HB1643: relative to permissible campaign contributions by business organizations and labor unions and relative to funding source disclosure for political advertising.

HB 1643-FN - AS INTRODUCED

2020 SESSION

20-2101

11/05

HOUSE BILL 1643-FN

AN ACT relative to permissible campaign contributions by business organizations and labor unions and relative to funding source disclosure for political advertising.

SPONSORS: Rep. Read, Rock. 17; Rep. T. Smith, Hills. 17; Rep. DiLorenzo, Rock. 17; Rep. Frost, Straf. 16; Rep. Higgins, Straf. 22; Rep. Muscatel, Graf. 12; Rep. Knirk, Carr. 3; Rep. Gay, Rock. 8

COMMITTEE: Election Law

ANALYSIS

This bill requires business organizations and labor unions to make political contributions through segregated funds. This bill also requires political committees to identify their top 5 contributors in political advertising.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

20-2101

11/05

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty

AN ACT relative to permissible campaign contributions by business organizations and labor unions and relative to funding source disclosure for political advertising.

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

1 New Paragraph; Prohibited Political Contributions; Business Organizations. Amend RSA 664:4 by inserting after paragraph I the following new paragraph:

I-a. By any business organization, or by any officer, director, executive, agent, partner, or employee acting in behalf of such business organization. This shall not prohibit the establishment by a business organization of a political committee that operates independently of the business organization, provided that the committee’s expenditures and contributions are made through a separate, segregated fund consisting only of voluntary contributions solicited from individuals who are employees, officers, shareholders, directors, partners, or members of the business organization. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to sole proprietorships.

2 Political Expenditures and Contributions; Prohibited Political Contributions; Labor Unions; Segregated Account Exception. Amend RSA 664:4, III to read as follows:

III. By any labor union or group of labor unions, or by any officer, director, executive, agent, or employee acting in behalf of such union or group of unions; or by any organization representing or affiliated with any such union or group of unions, or by any officer, director, executive, agent, or employee acting in behalf of such organization. This shall not prohibit the establishment by a labor union or group of labor unions of a political committee that operates independently of the labor union or group of labor unions, provided that the committee’s expenditures and contributions are made through a separate, segregated fund consisting only of voluntary contributions solicited from individuals who are employees, officers, shareholders, directors, partners, or members of the labor union or group of labor unions.

3 Repeal. RSA 664:4, II, relative to prohibited political contributions by partnerships, is repealed.

4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2021.

LBAO

20-2101

Revised 1/3/20

HB 1643-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

AN ACT relative to permissible campaign contributions by business organizations and labor unions and relative to funding source disclosure for political advertising.

FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ X ] County [ ] Local [ ] None

Estimated Increase / (Decrease)

STATE:

FY 2020

FY 2021

FY 2022

FY 2023

Appropriation

$0

$0

$0

$0

Revenue

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Expenditures

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Funding Source:

[ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ ] Other

COUNTY:

Revenue

$0

$0

$0

$0

Expenditures

$0

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

Indeterminable Increase

METHODOLOGY:

This bill prohibits political contributions by business organizations and officers as well as labor unions and officers but allows for the establishment of political committees that operate independently of such organizations. Such political committees' expenditures and contributions shall be made through a separate fund consisting of voluntary contributions from employees, officers, shareholders, or members of such business or labor union. Sole proprietorships are exempted from these provisions.

The Department of State indicates there may be an indeterminable increase in the number of political committee registrations at $50 each as a result of the bill. Increased administrative expenses could be absorbed within the existing budget of the department.

The Department of Justice is responsible for enforcing filing and reporting requirements for political committees. Any increase in investigations or enforcement as a result of this legislation is unknown, therefore the fiscal impact on the agency is indeterminable.

This bill contains penalties that may have an impact on the New Hampshire judicial and correctional systems. 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 entities impacted have provided the potential costs associated with these penalties below.

Judicial Branch

FY 2021

FY 2022

Class B Misdemeanor

$54

$56

Class A Misdemeanor

$77

$79

Simple Criminal Case

$300

$314

Routine Criminal Felony Case

$484

$498

Appeals

Varies

Varies

It should be noted that average case cost estimates for FY 2021 and FY 2022 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. An unspecified misdemeanor can be either class A or class B, with the presumption being a class B misdemeanor.

Judicial Council

Public Defender Program

Has contract with State to provide services.

Has contract with State to provide services.

Contract Attorney – Felony

$825/Case

$825/Case

Contract Attorney – Misdemeanor

$300/Case

$300/Case

Assigned Counsel – Felony

$60/Hour up to $4,100

$60/Hour up to $4,100

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%).

Department of Corrections

FY 2019 Average Cost of Incarcerating an Individual

$44,400

$44,400

FY 2019 Annual Marginal Cost of a General Population Inmate

$5,071

$5,071

FY 2019 Average Cost of Supervising an Individual on Parole/Probation

$576

$576

NH Association of Counties

County Prosecution Costs

Indeterminable

Indeterminable

Estimated Average Daily Cost of Incarcerating an Individual

$105 to $120

$105 to $120

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

Department of State, Judicial Branch, Departments of Corrections and Justice, Judicial Council, and New Hampshire Association of Counties