HB1654: (New Title) relative to flying a drone above a correctional facility.

HB 1654-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE

9Mar2016... 0390h

2016 SESSION

16-2420

04/03

HOUSE BILL 1654-FN

AN ACT relative to flying a drone above a correctional facility.

SPONSORS: Rep. Cushing, Rock. 21; Rep. Fields, Belk. 4; Rep. Welch, Rock. 13; Rep. DiSesa, Straf. 16; Rep. Pantelakos, Rock. 25; Rep. Martin, Merr. 23; Rep. Berube, Straf. 18; Rep. O'Hearne, Sull. 3; Rep. Mangipudi, Hills. 35; Rep. Hirsch, Merr. 6; Sen. Soucy, Dist 18; Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Daniels, Dist 11

COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety

AMENDED ANALYSIS

This bill prohibits, with certain exceptions, a person from flying a drone above a state or county correctional facility or a municipal jail.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

9Mar2016... 0390h 16-2420

04/03

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen

AN ACT relative to flying a drone above a correctional facility.

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

1 New Section; Breaches of the Peace; Flying a Drone Above a Correctional Facility. Amend RSA 644 by inserting after section 21 the following new section:

644:22 Flying a Drone Above a Correctional Facility.

I. Except as otherwise provided in this section, no person shall fly a drone in the airspace above a state or county correctional facility or municipal jail. Any person who violates this section shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.

II.(a) State, county, or municipal correctional authorities may fly a drone above a correctional facility over which they have control for security purposes.

(b) State, county, or municipal correctional authorities may authorize a request by a person to fly a drone above a correctional facility over which they have control, provided the person:

(1) Requests permission from the appropriate correctional authority;

(2) Is authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration to operate a drone for commercial purposes; and

(3) Operates the drone in a manner that complies with the authorization.

III. In this section:

(a) "Airspace" means the space above the ground on which a state or county correctional facility or municipal jail is sited.

(b) "Drone" means a powered, aerial vehicle, excluding a geosynchronous satellite, that:

(1) Does not carry a human operator;

(2) Uses aerodynamic forces to provide vehicle lift;

(3) Can fly autonomously or be piloted remotely; and

(4) May be expendable or recoverable.

(c) "Person" means an individual, corporation, organization, and for-profit or not-for-profit entities.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2017.

LBAO 16-2420

Amended 3/21/16

HB 1654-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AN ACT (New Title) relative to flying a drone above a correctional facility.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The Office of Legislative Budget Assistant states this bill, as amended by the House (Amendment #2016-0390h), may increase state and county expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2017 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on local expenditures or state, county, and local revenue.

METHODOLOGY:

The Office of Legislative Budget Assistant states this bill contains a penalty that may have an impact on the New Hampshire judicial and correctional systems, specifically establishing a class A misdemeanor for flying a drone in the airspace above or within 100 yards from the boundaries of a state or county correctional facility or municipal jail. There is no method to determine how many charges would be brought as a result of the changes contained in this bill to determine the fiscal impact on expenditures. However, the Judicial Branch, Judicial Council and New Hampshire Association of Counties have provided the Office with potential costs associated with the penalties contained in this bill. See table below for average cost information:

FY 2017

FY 2018

Judicial Branch

Class A Misdemeanor

$70

$74

Appeals

Varies

Varies

It should be noted average case cost estimates for FY 2017 and FY 2018 are based on data that is more than ten years old and does not reflect changes to the courts over that same period of time or the impact these changes may have on processing the various case types.

Judicial Council

Public Defender Program

Has contract with State to provide services.

Has contract with State to provide services.

Contract Attorney – Misdemeanor

$275/Case

$275/Case

Assigned Counsel – Misdemeanor

$60/Hour up to $1,400

$60/Hour up to $1,400

It should be noted that a person needs to be found indigent and have the potential of being incarcerated to be eligible for indigent defense services. The majority of indigent cases (approximately 85%) are handled by the public defender program, with the remaining cases going to contract attorneys (14%) or assigned counsel (1%).

NH Association of Counties

County Prosecution Costs

Indeterminable

Indeterminable

Estimated Average Daily Cost of Incarcerating an Individual

$85 to $110

$85 to $110

The Department of Justice and Department of Corrections does not anticipate this bill to have any impact on their respective budgets.