HB 1612-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2024 SESSION
24-2416
10/08
HOUSE BILL 1612-FN
SPONSORS: Rep. Grassie, Straf. 8; Rep. Muns, Rock. 29; Rep. O'Neil, Rock. 29; Rep. Balboni, Rock. 38; Rep. Parshall, Ches. 8; Rep. Grote, Rock. 24; Sen. Altschiller, Dist 24
COMMITTEE: Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This bill requires the department of health and human services to create a network of real-time monitoring stations to ascertain the movement, dispersal and re-concentration of radioactive materials, and make the data available to the general public.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
24-2416
10/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Four
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Section; Department of Health and Human Services; Public Health; Chronic Diseases; Report on Radioactive Materials. Amend RSA 141-B by inserting after section 10 the following new section:
141-B:11 Report on Radioactive Materials.
I. The department shall create a network of real-time monitoring stations to ascertain the movement, dispersal and re-concentration of any radioactive materials whether in gaseous, liquid or solid form. The network will be capable of expansion to include other monitoring devices, as directed by the department to assess air quality that could impact public health.
II. The department shall conduct periodic surveys to determine the extent and seriousness of radiation doses received by humans and animal life resulting from the re-concentration of radioactive materials. Such surveys and monitoring programs may be conducted in cooperation with other departments or agencies of the this state or of any other state, or with the federal environmental protection agency, the nuclear regulatory commission, or any other federal agency, or with any other suitable qualified persons or institutions.
III. The department shall publish and make available to the general public or to any interested party on a semi-annual basis, a summary and discussion of the results of the monitoring and surveillance program for the previous 6 months, including the results of any surveys completed under provisions of this section.
IV. The commissioner of the department of health and human services may allocate state emergency planning funds within the department to assess air pollutants for this section, which shall include assessments in relation to elevated rates of pediatric rhabdomyosarcoma, pleuropulmonary blastoma and brain cancers in an area extending for a 10-mile radius from the Seabrook Station nuclear facility.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 90 days after its passage.
24-2416
12/12/23
HB 1612-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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Estimated State Impact - Increase / (Decrease) | ||||||
| FY 2024 | FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | ||
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Revenue Fund(s) | None | |||||
Expenditures | $0 | $1,333,000 - $1,883,000 | $545,000 - $845,000 | $$551,000 - $851,000 | ||
Funding Source(s) | General Fund | |||||
Appropriations | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
• Does this bill provide sufficient funding to cover estimated expenditures? [X] No • Does this bill authorize new positions to implement this bill? [X] No | ||||||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to create and operate a network of real-time monitoring stations to ascertain the movement, dispersal and re-concentration of any radioactive materials whether in gaseous, liquid or solid form. The Department is tasked with conducting periodic surveys to determine the extent and seriousness of radiation doses received by human and animal life resulting from the re-concentration of radioactive materials. In addition, the Department must publish on a semi-annual basis a summary and discussion of the results of the monitoring and surveillance program for the previous six months, including the results of any surveys completed.
The Department states that pricing for the network will be determined by the number of stations created and continuously operated. It assumes six additional stations will be established. In 2020, the Department estimated that each station would cost $3,957 to purchase ($23,742 in total). Client licenses were estimated to be $16,026 and software integration were estimated at $11,300 for all six stations. In 2020, total costs were estimated to be $51,068 in start-up with additional costs of $7,778 for annual maintenance. The Department states that it was unable to get an updated quotation from the vendor for the above listed equipment software licenses and integration needs to meet all of the monitoring requirements specified in the bill. For the purposes of estimating a range for network costs, the Department factored in an additional 30% for price increases, resulting in $66,388 in start-up costs and $10,111 for annual maintenance.
The Department reports that the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) currently monitors radiation exposure at the two existing stations in Portsmouth and Concord; however, the EPA is no longer adding additional stations to its monitoring network. To create and operate a network to gather data from the six new stations along with the existing two stations, the Department would need to establish a contract with a vendor to develop a system similar to EPA’s RadNet data system. Based on other IT-related contracts, the Department estimates that it would cost in the range of $750,000 to $1,000,000 to establish the network and an additional $300,000 to $600,000 in annual maintenance and operation costs.
In addition to the costs above, the Departments expects it will need to hire a laboratory scientist III (labor grade 20) and a business systems analyst (labor grade 28). Position costs are as follows, assuming a start date of September 1, 2024:
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 |
Lab Scientist III (LG 20) |
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Salary | $46,000 | $54,800 | $56,700 |
Benefits | $28,700 | $34,300 | $34,700 |
Miscellaneous | $18,000 | $15,600 | $15,600 |
Position Total | $92,700 | $104,700 | $107,000 |
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Bus. Systems Analyst (LG 28) |
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Salary | $65,100 | $77,600 | $80,400 |
Benefits | $32,900 | $39,200 | $39,800 |
Miscellaneous | $15,500 | $13,100 | $13,100 |
Position Total | $113,500 | $129,900 | $133,300 |
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Grand Total | $206,200 | $234,600 | $240,300 |
Given the above assumptions, and assuming all six stations could be implemented in FY 25, below are the low- and high-end estimates for the total costs needed to develop and maintain the system established by the bill:
Total Cost Estimates (Low End) |
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| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 |
Position Costs | $206,200 | $234,600 | $240,300 |
Startup Costs for Six Stations | $66,388 | $0 | $0 |
Maintenance for Six Stations | $10,111 | $10,111 | $10,111 |
Startup Costs for Monitoring Network | $750,000 | $0 | $0 |
Maintenance for Monitoring Network | $300,000 | $300,000 | $300,000 |
Total | $1,332,699 | $544,711 | $550,411 |
Total Cost Estimates (High End) |
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| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 |
Position Costs | $206,200 | $234,600 | $240,300 |
Startup Costs for Six Stations | $66,388 | $0 | $0 |
Maintenance for Six Stations | $10,111 | $10,111 | $10,111 |
Startup Costs for Monitoring Network | $1,000,000 | $0 | $0 |
Maintenance for Monitoring Network | $600,000 | $600,000 | $600,000 |
Total | $1,882,699 | $844,711 | $850,411 |
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Health and Human Services