Bill Text: NH HB542 | 2019 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Establishing a grant program to support municipalities in updating their wetlands regulations.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-11-13 - Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate (Vote 20-0; Consent Calendar) [HB542 Detail]
Download: New_Hampshire-2019-HB542-Amended.html
HB 542-FN-A - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
28Feb2019... 0182h
2019 SESSION
19-0396
08/05
HOUSE BILL 542-FN-A
AN ACT establishing a grant program to support municipalities in updating their wetlands regulations.
SPONSORS: Rep. Grassie, Straf. 11; Rep. Vann, Hills. 24
COMMITTEE: Resources, Recreation and Development
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ANALYSIS
This bill establishes a grant program to support municipalities in adopting or updating their wetlands regulations.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
28Feb2019... 0182h 19-0396
08/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Nineteen
AN ACT establishing a grant program to support municipalities in updating their wetlands regulations.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Subparagraph; Application of Receipts; Wetlands Regulations Fund. Amend RSA 6:12, I(b) by inserting after subparagraph (343) the following new subparagraph:
(344) Moneys deposited in the wetlands regulations fund established in RSA 482-A:15-b.
2 New Section; Wetlands Regulations Fund. Amend RSA 482-A by inserting after section 15-a the following new section:
482-A:15-b Wetlands Regulations Fund.
I. There is hereby established within the office of the state treasurer the wetlands regulations fund. This fund shall be administered by the office of strategic initiatives and shall be nonlapsing and continually appropriated to the office of strategic initiatives. Grants and donations from federal and private sources may be deposited in this fund. The fund shall be used to assist municipalities in updating or adopting wetlands regulations.
II. A municipality may apply to the office of strategic initiatives for a grant from the wetlands regulations fund in order to update or adopt municipal wetlands regulations. Priority shall be given to requests in the following order:
(a) Municipalities that work with a regional planning commission.
(b) Municipalities that have no wetlands regulations.
(c) Municipalities that have identified a critical need for wetlands protection.
(d) Municipalities with wetlands regulations that need updating.
III. Applications shall be accepted on a revolving basis. The director of the office of strategic initiatives shall respond to the request within 30 days of its receipt.
3 Appropriation. The sum of $350,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020 is hereby appropriated to the office of strategic initiatives to be deposited in the wetlands regulations fund. From this amount, $300,000 shall be used for distributing grants to municipalities adopting or updating municipal wetlands regulations, and $50,000 shall be used by the office of strategic initiatives to update the "Guidebook on Buffers and Surface Waters for New Hampshire Municipalities" and to create a model wetlands ordinance. This appropriation is in addition to any other funds appropriated to the office of strategic initiatives. The governor is authorized to draw a warrant for said sum out of any money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated.
4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.
19-0396
1/9/19
HB 542-FN-A- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT establishing a grant program to support municipalities in updating their wetlands regulations.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None
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| Estimated Increase / (Decrease) | |||
STATE: | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 |
Appropriation | $350,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | Indeterminable Increase | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ X ] Other - Wetlands Regulations Fund | |||
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LOCAL: |
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Revenue | $300,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | Indeterminable Increase | $0 | $0 | $0 |
METHODOLOGY:
This bill creates a nonlapsing Wetlands Regulations Fund for the Office of Strategic Initiatives to assist municipalities in updating or adopting wetlands regulations. The bill includes an appropriation of $350,000 in FY 2020 with $300,000 of the appropriations to be distributed in grants to municipalities and $50,000 to be utilized to update the “Guidebook on Buffers and Surface Waters for New Hampshire Municipalities.” The Office of Strategic Initiatives is unable to anticipate the impact on expenditures to process grants or update the guidebook as required in this bill. Therefore, this bill will have an indeterminable impact on expenditures.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Office of Strategic Initiatives
