SB454: relative to carrying a concealed weapon without a license.

SB 454-FN- AS INTRODUCED

2004 SESSION

04-3161

04/09

SENATE BILL 454-FN

AN ACT relative to carrying a concealed weapon without a license.

SPONSORS: Sen. Prescott, Dist 23; Sen. Clegg, Dist 14; Sen. Barnes, Dist 17; Sen. Peterson, Dist 11; Sen. Kenney, Dist 3; Rep. Letourneau, Rock 77

COMMITTEE: Judiciary

ANALYSIS

This bill repeals certain statutes that prohibit carrying a pistol or revolver without obtaining a license.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

04-3161

04/09

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Four

AN ACT relative to carrying a concealed weapon without a license.

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

1 Pistols and Revolvers; Exceptions. Amend RSA 159:5 to read as follows:

159:5 Exceptions. The provisions of RSA 159:3 [and 4] shall not apply to marshals, sheriffs, policemen or other duly appointed peace and other law enforcement officers, or bailiffs and court officers responsible for court security; nor to the regular and ordinary transportation of pistols or revolvers as merchandise, nor to members of the armed services of the United States when on duty; nor to the national guard when on duty; nor to organizations by law authorized to purchase or receive such weapons; nor to duly authorized military or civil organizations when parading, or the members thereof when at, or going to or from, their customary places of assembly.

2 Repeal. RSA 159:4, relative to the prohibition on carrying a pistol or revolver without a license, is repealed.

3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2005.

LBAO

04-3161

Revised 2/9/04

SB 454 FISCAL NOTE

AN ACT relative to carrying a concealed weapon without a license.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The Department of Safety has determined this bill will decrease state general fund revenue and expenditures and local revenue and expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2005 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on county revenue or expenditures.

METHODOLOGY:

The Department stated this bill repeals the statute that prohibits carrying a pistol or revolver without obtaining a license. The Division of State Police issues concealed weapons permits to out-of-state residents at $20 each. Fiscal Year 2002 revenue received from these permits totaled approximately $125,000. The estimated general fund revenue decrease for each year after January 1, 2005 may equal $125,000, however, certain provisions in Fish and Game statutes remain that still require licenses to carry concealed and loaded handguns in motor vehicles, and on snow machines and ATV's, which would reduce the lost revenue by an indeterminable amount. To the extent that the State Police License & Permit Unit's workload would be reduced, there would be indeterminable savings in labor costs. Therefore, the overall fiscal impact on the state cannot be estimated. Local police departments issue concealed weapons permits to in-state residents and receive the related revenue. The Department has no statistics on the number of permits issued by locals and, therefore, cannot estimate the revenue that will be lost by the local governments. To the extent that the local police departments' workload related to issuing permits would be reduced, there would be an indeterminable reduction in labor costs. Therefore, the overall fiscal impact on local governments cannot be estimated.