I. Under this section, the following terms shall be construed as follows:
(a) "Person" means any operator, distributor, dealer, or broker who, or any wholesale terminal facility which, imports or causes to be imported oil into the state. "Person" does not mean an oil spill cleanup organization or other person acting to contain, remove, cleanup, restore or take other remedial or corrective action or measures with regard to the spillage or discharge of oil or threatened spillage or discharge of oil.
(b) "Import" means, for the purpose of determining the license fees under this section, any import of oil into this state by any person whether by vessel, pipeline, truck, railroad or any other contrivance to the extent that the import of such oil has not been previously subject to the license fee under this section. Fueling or refueling of vessels employed in transfer operations shall not be included.
(c) "Oil" means petroleum products and their by-products including, but not limited to, crude, motor fuels, aviation fuels, and any oil used for heating, processing, or generating electricity. The term "oil" shall not include natural gas, liquified petroleum gas, or synthetic natural gas regardless of derivation or source.
[Paragraph II effective until July 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m.; see also paragraph II set out below.]
II. Any person who imports or causes to be imported oil into the state, except those using oil pipelines, railroads, and highways to transport oil products between states other than New Hampshire or for international transport of oil products, shall be licensed by the department of safety under this chapter. The annual fee for the license shall be $0.01625 per gallon of on-road and off-road gasoline and diesel fuel, $0.01375 per gallon of fuel oil, diesel products, and used oil for on-premise heating, $0.04125 per gallon of motor oil and $.00125 per gallon of all other oil imported into this state. The fee shall be paid monthly by such person to the department of safety. The department of safety shall deposit the first $125,000 of fees paid in each fiscal year into the general fund. The remainder shall be deposited into the oil pollution control fund established under RSA 146-A:11-a, and the oil discharge and disposal cleanup established under RSA 146-D:3, I, based on an allocation determined for each fiscal year by the department of environmental services and the oil fund disbursement board. Imposition of the fee shall be based on the record of the person and certified as accurate to the department of safety.
[Paragraph II effective July 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m.; see also paragraph II set out above.]
II. Any person who imports or causes to be imported oil into the state, except those using oil pipelines, railroads, and highways to transport oil products between states other than New Hampshire or for international transport of oil products, shall be licensed by the department of safety under this chapter. The annual fee for the license shall be $.00125 per gallon of oil imported into this state. The fee shall be paid monthly by such person to the department of safety. The department of safety shall deposit the first $125,000 of fees paid in each fiscal year into the general fund. The remainder shall be deposited into the oil pollution control fund administered by the department of environmental services. Imposition of the fee shall be based on the record of the person and certified as accurate to the department of safety.
[Paragraph II-a repealed by 2015, 142:16, effective July 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m.]
II-a. The collection of oil pollution license fees established in paragraph II shall be discontinued if the combined, un-obligated balance in the oil pollution control fund and oil discharge and disposal cleanup fund exceeds $5,000,000. Collection shall be reinstated upon determination of need for additional fees by the commissioner of the department of environmental services and the oil fund disbursement board.
III. Any person who imports or causes to be imported oil into the state and who is licensed under this chapter may seek, and shall receive for valid claims, an import credit for oil which the person transfers out of state during any reporting period.
[Paragraph IV effective until July 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m.; see also paragraph IV set out below.]
IV. Every person who imports or causes to be imported oil shall file a monthly report for the preceding month and shall include all fees due for that reporting period with the department of safety on or before the twentieth day of the following calendar month. Failure to file by the required date or to enclose fees due shall result in the assessment of a 10 percent penalty to be added to the amount of fees due for that month. If no fees are due, a penalty of $1 per day shall be assessed. Said penalty shall immediately accrue and thereafter the overdue fees and the penalty shall bear interest at the rate established by the commissioner of safety under RSA 260:40-a. Penalties and interest collected shall be deposited into the oil pollution control fund and oil discharge and disposal cleanup fund based on an allocation determined for each fiscal year by the commissioner of the department of environmental services and the oil fund disbursement board. The board, in consultation with the department may waive all or any portion of penalties or interest for good cause.
[Paragraph IV effective July 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m.; see also paragraph IV set out above.]
IV. Every person who imports or causes to be imported oil shall file a monthly report for the preceding month and shall include all fees due for that reporting period with the department of safety on or before the twentieth day of the following calendar month. Failure to file by the required date or to enclose fees due shall result in the assessment of a 10 percent penalty to be added to the amount of fees due for that month. If no fees are due, a penalty of $1 per day shall be assessed. Said penalty shall immediately accrue and thereafter the overdue fees and the penalty shall bear interest at the rate established by the commissioner of safety under RSA 260:40-a. The department may waive all or any portion of penalties or interest for good cause.
V. Unless otherwise provided, any person who violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if a natural person or guilty of a felony if any other person.
Source. 1985, 287:6. 1986, 202:6, I(a). 1987, 377:11, 13. 1988, 271:5. 1989, 230:1-5. 1990, 3:97, 98. 1991, 322:5, 6. 1993, 171:1. 1994, 364:9. 1996, 228:106, 108. 2003, 187:3, 4, eff. July 1, 2003. 2014, 137:3, eff. June 16, 2014. 2015, 142:4, 6, 7, eff. July 1, 2015; 142:5, 8, 16, eff. July 1, 2025 at 12:01 a.m.