HB 1639-FN – AS INTRODUCED
2006 SESSION
09/04
HOUSE BILL 1639-FN
AN ACT prohibiting the confiscation of lawfully owned and lawfully carried firearms during a state of emergency.
SPONSORS: Rep. Hopfgarten, Rock 5; Rep. Bicknell, Rock 1; Rep. Lund, Rock 5; Rep. Hellwig, Hills 27
COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
This bill prohibits law enforcement officers and other public officials from confiscating lawfully owned and lawfully carried firearms during a state of emergency.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
06-2881
09/04
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Six
AN ACT prohibiting the confiscation of lawfully owned and lawfully carried firearms during a state of emergency.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Paragraph; State of Emergency; Confiscation of Firearms Prohibited. Amend RSA 4:46 by inserting after paragraph VI the following new paragraph:
VII.(a) Any law enforcement officer, person acting as a law enforcement officer, or other public official who confiscates or attempts to confiscate lawfully carried or lawfully owned firearms in this state during a declared state of emergency shall be charged with a class A felony.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of RSA 651:2, any violation of this paragraph shall be punishable by a fine of not less than $5,000, a letter of reprimand by the violator’s chief presiding law enforcement officer, and imprisonment for not less than 30 days in a state correctional facility.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
LBAO
06-2881
11/2/05
HB 1639-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT prohibiting the confiscation of lawfully owned and lawfully carried firearms during a state of emergency.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Judicial Branch, Departments of Justice, Corrections and Safety and Judicial Council indicate this bill will increase state expenditures by an indeterminable amount in fiscal year 2007 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on state, county, and local revenue or county and local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Judicial Branch indicated a class A felony requires an average of 185 hours of superior court time and additional costs at the district court including: preliminary hearings, clerical time, costs for jury and other courtroom personnel. The Branch stated it would only take a few cases for costs to exceed $10,000, however, because a state of emergency is rare and the likelihood of this offense is even rarer, the Branch expects this bill will have a minimal fiscal impact.
The Department of Justice stated this bill criminalizes conduct that would be taken by a police officer or public official acting in his or her official capacity. The Criminal Justice Bureau would prosecute this type of conduct, therefore this bill would have a fiscal impact on state expenditures. The Department is not able to estimate if or how often guns would be confiscated during a state of emergency.
The Judicial Council assumes that any cases arising from the enactment of this bill for which the Indigent Defense Fund may be liable, will in the first instance, be handled by the public defender or contract attorney who accept these cases on a fixed fee basis of $756.25 per felony charged. If an assigned counsel attorney must be used, the hourly rate of $60 with a fee cap of $3,000 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. Any case where a defendant has been found guilty may also result in appeals to either the Superior Court or to the Supreme Court which would have a cost implication for Indigent Defense expenditures made by the State. The Council is unable to predict the number of cases that may result from the passage of this bill, and is unable to determine the exact fiscal impact at this time.
The Department of Corrections stated it is not able to estimate the number of individuals who would be sentenced under this legislation but stated the average annual cost of incarcerating an individual in fiscal year 2005 was $28,143.
The Department of Safety stated it is not able to determine the number of individuals who would violate this law or what the penalties would be. The Department stated that fines assessed through the court system would be deposited into the general fund and would also impact the Police Standards and Training and Victims Assistance Funds.