2001 SESSION

01-0162

04/10

HOUSE BILL 642-FN-LOCAL

COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety

ANALYSIS

This bill abolishes county departments of corrections and grants the state department of corrections responsibility for county inmates as of July 1, 2002. The department of corrections is authorized to contract with the counties to utilize the former county correctional facilities as state facilities.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

01-0162

04/10

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand One

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

1 New Paragraph; Authority of Commissioner of Corrections to Contract With Counties. Amend RSA 21-H:8 by inserting after paragraph V the following new paragraph:

V-a. The commissioner may enter into contracts with the counties for use by the department of corrections of facilities which were utilized as county correctional facilities prior to July 1, 2002.

2 References to County Correctional Facilities Deleted. Amend RSA 21-H:8, VI to read as follows:

VI. The commissioner may enter into contracts with [the state's counties,] the governments of other states[,] and the federal government, and appropriate private agencies or facilities and make proper and necessary arrangements with them for the transfer and reception of inmates and allow transfers to state prisons of any person. [Any person who is confined awaiting trial on a felony charge may be transferred to the state prison from the county correctional facility, upon the recommendation of the superintendent of the county department of corrections, and with the approval of the county commissioners of said county.]

3 Transfer of Inmates; References to County Facility Deleted. RSA 21-H:12 is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:

21-H:12 Transfer of Inmates. The commissioner may transfer any inmate whenever the commissioner determines that an inmate cannot be properly or safely kept at the correctional facility at which the inmate is confined or that such transfer is in the best public interest or furthers legitimate penological objectives.

4 County Commissioners; Real Estate; References Deleted. Amend RSA 28:7 to read as follows:

28:7 Real Estate. When so authorized by the county convention they may purchase such real estate as may be required for [county correctional facilities, including county farms, or other] county uses, and may repair, enlarge or erect county buildings at a cost exceeding $5,000; and, with like authority, they may sell any of the county's real estate.

5 County Commissioners; Assisted Persons; Reference to County Farms Deleted. Amend RSA 28:9 to read as follows:

28:9 Assisted Persons. They shall have the charge and care of county assisted persons, and shall provide for their support [upon the county farm or elsewhere] as required by law; and when expedient they may appoint agents in the several towns to investigate applications and look after the county poor in such towns.

6 References to County Correctional Facilities Deleted. Amend RSA 28:11 to read as follows:

28:11 Personnel. The commissioners of each county shall appoint a superintendent for[: the county farm,] the county nursing home[, and the county department of corrections]. They may also appoint such other officers, agents and employees as may be required to properly care for the same and [their inmates] its patients.

7 Rules and Regulations; Superintendent. Amend RSA 28:12 and 13 to read as follows:

28:12 Rules and Regulations. The county commissioners may adopt rules and regulations for the governing and administration of [county departments of corrections, including county farms,] county nursing homes, county welfare offices and any other county departments under the jurisdiction of the county commissioners.

28:13 Ineligibility to be Superintendent. No county commissioner shall be superintendent of the [county farm, the county department of corrections, or of the] county nursing home.

8 References to County Correctional Facilities Deleted. Amend RSA 30:1 to read as follows:

30:1 Reports; Publication; Penalty. The sheriff, [the superintendent of the county department of corrections,] the county attorney, the treasurer, and the county commissioners [and the superintendents of the county farms] shall make up their several reports to the close of the county's fiscal year annually, and the same shall be printed together in pamphlet form before or during the third month following the close of the county's fiscal year. Whoever violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of a violation, and the fine shall be paid to the treasurer of the county of which said person is an official.

9 References to County Prisoners Deleted. Amend RSA 30:3, I to read as follows:

I. The reports of the several officers named in RSA 30:1 shall contain a summarized account of all their transactions which concern the county, for the fiscal year ending as aforesaid, and shall be prepared in a uniform manner in each county, so that accurate statistics can be compiled from the following information:

(a) Total cost of maintaining a nursing home;

(b) Number of patients maintained at the nursing home; and

[(c) Number of prisoners in each category of criminal offenses committed;

(d) Total cost of maintaining prisoners by the county department of corrections, computed by the same method in each county; and]

[(e)] (c) Number of people helped outside the towns in which they reside.

10 Taxation; Exemptions; References to County Correctional Facilities Deleted. Amend RSA 72:23, II to read as follows:

II. Lands and buildings and personal property owned and used by any county for governmental purposes, including hospitals, court houses, registry buildings, [and county correctional facilities] except that county farms and their lands, buildings and taxable personal property shall be taxed.

