HB 504-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
2021 SESSION
21-0628
10/08
HOUSE BILL 504-FN-LOCAL
AN ACT relative to the state education property tax and the low and moderate income
homeowners property tax relief program.
SPONSORS: Rep. Ames, Ches. 9; Rep. Luneau, Merr. 10; Rep. Heath, Hills. 14; Rep. Porter,
Hills. 1
COMMITTEE: Ways and Means
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
ANALYSIS
This bill requires the department of revenue administration to receive the revenues from the
state education property tax and deposit them in the education trust fund, and revises the
procedures for calculating state education grants. The bill modifies the criteria for relief under the
low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief program, and establishes a committee to
study the low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief program.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
 HB 504-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
21-0628
10/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty One
AN ACT relative to the state education property tax and the low and moderate income
homeowners property tax relief program.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 1 Property Taxation; Commissioner's Warrant. Amend RSA 76:8, II to read as follows:
2 II. The commissioner shall issue a warrant under the commissioner's hand and official seal
3 for the amount computed in paragraph I to the selectmen or assessors of each municipality by
4 December 15 directing them to assess such sum and [pay it to the municipality for the use of the
5 school district or districts], after subtracting the municipality's actual cost carrying out the
6 functions required by this subdivision, pay the remainder to the department of revenue
7 administration for deposit in the education trust fund. Such payments by municipalities,
8 and the subtractions for actual costs, shall be made in accordance with schedules,
9 standards, and procedures established by rules adopted by the department of revenue
10 administration after consultation with the commissioner of education. Such sums shall be
11 assessed at such times as may be prescribed for other taxes assessed by such selectmen or assessors
12 of the municipality.
13 2 Property Tax Bill Information. Amend RSA 76:11-a, II to read as follows:
14 II. The tax bill shall also contain a statement informing the taxpayer of the types of tax
15 relief for which the taxpayer has the right to apply. The statement shall explicitly list the low
16 and moderate income homeowners property tax relief program specified by RSA 198:57 and
17 shall include information on how to apply for the program. The following statement shall be
18 considered adequate:
19 "If you are elderly, disabled, blind, a veteran, or veteran's spouse, or are unable to pay taxes due
20 to poverty or other good cause, you may be eligible for a tax exemption, credit, abatement, or
21 deferral, which can reduce your current property tax bill. For details and application
22 information, contact (insert title of local assessing officials or office to which application should be
23 made and deadline for application).
24 Depending on your income, you may also be eligible for a refund of some of your taxes
25 under the low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief program. To find out
26 how to get a refund, call the New Hampshire department of revenue administration at
27 (insert current telephone number here) or visit the department’s website (insert current
28 website address here). Applications for refunds are due by June 30."
29 This statement shall be prominent [and], legible, and printed in at least 12-point boldface type,
30 and may either be printed on the tax bill itself, or on a separate sheet of paper enclosed with the tax
 HB 504-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
- Page 2 -
1 bill. A municipality may in its discretion choose to include more detailed information about the
2 eligibility criteria for different forms of tax relief, provided, however, that the information in the
3 above statement shall be considered a minimum.
4 3 New Subparagraph; Education Trust Fund. Amend RSA 198:39, I(l) to read as follows:
5 (l) The full amount of education property tax payments from the department of
6 revenue administration pursuant to RSA 76:8, II.
7 (m) Any other moneys appropriated from the general fund.
8 4 Repeal; Tax Warrant; Determination of Education Grants. RSA 198:41, I(b) relative to
9 subtracting the amount of the state education tax warrant in the determination of grants, is
10 repealed.
11 5 Determination of Education Grants; Tuition. Amend RSA 198:41, II(b) to read as follows:
12 (b) The total amount paid for items of current education expense as determined by the
13 department of education [minus the amount of the education tax warrant to be issued by the
14 commissioner of revenue administration for such municipality reported pursuant to RSA 76:8 for the
15 next tax year].
16 6 Determination of Grants; Stabilization. Amend RSA 198:41, IV(d) to read as follows:
17 (d) For fiscal year 2017 and each fiscal year thereafter, the department of education
18 shall distribute a total education grant to each municipality in an amount equal to the total
19 education grant for the fiscal year in which the grant is calculated plus a percentage of the
20 municipality's fiscal year 2012 stabilization grant, if any, distributed to the municipality; the
21 percentage shall be 96 percent for fiscal year 2017, 92 percent for fiscal year 2018, 88 percent for
22 fiscal year 2019, and 100 percent for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter. No
23 stabilization grant shall be distributed to any municipality for any fiscal year in which the
24 [municipality's education property tax revenue collected] amount of the commissioner's warrant
25 for the municipality's education tax assessment pursuant to RSA 76 exceeds the total cost of an
26 adequate education or to any municipality for any fiscal year in which the municipality's ADMA is
27 zero.
