HB 655-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2003 SESSION
03/10
HOUSE BILL 655-FN
This bill prohibits the issuance of a motor vehicle dealer license to any applicant who fails to submit annually the required certification of compliance with local zoning ordinances. This bill also makes any person who falsifies such certification guilty of a misdemeanor.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
03-0881
03/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Three
AN ACT relative to motor vehicle dealer license applications.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Section; Motor Vehicle Dealer License; Certification, Penalty. Amend RSA 261 by inserting after section 103-a the following new section:
261:103-b Certification; Penalty. The department shall not issue a motor vehicle dealer license, as required by RSA 261:103-a, to any applicant who fails to submit annually the certification of compliance with local zoning ordinances required by RSA 261:103-a, VIII. Any person who falsifies such certification shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2004.
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HB 655-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT relative to motor vehicle dealer license applications.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Judicial Branch, Judicial Council, Association of Counties and the Department of Safety have determined this bill may increase state and county expenditures and decrease local revenue by an indeterminable amount in FY 2004 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on local expenditures or state and county revenue.
METHODOLOGY:
The Judicial Branch stated this bill requires licensed motor vehicle dealers to submit annually a certification of compliance with local zoning ordinances, and makes falsification of such a certification a misdemeanor. As an unspecified misdemeanor, it would be a class A misdemeanor. A class A misdemeanor carries the potential of incarceration and therefor, the potential for de novo appeals to the superior court for a jury trial. The fiscal impact of this bill depends on how many prosecutions are brought pursuant to the statute, if enacted. On the assumption that not many prosecutions will be brought, the fiscal impact on the Judicial Branch will be minimal.
The Judicial Council stated there is no historical information upon which to base any statistical assumptions. The Council assumed that any cases arising from the enactment of this law for which the Indigent Defense Fund may be liable, will, in the first instance be handled by the public defender or contract attorneys who accept these cases on a fixed fee basis of $250 for each misdemeanor charge. If an assigned counsel attorney must be used, the hourly rate of $60 with a fee cap of $1,000 for misdemeanor cases will apply. If a motion to exceed the fee cap is approved and/or "services other than counsel" are approved, these will also be chargeable to the Indigent Defense Fund. The Council is unable to predict the number of cases or trials, which may arise as a result of the passage of this legislation, therefor they are unable to estimate the dollar amount of the anticipated costs of such representation.
The Department of Justice has stated the Department seldom becomes involved in questions of law concerning the issuance of motor vehicle dealer licenses, and it is assumed the Department
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would continue to not be involved. If the Department was, the number of instances would be negligible and the cost of prosecution would not increase as a direct result of changes contemplated in the bill.
The Association of Counties has stated that this bill creates a new misdemeanor. Such a penalty creates a cost for the county correctional facilities. The direct impact on county expenditures will depend on the number of individuals sentenced, as well as those who are incarcerated pre trial in a county facility. The average annual cost for counties to incarcerate inmates is $21,634.
The Department of Safety stated this bill intends to require a motor vehicle dealer licensee to file annually a certification of compliance with local zoning ordinances. If the dealer does not file the certification, then the Department will not issue a license, and if the dealer falsifies the certification, then it will be guilty of a misdemeanor. If the Department does not issue the license then it won't collect the Highway Fund fee, which also affects local highway aid at 12%. The Department cannot estimate the number of occurrences or the fiscal impact of this bill.