HB618: (3rd New Title) making technical corrections to certain local property tax laws, relative to posting of municipal budgets, relative to claims for low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief, allowing the city of Manchester to issue certificates of occupancy and building permits for airport district aeronautical facilities, and authorizing Manchester Airport to tow and impound abandoned vehicles.

CHAPTER 238

HB 618-FN-A – FINAL VERSION

07Jan2004… 2533h

03/17/04 0745s

03/17/04 0859s

05/06/04 1419s

25May2004… 1622CofC

25May2004… 1690eba

2004 SESSION

03-0167

09/01

HOUSE BILL 618-FN-A

AN ACT making technical corrections to certain local property tax laws, relative to posting of municipal budgets, relative to claims for low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief, allowing the city of Manchester to issue certificates of occupancy and building permits for airport district aeronautical facilities, and authorizing Manchester Airport to tow and impound abandoned vehicles.

SPONSORS: Rep. Packard, Rock 75; Rep. Introne, Rock 75; Rep. Letourneau, Rock 77

COMMITTEE: Municipal and County Government

AMENDED ANALYSIS

This bill:

I. Makes technical corrections to certain local property tax laws allowing for exemptions.

II. Clarifies the requirements for posting of the budget with the warrant for a town or school district meeting.

III. Limits the filing period for late low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief claims to the November 1 after the June 30 filing deadline for that tax year. The bill extends the late filing allowance to claimants who have requested an extension for filing their federal income tax returns. The bill also authorizes the commissioner of the department of revenue to audit low and moderate income property tax relief claims up to 3 years after the claim has been paid.

IV. Provides that valid claims for low and moderate income homeowner property tax relief shall be paid from the education trust fund and authorizes the governor to draw a warrant to pay such claims regardless of the balance of the fund.

V. Allows the city of Manchester to issue certificates of occupancy and local building permits with respect to aeronautical facilities within the airport district.

VI. Allows Manchester Airport to tow and impound abandoned vehicles.

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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.

07Jan2004… 2533h

03/17/04 0745s

03/17/04 0859s

05/06/04 1419s

25May2004… 1622CofC

25May2004… 1690eba

03-0167

09/01

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Four

AN ACT making technical corrections to certain local property tax laws, relative to posting of municipal budgets, relative to claims for low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief, allowing the city of Manchester to issue certificates of occupancy and building permits for airport district aeronautical facilities, and authorizing Manchester Airport to tow and impound abandoned vehicles.

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

238:1 Elderly Exemption References Changed; Definitions. Amend RSA 72:29, VI to read as follows:

VI. For purposes of RSA 72:28, 29-a, 30, 31, 32, 33, 35, 36-a, 37, 37-a, 37-b, 38-a, [39, 43-b, 43-f, 43-h] 39-a, 62, 66, and 70, the ownership of real estate, as expressed by such words as “owner”, “owned” or “own”, shall include those who have equitable title or the beneficial interest for life in the subject property.

238:2 New Subparagraph; Exemption for Disabled; Residency Requirement. Amend RSA 72:37-b, III by inserting after subparagraph (b) the following new subparagraph:

(c) Has been a New Hampshire resident for at least 5 years.

238:3 Property Taxation; Conditions for Elderly Exemption. Amend RSA 72:39-a, II(d) to read as follows:

(d) Owned by a resident, or the resident’s spouse, either of whom meets the age requirement for the exemption claimed, and when they have been married to each other for at least 5 consecutive years.

238:4 Elderly Exemption; Adoption and Modification. Amend RSA 72:39-b, II to read as follows:

II. An elderly exemption, based on assessed value for qualified taxpayers, [shall] may be granted for a different dollar amount determined by the town or city, to a person 65 years of age up to 75 years, to a person 75 years of age up to 80 years, and to a person 80 years of age or older. To qualify, the person must have been a New Hampshire resident for at least 5 consecutive years, own the real estate individually or jointly, or if the real estate is owned by such person’s spouse, they must have been married to each other for at least 5 consecutive years. In addition, the taxpayer must have a net income in each applicable age group of not more than a dollar amount determined by the town or city of not less than $13,400 or, if married, a combined net income of not more than a dollar amount determined by the town or city of not less than $20,400; and own net assets not in excess of a dollar amount determined by the town or city of not less than $35,000 excluding the value of the person’s residence or, if married, combined net assets not in excess of a dollar amount determined by the town or city of not less than $35,000 excluding the value of the residence. Under no circumstances shall the amounts of the exemption for any age category be less than $5,000. The combined net asset amount for married persons shall apply to a surviving spouse until the sale or transfer of the property by the surviving spouse or until the remarriage of the surviving spouse.

238:5 Municipal Budget Law; Posting of Budget. Amend RSA 32:5, VII to read as follows:

VII. The governing body shall post certified copies of the budget, with the warrant for the meeting. The operating budget warrant article shall contain the amount as recommended by the budget committee if there is one. In the case of towns, the budget shall also be printed in the town report made available to the legislative body at least one week before the date of the annual meeting. A school district or village district may vote, under an article inserted in the warrant, to require the district to print its posted budget in an annual report made available to the district’s voters at least one week before the date of the annual meeting. Such district report may be separate or may be combined with the annual report of the town or towns within which the district is located.

238:6 Property Tax Relief; Exemption for Certain Late Filed Claims. Amend RSA 198:57, VI and VII to read as follows:

VI.(a) Complete applications for state tax relief shall be filed with the department of revenue administration between May 1 and June 30 following the due date of the final tax bill as defined in RSA 76:1-a for state education property taxes. [If an otherwise qualified claimant shall satisfy the commissioner that such claimant was prevented by accident, mistake, or misfortune from filing a complete application on or before June 30, the commissioner may receive the complete application at a later date and grant the relief for that tax year.]

