill will increase state expenditures, reduce state general fund revenue and increase state restricted revenue by an indeterminable amount in FY 2000 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on county and local revenue or expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Authority assumes this bill will take effect July 1, 1999. Section 3 of the bill will cause approximately $740,000 of unrefunded road toll revenue that is currently deposited into the general fund, to be deposited into the dedicated harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund. Section 4 and 5 of the bill establishes a new surcharge of $2 on boats registered (3,557) for tidal and coastal waters. This will result in $7,114 being deposited into the harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund. Section 6 of the bill requires the Authority to establish slip fees equal to mooring fees. The Authority estimates 13,000 feet of pier and dock space at $4 per foot will result in $52,000 being deposited into the harbor dredging and pier maintenance fund. Section 8 and 10 calls for a complete transfer of the Portsmouth Commercial Fish Pier, and a transfer of commercial fishing operations from Rye and Hampton. Recreational boating operations at Rye and Hampton piers would remain under the jurisdiction of the Department of Resources and Economic Development (DRED). DRED and the Authority stated the net effect of the transfer would result in no fiscal impact on the state. The Authority, however, indicated this bill requires the Authority to assume control of the management, operation and maintenance of each pier. The Authority is unable to determine the fiscal impact of this requirement.