Bill Text: NH HB1560 | 2020 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Defining "serious harm" to an animal as a result of animal cruelty and relative to the criminal penalties for certain negligent actions which cause serious harm to or the death of an animal.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-06-16 - Introduced 06/16/2020, and Laid on Table, Motion Adopted, Voice Vote; 06/16/2020; Senate Journal 8 [HB1560 Detail]
Download: New_Hampshire-2020-HB1560-Amended.html
HB 1560-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
11Mar2020... 0857h
2020 SESSION
20-2086
08/04
HOUSE BILL 1560-FN
SPONSORS: Rep. Rogers, Merr. 28
COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
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AMENDED ANALYSIS
This bill defines "serious harm" to an animal which occurs as a result of animal cruelty.
This bill makes it a felony if an animal that is a victim of animal cruelty is seriously harmed or dies as a result of that cruelty.
This bill also exempts certain husbandry, slaughter, and euthanasia practices from the laws regarding animal cruelty.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
11Mar2020... 0857h 20-2086
08/04
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Paragraph; Serious Harm to Animal as a Result of Animal Cruelty; Definition. Amend RSA 644:8 by inserting after paragraph II-a the following new paragraph:
II-b. In this section, "serious harm" means any harm to the animal's body which causes severe, permanent, or protracted loss of or impairment to the health or the function of any part of the animal's body.
2 New Paragraphs; Serious Harm to or Death of Animal as a Result of Animal Cruelty; Penalties. Amend RSA 644:8 by inserting after paragraph III-a the following new paragraphs:
III-b. A person is guilty of a class B felony if such person purposely, knowingly, or recklessly commits one of the following acts and such conduct causes serious harm to or the death of the animal:
(a) Without lawful authority deprives or causes to be deprived any animal in his possession or custody necessary care, sustenance or shelter;
(b) Beats, cruelly whips, tortures, mutilates or in any other manner mistreats or causes to be mistreated any animal;
(c) Overdrives, overworks, drives when overloaded, or otherwise abuses or misuses any animal intended for or used for labor;
(d) Transports any animal in his possession or custody in a manner injurious to the health, safety or physical well-being of such animal;
(e) Abandons any animal previously in his or her possession or custody by causing such animal to be left without supervision or adequate provision for its care, sustenance, or shelter;
(f) Has in his or her possession an equine colt that is less than 90 days old that is not being nursed by its dam, unless the colt was born in this state, and its dam has died within this state before the colt became 90 days old;
(g) Sells an equine colt that is less than 90 days old that is not being nursed by its dam; or
(h) Otherwise permits or causes any animal in his or her possession or custody to be subjected to cruelty, inhumane treatment, or unnecessary suffering of any kind.
III-c. This section shall not apply to customarily accepted animal husbandry practices, or humane slaughter under RSA 427, or accepted methods of euthanasia as determined by the American Veterinary Medical Association to alleviate the suffering of an injured or ill animal.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2021.
20-2086
Amended 3/20/20
HB 1560-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE (AMENDMENT #2020-0857h)
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ X ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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STATE: | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ ] Other | |||
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COUNTY: |
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Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
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METHODOLOGY:
This bill contains a penalty that may have an impact on the New Hampshire judicial and correctional systems. There is no method to determine how many charges would be brought as a result of the changes contained in this bill to determine the fiscal impact on expenditures. However, the entities impacted have provided the potential costs associated with these penalties below.
Judicial Branch | FY 2021 | FY 2022 |
Simple Criminal Case | $300 | $314 |
Appeals | Varies | Varies |
It should be noted that average case cost estimates for FY 2021 and FY 2022 are based on data that is more than ten years old and does not reflect changes to the courts over that same period of time or the impact these changes may have on processing the various case types. | ||
Judicial Council |
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Public Defender Program | Has contract with State to provide services. | Has contract with State to provide services. |
Contract Attorney – Felony | $825/Case | $825/Case |
Assigned Counsel – Felony | $60/Hour up to $4,100 | $60/Hour up to $4,100 |
It should be noted that a person needs to be found indigent and have the potential of being incarcerated to be eligible for indigent defense services. The majority of indigent cases (approximately 85%) are handled by the public defender program, with the remaining cases going to contract attorneys (14%) or assigned counsel (1%). | ||
Department of Corrections |
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FY 2019 Average Cost of Incarcerating an Individual | $44,400 | $44,400 |
FY 2019 Annual Marginal Cost of a General Population Inmate | $5,071 | $5,071 |
FY 2019 Average Cost of Supervising an Individual on Parole/Probation | $576 | $576 |
NH Association of Counties |
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County Prosecution Costs | Indeterminable | Indeterminable |
Estimated Average Daily Cost of Incarcerating an Individual | $105 to $120 | $105 to $120 |
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Judicial Branch, Departments of Corrections and Justice, Judicial Council, and New Hampshire Association of Counties