(b) The commissioner may accept late filed, but complete, applications filed on or before November 1, under the following circumstances:

(1) The claimant satisfies the commissioner that the claimant was prevented from timely filing the application due to accident, mistake or misfortune.

(2) The claimant or other adult member of the household requested an extension of time to file his or her federal income tax return.

VII. Each claimant shall provide a copy of his or her federal income tax return and a copy of the federal income tax return for each adult member of the claimant's household for the corresponding tax period. Claimants and adult household members who were not required to file a federal tax return for the immediately prior tax period may submit an affidavit to such effect in lieu of a tax return which document shall include the affiant's social security number. A claimant or any other adult member of the household, who requested an extension to file his or federal income tax return, shall attach a copy of the federal extension to the claim. A claimant who asserts ownership in a homestead because he or she holds equitable title, or the beneficial interest for life, in the homestead shall also submit a copy of the document creating such interest and a copy of the federal tax return, if any, for the immediately prior tax period, of the trust holding legal title to the homestead. Any documents submitted shall be considered confidential, and protected under RSA 21-J:14.

238:7 New Paragraph; Property Tax Relief; Authority to Audit Claims for Relief. Amend RSA 198:59 by inserting after paragraph I the following new paragraph:

I-a. The commissioner shall have the authority to audit any claim for relief filed under this subdivision to determine whether the claim has been granted erroneously. Any such audit shall commence within 3 years after the claim has been granted. Any assessment made by the commissioner shall be subject to appeal in accordance with RSA 198:60, I.

238:8 Property Tax Relief; Appeal of Assessment. Amend RSA 198:60, I to read as follows:

I. Whenever the commissioner refuses to grant a claimant [a] tax relief, or after an audit, assesses an amount against the claimant for property tax relief granted including interest and applicable penalties for an erroneously paid claim, the claimant may appeal in writing within 30 days of notice of such refusal or assessment to the board of tax and land appeals.

238:9 Certificates of Occupancy and Other Building Permits.

I. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary and in furtherance of the Intermunicipal Agreements between the City of Manchester and the Town of Londonderry dated March 3, 1981 and March 9, 1992, as amended on June 16, 2003, the city of Manchester, through its department of aviation, shall, with respect to aeronautical facilities within the airport district, have the authority to issue certificates of occupancy and other permits which a local building inspector would be authorized to issue under the state building code as defined by RSA 155-A. “Aeronautical facilities” and “airport district” shall have the same meaning as such terms do in the above agreements, as they may be amended from time to time by the parties.

II. The authority granted in this section shall lapse in the event that the above-referenced agreements and/or their successors are amended by the city of Manchester and the town of Londonderry to eliminate the department of aviation’s authority to issue such permits.

238:10 Manchester Airport; Towing and Impounding Abandoned Vehicles.

I. Notwithstanding the provisions of RSA 262 or any other provision of law, Manchester Airport shall be authorized to tow, impound, and dispose of abandoned vehicles from parking lots, parking garages and roadways within the approved Airport district.

II. Abandoned vehicles towed and impounded shall be stored at a secure location until such time as they are claimed by an authorized person or disposed of in accordance with RSA 262:31 - RSA 262:40-c.

238:11 Low and Moderate Income Homeowners Property Tax Relief; Refund of Tax Claims. Amend RSA 198:61 to read as follows:

198:61 Refund of Tax Claims. The department of revenue administration shall review a claim for tax relief filed with it and, if such claim is determined to be valid, shall certify such amount to the state treasurer within 120 days[. The state treasurer shall pay the claim to the claimant] who shall pay such claims from funds in the education trust fund. Such sums are hereby appropriated and the governor is authorized to draw a warrant from the education trust fund to satisfy the state's obligation under this section. Such warrant for payment shall be issued regardless of the balance of funds available in the education trust fund. If the balance in the education trust fund, after the issuance of any such warrant, is less than zero, the commissioner of the department of revenue administration shall inform the fiscal committee and the governor and council of such balance. This reporting shall not in any way prohibit or delay the payment of valid claims. The department shall notify a claimant whose claim is rejected in whole or in part of such determination within 90 days of the department's receipt of the claim and all required documentation.

238:12 Municipal Budget Law; Posting of Budget; Contingent Version. RSA 32:5, VII is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:

VII.(a) The governing body shall post certified copies of the budget with the warrant for the meeting. The operating budget warrant article shall contain the amount as recommended by the budget committee if there is one. In the case of towns, the budget shall also be printed in the town report made available to the legislative body at least one week before the date of the annual meeting. A school district or village district may vote, under an article inserted in the warrant, to require the district to print its budget in an annual report made available to the district’s voters at least one week before the date of the annual meeting. Such district report may be separate or may be combined with the annual report of the town or towns within which the district is located.

(b) The governing body in official ballot referenda jurisdictions operating under RSA 40:13 shall post certified copies of the default budget form or any amended default budget form with the proposed operating budget and the warrant.

238:13 Contingency. If SB 407 of the 2004 legislative session becomes law, then section 12 of this act shall take effect at 12:01 a.m. on the effective date of SB 407. If SB 407 does not become law, then section 12 of this act shall not take effect.

238:14 Effective Date.

I. Section 12 of this act shall take effect as provided in section 13 of this act.

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

(Approved: June 15, 2004)

(Effective Date: I. Section 12 shall take effect as provided in section 13.

II. Remainder shall take effect June 15, 2004.)