11 Reference to County Correctional Facilities Deleted. Amend RSA 100-A:1, VII(f)(6) to read as follows:

(6) Has close contact with felons prior to sentencing when preparing a pre-sentence investigation that includes a disposition recommendation for the court, and supervision when placed on probation or parole. Investigation and supervision may be conducted in the person's residence, in state [or county] correctional facilities, in drug centers, or elsewhere;

12 Reference to County Correctional Facilities Deleted. Amend RSA 100-A:1, VII(f)(9) to read as follows:

(9) Is aware that all parolees have served time in prison, and that many probationers have served time in state [or county] correctional facilities or are on a suspended commitment sentence;

13 Reference to House of Corrections Changed. Amend RSA 555:4 to read as follows:

555:4 Refusal to Appear, etc. If the person so cited refuses to appear, or to answer interrogatories upon oath respecting the estate, the judge may, by warrant, commit such person to [the house] a department of corrections facility, there to remain until such person consents to answer such interrogatories, or until released by the complainant or by order of the probate court.

14 Reference to Superintendent of the County Department of Corrections Deleted. Amend RSA 594:21-a to read as follows:

594:21-a Authority of Superintendent. The request of the officer making the arrest shall be sufficient authority if accompanied by an arrest report, uniform report of crime form, or other substantiating documentation, [for the superintendent of the county department of corrections,] for the police station, or for any other officer or person, for keeping the person arrested in custody pursuant to RSA 594:20-a.

15 Reference to County Jail Changed. Amend RSA 596-A:7 to read as follows:

596-A:7 Commitment and Bail. If from the evidence it appears to the district or municipal court that there is probable cause to believe that an offense has been committed which is beyond the jurisdiction of the court to try and that the accused committed it, or if the accused waives preliminary examination thereof, the court shall hold the accused to appear in superior court as provided in RSA 502-A:13 or RSA 592-A:4; otherwise, if no probable cause appears, the accused shall be discharged from custody. If bound over, unless the offense is bailable only by the superior court as provided in RSA 597:4, the accused may be admitted to bail by the court as provided in RSA 597, but where the offense is bailable only by the superior court, the accused shall be committed by warrant to a [county jail] department of corrections facility pending further proceedings in superior court.

16 Reference to County Jail and House of Corrections Changed. Amend RSA 599:2 to read as follows:

599:2 Recognizance of Appellant. Before the appeal is allowed, the appellant shall enter into recognizance, with sufficient sureties, in such sum as the court shall order, not exceeding $2,000, to appear at the court of appeal, to prosecute his appeal with effect, to abide the order of the court thereon and, if so required, to be of good behavior in the meantime, or shall surrender himself to the proper authority for the purpose of commitment to [the county jail or house of correction] a department of corrections facilities pending such appeal.

17 Reference to County Jail Changed. Amend RSA 612:15 to read as follows:

612:15 Commitment to Await Requisition; Bail. If from the examination before the judge or magistrate it appears that the person held is the person charged with having committed the crime alleged and, except in cases arising under RSA 612:6, that he has fled from justice, the judge or magistrate must, by a warrant reciting the accusation, commit him to [the county jail] a department of corrections facility for such a time, not exceeding 30 days and specified in the warrant, as will enable the arrest of the accused to be made under a warrant of the governor on a requisition of the executive authority of the state having jurisdiction of the offense, unless the accused gives bail as provided in RSA 612:16, or until he shall be legally discharged.

18 References to County Correctional Facility; Superintendent Changed. Amend RSA 618:9 to read as follows:

618:9 Committal for Nonpayment; Term. Whenever a person is committed to a [county correctional] department of corrections facility in default of payment of a fine imposed by a justice of a municipal court or a district court, he shall be discharged from custody by the [superintendent] administrator of the correctional facility thereof at the expiration of a number of days after the date of his commitment equal to one day for each $20 of the fine so imposed. The [superintendent] administrator of the correctional facility shall keep a record of all discharges made under the provisions of this section.

19 Reference to "County" Deleted. Amend RSA 623:1 and 623:1-a to read as follows:

623:1 Illness or Emergency.

