CHAPTER 294

HB 1579-FN – FINAL VERSION

05Mar2008… 0550h

05/14/08 1858s

04Jun2008… 2116eba

2008 SESSION

08-2202

06/03

HOUSE BILL 1579-FN

AN ACT establishing a commission to study issues relating to land development and land development regulation in New Hampshire and establishing a surcharge on certain documents related to real property.

SPONSORS: Rep. J. Day, Rock 13

COMMITTEE: Resources, Recreation and Development

AMENDED ANALYSIS

This bill:

I. Establishes a commission to study issues relating to land development and land development regulation in New Hampshire.

II. Clarifies the additional charge on filing certain documents with the register of deeds for the land and community heritage investment program trust fund.

III. Authorizes the commissioner of the department of revenue administration to administer the additional charge.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

05Mar2008… 0550h

05/14/08 1858s

04Jun2008… 2116eba

08-2202

06/03

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Eight

AN ACT establishing a commission to study issues relating to land development and land development regulation in New Hampshire and establishing a surcharge on certain documents related to real property.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

294:1 Commission Established. There is established a commission to study land development regulations and the effects of land development within upland areas that may affect wetlands and surface waters of the state.

294:2 Membership and Compensation.

I. The members of the commission shall be as follows:

(a) Two members of the house of representatives, including at least one member of the resources, recreation, and development committee, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.

(b) One member of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.

(c) The commissioner of the department of environmental services, or designee.

(d) The executive director of the fish and game department, or designee.

(e) The director of the office of energy and planning, or designee.

(f) The commissioner of the department of resources and economic development, or designee;

(g) A representative of the New Hampshire Association of Regional Planning Commissions, appointed by that organization.

(h) A representative of the New Hampshire Municipal Association, appointed by that organization.

(i) A representative of the Home Builders and Remodelers Association of New Hampshire, appointed by that organization.

(j) A representative of the Associated General Contractors of New Hampshire, appointed by that organization.

(k) A representative of the New Hampshire Association of Conservation Commissions, appointed by that organization.

(l) A representative of the New Hampshire Association of Natural Resource Scientists appointed by that organization.

(m) A representative of the New Hampshire Audubon Society, appointed by that organization.

(n) A representative of the United States Natural Resources Conservation Service, appointed by that organization.

(o) A landowner appointed by the New Hampshire Timberland Owners Association.

(p) A representative of the Business and Industry Association, appointed by that organization.

(q) A representative of the American Council of Engineering Companies of New Hampshire (ACEC-NH), appointed by that organization.

(r) A representative of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors appointed by that organization.

(s) A representative of the New Hampshire Bankers Association appointed by that organization.

II. Legislative members of the commission shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the commission.

294:3 Duties. The commission shall study:

I. The effects of land development on surface and ground water quality and quantity, and terrestrial and aquatic habitat.

II. The adequacy and consistency of local, state, and federal programs as they relate to the regulation and management of land development, including regulations of wetland buffers and setbacks, stormwater management, and cumulative effects of development.

III. The opportunities for integration of land use controls, open space protection techniques, and environmental and public health protection laws to promote land development patterns that maintain ecosystem health and integrity while providing desirable communities in which to live and work. This shall include study of any programs of this kind underway in other states or nations.

IV. The potential legal, fiscal, regulatory, and technical obstacles for creating an integrated approach to land development.

V. Legislation that may be necessary to implement the recommendations of the commission.

294:4 Chairperson. The members of the study commission shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the commission shall be called by the first-named house member. The first meeting of the commission shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section.

294:5 Report. The commission shall make an interim report on or before November 1, 2008, with a final report on its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation to the speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the senate, the house clerk, the senate clerk, the governor, and the state library on or before November 1, 2009.

294:6 Land and Community Heritage Investment Program; Real Estate Recording Surcharge; Purpose.

I. The purpose of RSA 478:17-g is to ensure that the registers of deeds serve as the initial point in a comprehensive service system that protects the interests in real property for persons recording documents with the registers. The recording of documents with the register of deeds, together with the other related state services, allows for the protection of real estate and other property interests, stability in the conveyance and mortgaging of realty, access to capital for the purchase of real estate, and protection of the value of real property in New Hampshire.

