01-2235

10/09

HOUSE BILL 1370

COMMITTEE: Public Works and Highways

ANALYSIS

This bill establishes a 6-year capital budget, and requires the proposal of a 6-year capital budget with limits on additional appropriations within the bienniums.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

01-2235

10/09

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 Capital Budget Expenditures; Six-Year Capital Budget. Amend RSA 9:3-a to read as follows:

9:3-a Capital Expenditure Requests. Prior to the adoption of the 6-year capital budget, the requests for appropriation of funds shall be as follows:

I. All departments seeking funds for capital expenditures shall submit their requests to the commissioner of administrative services no later than the May 1 before the opening of the biennial legislative session. Requests shall be made on forms supplied by the commissioner of administrative services. Each request shall list estimates of the costs of land, construction, furnishings, and equipment and shall identify projects which are expected or planned to require funding in subsequent bienniums of the 6-year capital budget in order to be completed. In addition, each request shall include the square footage, estimates of annual operating and maintenance costs, program descriptions, and number of people involved.

II. The commissioner of administrative services shall submit a summary of the requests and any supporting detail to the governor by May 31.

III. The governor shall hold public hearings on the 6-year requests no later than June 30. [He] The governor may require officials of those departments submitting requests to attend and testify.

IV. There shall be a governor's advisory committee on the capital budget consisting of the following, or their designees: commissioner of administrative services, commissioner of transportation, chairperson of the senate capital budget committee, and chairperson of the house public works and highway committee. Members of the advisory committee may attend the hearings on capital budget requests, question those testifying, and contribute their opinions.

V. The governor shall select those projects which the governor considers worthy of further evaluation, and send the requests for the selected projects to the commissioner of transportation no later than August 1. The governor may hold additional hearings on capital requests at the time of the operating budget hearings. If any additional hearing is held after election day, the governor shall invite the governor-elect to attend.

VI. The commissioner of transportation shall prepare schematic drawings, cost estimates, and program descriptions and present these, along with any recommendations, to the governor no later than December 1.

VII. The governor shall submit the capital budget to the general court no later than February 15 of each odd numbered year. The capital budget submitted shall identify all projects which are expected or planned to require funding in subsequent bienniums of the 6-year capital budget in order to be completed.

2 New Section; Capital Budget; Limitations on Appropriations. Amend RSA 9 by inserting after section 3-a the following new section:

9:3-b Capital Budget; Limitations on Appropriations. For each 6-year capital budget requested under RSA 9:3-a or as adopted for state capital improvements projects, total appropriations for the first biennium to which the 6-year capital budget applies shall not exceed an amount which is equal to 7 percent of the state general fund unrestricted revenues for that biennium, total appropriations for the second biennium to which the 6-year capital budget applies shall not exceed an amount which is equal to an additional 3-1/2 percent of state general fund unrestricted revenues, and total appropriations for the third biennium to which the 6-year capital budget applies shall not exceed an amount which is equal to an additional 1-3/4 percent of state general fund unrestricted revenues.

3 Lapsed Appropriations; Reference Added. Amend RSA 9:18, I to read as follows:

I. Except for capital appropriations under paragraph I-a or as otherwise specially provided, all unexpended portions of special appropriations shall lapse when the object for which the appropriation was made has been accomplished and, in any event, at the end of 2 years from the date when the act creating the appropriation first took effect, unless there are obligations incurred by contract thereunder, made within said period, in which case there shall be no lapse until the satisfaction or fulfillment of such contractual obligations.

4 New Paragraph; Lapsed Appropriations; Six-Year Capital Budget. Amend RSA 9:18 by inserting after paragraph I the following new paragraph:

I-a. All unexpended portions of appropriations made by the 6-year capital budget shall lapse when the project for which the appropriation was made has been accomplished and, in any event, at the end of 6 years from the date when the act creating the appropriation first took effect, unless there are obligations incurred by contract thereunder, made within said period, in which case there shall be no lapse until the satisfaction or fulfillment of such contractual obligations

5 Department of Transportation; Major Capital Projects. Amend RSA 228:4, IV to read as follows:

IV. Any repair project authorized in the 6-year capital budget which requires consultant services shall be put into effect within 90 days after the date that the general court [passes] authorizes the project in the capital budget.

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