TITLE II
COUNTIES
Chapter 28-A
COUNTY CHARTERS
Section 28-A:1
28-A:1 Charter Commission; Petition; Establishment. –
I. (a) A person registered to vote within the county may file a declaration of intent to petition the establishment of a county charter commission with the board of commissioners.
(b) Petitions shall be on paper of uniform size and may consist of as many individual pages as are necessary provided that a separate petition shall be utilized for each municipality in which signatures are solicited. The petition circulated in each municipality and ward, where wards exist, shall bear the heading "PETITION FOR COUNTY CHARTER COMMISSION", underneath which shall be printed "Municipality of __________ ; Ward __________ ," followed by the paragraph:
"Each of the undersigned voters respectfully requests the county convention to establish a charter commission for the purpose of studying the need for and/or preparing a county charter to be submitted to the voters of the County of __________ ."
(c) Each signature shall be in ink or other indelible instrument and shall be followed by the place of residence with street and number, if any. No petition shall contain any party or political designation.
(d) Before submission to the board of commissioners, each petition shall be certified by the clerk of the municipality in which it was circulated as to the voting registration of the signatories. The clerk shall strike those names who are found not to be registered voters; however, this shall not in any way invalidate the remaining names.
II. (a) Upon submission of petitions totalling at least 10 percent of the registered voters within the county, the board of commissioners shall convene the county convention within 60 days to vote upon the following question:
"Shall a county charter commission be established for the purpose of studying the need for a written county charter establishing the structure of county government and, if the commission deems necessary, for the purpose of drafting a county charter for submission to the voters?"
(b) If 2/3 of the county convention members present and voting vote to establish a charter commission, a nominating committee shall be established consisting of the 3 county commissioners and 4 members of the executive committee of the county convention selected by the chairman of the county convention. The nominating committee shall present a list of charter commissioners to the full convention. The county convention shall accept or reject the list without amendments by a simple majority vote. In the event of rejection, the nominating committee shall prepare a new slate of nominees, including any it may desire to renominate, for submission to the convention within 30 days. If the second slate of nominees is rejected, the nominating committee shall prepare a third and final list, which shall constitute the charter commission without further action by the convention.
(c) If the county convention votes against the establishment of a charter commission, the board of commissioners shall not submit the above question to the county convention for at least 2 calendar years following the negative vote.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.
Section 28-A:2
28-A:2 Membership; Appointments. –
The nominating committee shall observe the following rules in nominating the 15 member charter commission:
I. No more than 5 members shall be appointed from each commissioner voting district.
II. The members shall be appointed as equally as possible from each of the commissioner voting districts. For counties without districts, the appointees shall represent varied geographical areas of the county.
III. No more than 60 percent of the members shall be members of the same political party.
IV. At least one member shall be the chairman of the board of commissioners or his designee from the county.
V. At least 3 members shall be currently elected state representatives from the county.
VI. At least 5 members shall not currently hold an elective office in any level of government.
VII. All members shall be persons with expertise in government structure, the law, or other skills useful to the commission.
VIII. Up to 2 members may be nonresidents who have special knowledge or expertise in government organization, law, or other skills useful to the commission.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.
Section 28-A:3
28-A:3 Scope of Authorization; Procedure; Meetings; Budget. –
I. A charter commission established under this chapter may recommend a charter which meets the needs of the county in terms of structure and operation to include, but not be limited to, such matters as: numbers and duties of elected officials, except elected officials specified by the Constitution of the state of New Hampshire; method of electing officials; manner of filling vacancies; powers of nomination, appointment and confirmation; terms of office; establishment and operations of nonconstitutional offices, agencies and departments; and adoption of the county budget.
II. The charter commission shall meet within 30 days of its appointment at a meeting called by the chairman of the board of commissioners. At this meeting, the charter commission shall organize by electing from its members a chairman, a vice chairman, and clerk-secretary. The commission shall also prepare a schedule for future meetings. All meetings, hearings and deliberations of the charter commission shall be subject to RSA 91-A.
III. Vacancies occurring on the commission shall be filled promptly by the nominating committee using the same rules for selection as in RSA 28-A:2. Members shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses lawfully incurred by them in the performance of their duties.
IV. The charter commission shall adopt rules governing the conduct of its meetings and proceedings in accordance with an accepted parliamentary procedure, shall keep appropriate records, and may employ such legal, research, clerical, or other employees and consultants as are deemed necessary within the limits of its budget.
V. The county commissioners shall provide the charter commission with suitable space and with reasonable access to county facilities for holding public hearings, may contribute clerical and other assistance to such commission, and shall permit reasonable access to consult with and obtain advice and information from county officers, officials, and employees during ordinary working hours.
VI. Within 60 days after its organizational meeting, the charter commission shall hold 3 public hearings in 3 separate locations within the county for the purpose of receiving information, views, comments, and other pertinent material relative to its functions. All public hearings before a charter commission shall be held within the county at such times and places as may be specified in a notice published at least 10 days prior to the hearing in a newspaper having general circulation in the county, but public hearings may be adjourned and reconvened from time to time without further published notice.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.
Section 28-A:4
28-A:4 Charter Commission Report; Referendum. –
I. Within 9 months after its election, the charter commission, if it determines a charter shall be proposed, shall prepare a preliminary report including the text of the charter which the commission intends shall be submitted to the voters and any explanatory information the commission deems desirable, and shall cause such report to be printed and circulated to the board of commissioners, the county convention, the secretary of state, all clerks of municipalities and each public library within the county. Within 12 months after its election, the charter commission shall submit to the board of commissioners and the county convention its final report, which shall include the full text and explanation of the proposed new charter or charter revision, such comments as the commission deems desirable, an indication of the major differences between any current and proposed charters, and a written opinion by an attorney admitted to the bar of this state that the proposed charter or charter revision is not in conflict with the Constitution or the general laws. Minority reports, if filed, shall not exceed 1,000 words.
II. (a) Upon the filing of the final report, the board of commissioners shall forward the proposed new charter to the secretary of state, who shall submit the question of adoption of the charter to the voters on the official ballot used within the county at the next state general election after the filing of the final report. The charter commission shall draft the question and it may expand or elaborate on the question; however, the substance of the question shall be as follows:
"Shall the proposed charter for the county (name of county) be adopted as recommended by the charter commission?"
(b) The charter commission shall continue in existence for 30 days after submission of the question to the voters.
(c) In order for the charter to be adopted, at least 2/3 of the voters voting on the question must vote "yes" on the charter question. The results of the vote on this question shall be forwarded by the municipal clerks to the secretary of state in the same manner as the results of other balloting are reported.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.
Section 28-A:5
28-A:5 Transition Period and Amendments. –
Any charter proposed by the charter commission shall include transition provisions under which the governmental structure set out in the charter shall take effect. Any proposed charter shall also contain provisions for amendment of the charter, which amendment process shall require approval by 2/3 of the voters of the county voting on the question.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.
Section 28-A:6
28-A:6 Recording. –
Within 10 days after the results of the election have been declared, the secretary of state shall prepare and sign duplicate certificates attesting to the adoption or rejection of the charter. One certificate shall be recorded in the office of the secretary of state and one certificate shall be deposited in the office of the county commissioners.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.
Section 28-A:7
28-A:7 Conflict of Laws. –
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, county charters adopted pursuant to this chapter shall take precedence over any other general or special laws relating to county government structure and procedures.
Source. 1986, 112:1, eff. July 19, 1986.