I. Any person confined in a [county] department of corrections facility, state prison, or other place of detention may, under necessary precautions, be taken by some regular or specially authorized officer from such place of detention to a medical facility for the purpose of receiving medical examination or treatment upon recommendation of a physician or an advanced registered nurse practitioner (ARNP) and upon approval of the administrator of the institution in which the person is confined. In the case of a transfer for medical purposes for a period in excess of 24 hours, the justice of the court who originally ordered the prisoner's commitment shall be given written notice of the transfer within 5 days of said transfer, and shall be given notice upon the return of the prisoner within 5 days of the prisoner's return. The provisions of RSA 402:79 shall apply to payments for medical care provided pursuant to this section.

II. Any person confined in a [county] department of corrections facility, state prison, or other place of detention may be temporarily taken from his place of confinement because of the imminently approaching death or funeral of a member of his immediate family or for other imperative and extraordinary purpose, including treatment, counseling or rehabilitation programs, for a period not exceeding 48 hours without approval by a justice of the superior court.

623:1-a Court Appearances. Any person confined in a [county] department of corrections facility, state prison, or other place of detention may, under necessary precautions and upon approval of the administrator of the institution in which said person is confined, be taken by some regular or specially authorized officer from such place of detention to a state or federal court within the state of New Hampshire to appear in a proceeding before that court, provided that the absence of the inmate from the place of detention shall not exceed 12 hours without approval of a justice of the superior court. During the time period such person is in a state courthouse, the sheriff, through the sheriff's deputies and bailiffs, shall be responsible for such person's custody and control.

20 Reference to County Department of Corrections Removed. Amend RSA 651:2, V(b)-(e) to read as follows:

(b) In cases of persons convicted of felonies or class A misdemeanors, or in cases of persons found to be habitual offenders within the meaning of RSA 259:39 and convicted of an offense under RSA 262:23, the sentence may include, as a condition of probation, confinement to a person's place of residence for not more than one year in case of a class A misdemeanor or more than 5 years in case of a felony. Such home confinement may be monitored by a probation officer and may be supplemented, as determined by the department of corrections [or by the county department of corrections], by electronic monitoring to verify compliance.

(c) Upon recommendation by the department of corrections [or by the county department of corrections], the court may, as a condition of probation, order an incarceration-bound offender placed in an intensive supervision program as an alternative to incarceration, under requirements and restrictions established by the department of corrections [or by the county department of corrections].

(d) Upon recommendation by the department of corrections [or by the county department of corrections], the court may sentence an incarceration-bound offender to a special alternative incarceration program involving short term confinement followed by intensive community supervision.

(e) The department of corrections [and the various county departments of corrections] shall adopt rules governing eligibility for home confinement, intensive supervision and special alternative incarceration programs.

21 "County Correctional" Changed to "Department of Corrections." Amend the following RSA provisions by replacing "county correctional" with "department of corrections": 169-B:2, I; 169-B:19, III; 169-B:24, II; 169-B:25; 172-B:3, I(c), II(b), III-VI; 186-C:3-a, VII; 186-C:19-a, I-II; 188-F-26, XVI; 262:23, I; 504-A:5; 594:20-a; 618:6; 618:7; 618:10; 622:22.

22 "The County Correctional" Changed to "A Department of Corrections." Amend the following RSA provisions by replacing "the county correctional" with "a department of corrections": 169-B:4; 265:82-b, II(a)(3) and II(a)(6); 651:17, II.

23 Disposition of County Inmates; July 1, 2002. The state department of corrections shall assume responsibility for all inmates of county department of corrections facilities on July 1, 2002.

24 Repeal. The following are repealed:

I. RSA 30-B, relative to county departments of corrections.

II. RSA 91-A:3, II (g), relative to nonpublic sessions on the issue of safety of security personnel and inmates at county correctional facilities.

III. RSA 100-A:1, VII(c), relative to state retirement for correctional line personnel employed in county correctional facilities.

IV. RSA 100-A:20, III, relative to state retirement for correctional line personnel employed in county correctional facilities.

V. The subdivision heading immediately preceding RSA 28:11, relative to county farm and county department of corrections.

VI. RSA 623:2, relative to transfers from state prison.

VII. RSA 623:4, relative to transfer procedures.

VIII. RSA 651:11, relative to transfers of insane persons from county correctional facilities.

IX. RSA 651:18, relative to reductions of sentences in county correctional facilities.

X. RSA 651:36-a, relative to uncompensated public service by prisoners.

25 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

LBAO

01-0162

2/8/01

HB 642-FN-LOCAL - FISCAL NOTE

FISCAL IMPACT: