Bill Text: NH HB38 | 2024 | Regular Session | Amended

New Hampshire House Bill 38

Amended

Bill Title: Relative to the penalty for and sentencing of habitual offenders.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 8-1)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-04-25 - Committee Report: Referred to Interim Study, 05/02/2024; Vote 5-0; Consent Calendar; Senate Calendar 17 [HB38 Detail]

Download: New_Hampshire-2024-HB38-Amended.html

HB 38-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE

3Jan2024... 2423h

2023 SESSION

23-0210

04/05

HOUSE BILL 38-FN

AN ACT relative to the penalty for and sentencing of habitual offenders.

SPONSORS: Rep. Stapleton, Sull. 6; Rep. Ankarberg, Straf. 7; Rep. T. Dolan, Rock. 16; Rep. Edwards, Rock. 31; Rep. Creighton, Hills. 30; Rep. Rollins, Sull. 3; Rep. Hamer, Hills. 19; Rep. Drye, Sull. 7; Sen. Abbas, Dist 22

COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety

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AMENDED ANALYSIS

This bill removes the authority to suspend the sentence of a habitual offender in cases in which operation of the motor vehicle was required due to an extreme emergency.

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

3Jan2024... 2423h 23-0210

04/05

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Three

AN ACT relative to the penalty for and sentencing of habitual offenders.

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

1 Motor Vehicles; Habitual Offenders; Penalty. Amend RSA 262:23, I to read as follows:

I. It shall be unlawful for any person to drive any motor vehicle on the ways of this state while an order of the director or the court prohibiting such driving remains in effect. If any person found to be an habitual offender under the provisions of this chapter is convicted of driving a motor vehicle on the ways of this state while an order of the director or the court prohibiting such operation is in effect, he or she shall be guilty of a felony and sentenced, notwithstanding the provisions of RSA title LXII, to imprisonment for not more than 5 years. No case brought to enforce this chapter shall be continued for sentencing[; provided, however, that any sentence or part thereof imposed pursuant to this section may be suspended in cases in which the driving of a motor vehicle was necessitated by situations of apparent extreme emergency which required such operation to save life or limb]. Any sentence of one year or less imposed pursuant to this paragraph shall be served in a county correctional facility. The sentencing court may order that any such offender may serve his or her sentence under home confinement pursuant to RSA 651:19 based on the rules and regulations of the county correctional facility where the sentence is to be served, provided the offender first serves 14 consecutive days of imprisonment prior to eligibility for home confinement. Habitual offenders shall only be eligible for the home confinement program once per lifetime. Any sentence of more than one year imposed pursuant to this paragraph shall be served in the state prison.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2025.

LBA

23-0210

Amended 1/4/24

HB 38-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE (AMENDMENT #2023-2423h)

AN ACT relative to the penalty for and sentencing of habitual offenders.

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


Estimated State Impact - Increase / (Decrease)
	FY 2024	FY 2025	FY 2026	FY 2027
Revenue	$0	$0	$0	$0
Revenue Fund	None
Expenditures	Indeterminable
Funding Source	General Fund
Appropriations	$0	$0	$0	$0
Funding Source	None


Estimated Political Subdivision Impact - Increase / (Decrease)
	FY 2024	FY 2025	FY 2026	FY 2027
County Revenue	$0	$0	$0	$0
County Expenditures	Indeterminable
Local Revenue	$0	$0	$0	$0
Local Expenditures	Indeterminable

METHODOLOGY:

This bill adds, deletes, or modifies a criminal penalty, or changes statute to which there is a penalty for violation. Therefore, this bill may have an impact on the judicial and correctional systems, which could affect prosecution, incarceration, probation, and parole costs, for the state, as well as county and local governments. A summary of such costs can be found at: https://gencourt.state.nh.us/lba/Budget/Fiscal_Notes/JudicialCorrectionalCosts.pdf

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

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