HB1230: relative to abandoned deposits held by telephone utilities and relative to public interest payphones.

CHAPTER 132

HB 1230-FN – FINAL VERSION

11Mar2004… 0492h

04/22/04 1180s

6May2004… 1530eba

2004 SESSION

03-2052

03/10

HOUSE BILL 1230-FN

AN ACT relative to abandoned deposits held by telephone utilities and relative to public interest payphones.

SPONSORS: Rep. Phinizy, Sull 23; Rep. Alger, Graf 14; Rep. Ferland, Sull 23; Sen. Estabrook, Dist 21

COMMITTEE: Science, Technology and Energy

ANALYSIS

This bill:

I. Establishes requirements relative to public interest payphones.

II. Establishes a public interest payphone fund to fund the maintenance of public interest payphones.

III. Requires payment of a portion of abandoned deposits held by telephone utilities into the public interest payphone fund.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

11Mar2004… 0492h

04/22/04 1180s

6May2004… 1530eba

03-2052

03/10

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Four

AN ACT relative to abandoned deposits held by telephone utilities and relative to public interest payphones.

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

132:1 New Subparagraph; General Revenue Exceptions; Public Interest Payphone Fund. Amend RSA 6:12, I(b) by inserting after subparagraph (227) the following new subparagraph:

(228) Moneys deposited in the public interest payphone fund established in RSA 374:22-q.

132:2 New Subdivision; Public Interest Payphones. Amend RSA 374 by inserting after section 22-p the following new subdivision:

Public Interest Payphones

374:22-q Public Interest Payphones.

I. There is hereby established a public interest payphone fund into which shall only be deposited moneys received pursuant to RSA 471-C:8, IV and this paragraph. The state treasurer may invest moneys in the fund as provided by law, with interest received on such investment credited to the fund. Moneys in the fund shall be nonlapsing and continually appropriated to the commission to be used only to fund the maintenance of public interest payphones. At the end of each biennium, any moneys in excess of $30,000 shall be transferred to the general fund.

II. “Public interest payphone” means a payphone or payphone site which the commission has determined to be necessary in the interest of public health, safety, or welfare, where there would otherwise not be a payphone, in accordance with 47 U.S.C. section 276(b)(2). The owner or person in control of the payphone site may object in writing to the commission to the designation of the public interest payphone. The commission shall not designate a payphone or payphone site as a public interest payphone if such objection is received by the commission prior to designation; if the objection is received after designation, the commission shall remove the designation immediately upon receipt of the objection. The commission shall make payment of fair compensation from the fund to providers of payphones that have been designated by the commission as public interest payphones, where such providers are required by the commission to maintain the payphones. No other state or state associated funds shall be used to maintain public interest payphones other than those contained in the fund, without further authorization from the legislature.

III. Any public utility or non-utility pay telephone services provider that operates any plant or equipment or any part of same for the conveyance of telephone or telegraph messages that elects to remove the last pay telephone at a site shall provide prior written notice to the commission, to the owner of the property where the payphone is located, and to the public of the intended removal of the payphone. The provider shall notify the commission and the owner at least 60 days prior to removal. Posting notice on the payphone at least 30 days prior to removal shall constitute adequate public notice. The notice shall include notification that any person may file a petition with the commission to designate the payphone as a public interest payphone. Once a payphone or payphone site has been designated as a public interest payphone, the payphone may not be removed unless the commission removes the public interest payphone designation. The commission shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, to implement this subdivision.

132:3 New Paragraph; Custody and Escheat of Unclaimed and Abandoned Property; Deposits as Held by Utilities; Telephone Utilities. Amend RSA 471-C:8 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:

IV. Any public utility that operates any plant or equipment or any part of same for the conveyance of telephone or telegraph messages shall pay 85 percent of the funds which would have been presumed to be abandoned under paragraph I to the public interest payphone fund established under RSA 374:22-q. The utility shall remain obligated to file its report of such abandoned property as required by RSA 471-C:19, and shall remit the remaining 15 percent of the funds, together with the report required under RSA 471-C:21, I, to be used to compensate the administrator for the costs of notice and publication under RSA 471-C:20.

132:4 Payment or Delivery of Abandoned Property; Telephone Utility Deposits. Amend RSA 471-C:21, I to read as follows:

I. A person who is required to file a report under RSA 471-C:19 shall pay or deliver to the administrator all abandoned property required to be reported at the time of filing the report except as otherwise provided in RSA 471-C:8, II and IV.

132:5 Custody and Escheat of Unclaimed and Abandoned Property; Filing of Claim With Administrator; Telephone Utility Deposits. Amend RSA 471-C:26, I(b) to read as follows:

(b) A person claiming an abandoned utility deposit or any other abandoned property under the provisions of RSA 471-C:8 that was not deposited with the administrator pursuant to RSA 471-C:8, II or IV, may file a claim on a form prescribed by the administrator and verified by the claimant. Any claim paid by the administrator under this paragraph, shall be reimbursable by the utility company which originally reported the property as abandoned. The utility company shall remit such payment upon notification of the claim by the administrator.

132:6 Repeal. RSA 374:22-p, VI and VII, relative to public interest payphones, is repealed.

132:7 Effective Date.

I. Sections 3-5 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2005.

II. The remainder of this act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.

(Approved: May 19, 2004)

(Effective Date: I. Sections 3-5 shall take effect July 1, 2005.

II. Remainder shall take effect July 18, 2004)