II. The registers of deeds function as the initial and central point in the state’s comprehensive service framework to protect interests in real property. These comprehensive services include enforcement of property interests by the judicial system, regulation of mortgage lenders by the banking department, and investment by the state to preserve the state’s most important natural, cultural, and historical resources, which protect the long-term property values for landowners across the state. The recording stamp fee is intended to defray the state’s costs in administering its comprehensive system of services to protect the interests landowners have in real property, as evidenced by the recording of documents with the registers of deeds.

294:7 Register of Deeds; Land and Community Heritage Investment Program; Funding and Stamps. RSA 478:17-g is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:

478:17-g Recording Fees and Surcharge. Unless otherwise specified, the register of deeds in each county shall be entitled to the following fees and shall collect the land and community heritage investment program surcharge as follows:

I. The charge for recording each document shall be $10 for the first recorded page plus $4 for each additional recorded page. The charge for assignments of mortgages shall be $10 for the first recorded page, including the first mortgage assigned, plus $5 for each additional mortgage assigned plus $4 for each additional recorded page. The charge for recording a discharge of a mortgage, a release of a lien, or filings pursuant to RSA 21-J, RSA 260, RSA 282-A, RSA 382-A, RSA 439, RSA 450, RSA 454-B, RSA 498, RSA 511, or RSA 511-A shall be $15 for the first recorded page plus $4 for each additional recorded page. The charge for recording each plan shall be $9 for the first 200 square inches or portion thereof and $2.50 for each additional 100 square inches or portion thereof. The charges provided for herein shall include the register’s responsibility to provide information in compliance with RSA 478:14.

II.(a) An additional charge of $25 shall also be assessed for recording each deed, mortgage, mortgage discharge or plan, but shall not be assessed for the recording of any other document. The charge provided for herein shall be paid by the grantee in a deed, the grantor in a mortgage, the person or entity discharging a mortgage in the case of a discharge, and the primary owner of property shown on a plan. The charge provided for in this section shall not be assessed for the recording of any documents in which the United States or any instrumentality thereof, the state, a state agency, a county, a municipality, a village district, or a school district is a party.

(b) The collection of the assessment provided for by this section shall be administered by the commissioner of the department of revenue administration, and all powers and duties available to the commissioner to enforce and administer laws under RSA 21-J and RSA 78-B shall apply to the administration and enforcement of this paragraph. The commissioner may adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, relative to the administration of this paragraph. Each register of deeds shall retain 4 percent of the total additional charges collected as payment for the service of collecting the additional charges, which shall be deducted prior to remitting the revenue collected.

(c) Each register of deeds shall remit the additional charges collected under subparagraph (a) to the department of revenue administration monthly or more often. All funds received shall be paid over to the state treasurer for deposit in the trust fund for the land and community heritage investment program established under RSA 227-M:7.

(d) The payment of the additional charge imposed by subparagraph (a) shall be evidenced by stamps, or other indicia as approved by the commissioner of the department of revenue administration, attached to the recorded instrument.

III. For copying any document or providing any other service, the charge shall be established and posted by the register of deeds.

294:8 Appropriation and Distribution of Funds. Amend 2007, 263:47 to read as follows:

263:47 Appropriation; Department of Revenue Administration. The sum of $50,000 is hereby appropriated to the department of revenue administration for the [fiscal year] biennium ending June 30, 2009, to assist county registers of deeds with computer programming changes and administrative costs necessary to implement the land and community heritage investment program surcharge under RSA 478:17-g, I-a, as inserted by section 45 of this act. The commissioner of the department of revenue administration may either distribute such funds to a register of deeds or directly pay for such costs on behalf of a register of deeds. The governor is authorized to draw a warrant for said sum out of any money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated.

294:9 Effective Date.

I. Section 7 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2008 at 12:01 a.m.

II. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.

Approved: June 27, 2008

Effective Date: I. Section 7 shall take effect July 1, 2008 at 12:01 a.m.

II. Remainder shall take effect June 27, 2008.