Bill > HB124

This bill enables municipal forest committees or conservation commissions to transfer surplus funds from their special forest maintenance fund to the municipality's unreserved fund balance, with some important procedural safeguards. Specifically, the bill allows these committees to determine if they have excess money in their dedicated forest maintenance fund and, after taking a majority vote, offer that surplus to the municipality. The municipality's legislative body must then separately vote to accept the deposit of these surplus funds into its unreserved fund balance. This change provides more flexibility for local governments in managing their forest-related funds, allowing them to redirect excess money that is not immediately needed for forest maintenance to the municipality's general financial reserves. The bill will take effect 60 days after its passage, giving local governments time to prepare for and understand the new provision. By modifying existing law (specifically RSA 31:113), the bill creates a formal process for transferring surplus funds while maintaining municipal oversight through required voting procedures.

Government Affairs

https://gc.nh.gov/bill_status/legacy/bs2016/bill_docket.aspx?lsr=0101&sy=2025&sortoption=&txtsessionyear=2025&txtbillnumber=HB124