28 7 Low and Moderate Income Homeowners Property Tax Relief. Amend RSA 198:57, III and IV
29 to read as follows:
30 III. An eligible tax relief claimant is a person who:
31 (a) Owns a homestead or interest in a homestead subject to the education tax;
32 (b) Resided in such homestead on [April 1 of] the date of the final tax bill as defined
33 in RSA 76:1-a for the year for which the claim is made, except such persons as are on active duty in
34 the United States armed forces or are temporarily away from such homestead but maintain the
35 homestead as a primary domicile; and
36 (c) Realizes total household income of:
37 (1) [$20,000] $55,000 or less if a single person;
 HB 504-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
- Page 3 -
1 (2) [$40,000] $70,000 or less if a married person or head of a New Hampshire
2 household.
3 IV. All or a portion of an eligible tax relief claimant's [state] education property taxes[, RSA
4 76:3,] shall be rebated as follows:
5 (a) Multiply the total local assessed value of the claimant's property by the percentage of
6 such property that qualifies as the claimant's homestead;
7 (b) Multiply [$100,000] $150,000 by the most current local equalization ratio as
8 determined by the department of revenue administration;
9 (c) Multiply the lesser of the amount determined in subparagraph (a) or (b) by the
10 [education tax rate as shown on the tax bill under RSA 76:11-a;] sum of the following:
11 (1) The local education tax rate as shown on the tax bill under RSA 76:11
12 and;
13 (2) The state education tax rate as shown on the tax bill under RSA 76:11.
14 (d) Multiply the product of the calculation in subparagraph (c) by the following
15 percentage as applicable to determine the amount of tax relief available to the claimant, provided
16 that the maximum amount of tax relief available to any claimant in any fiscal year shall
17 not exceed $1,000:
18 (1) If a single person and total household income is:
19 [(A) less than $12,500 $20,000 , 100 percent;
20 (B) $12,500 but less than $15,000, 60 percent;
21 (C) $15,000 but less than $17,500, 40 percent; or
22 (D) $17,500 but less than or equal to $20,000, 20 percent.]
23 (A) less than $20,000, 100 percent;
24 (B) $20,000 but less than $55,000, a percentage that is reduced by 5
25 percent for each $1,750 of household income above $20,000;
26 (C) more than $55,000, zero percent.
27 (2) If a head of a New Hampshire household or a married person and total household
28 income is:
29 [(A) less than $25,000, 100 percent;
30 (B) $25,000 but less than $30,000, 60 percent;
31 (C) $30,000 but less than $35,000, 40 percent; or
32 (D) $35,000 but less than or equal to $40,000, 20 percent]
33 (A) less than $30,000, 100 percent;
34 (B) $30,000 but less than $70,000, a percentage that is reduced by 5
35 percent for each $2,000 of household income above $30,000;
36 (C) more than $70,000, zero percent.
 HB 504-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
- Page 4 -
1 (e) The amount determined by subparagraph (d) is the allowable tax relief in any year,
2 provided however that the aggregate of tax relief checks issued by the commissioner to all
3 taxpayers claiming eligibility for tax relief shall not exceed $25,000,000 for the fiscal year
4 to which the claim applies, exclusive of late filed claims which are accepted by the
5 commissioner pursuant to paragraph VI(b) which shall be counted against the $25,000,000
6 limit for the fiscal year in which the claims are received, and that the commissioner shall
7 reduce proportionally the amount of each taxpayer’s tax relief check for that fiscal year
8 when a reduction is necessary to conform to the $25,000,000 limit for that fiscal year.
9 8 New Paragraphs; Low and Moderate Income Homeowners Property Tax Relief; Adjustment for
10 Inflation; Forms. Amend RSA 198:57 by inserting after paragraph VIII the following new
11 paragraphs:
12 IX. The amounts specified in subparagraph III(c), IV(b), IV(d), and IV(e) shall be adjusted
13 annually for inflation and rounded to the nearest $100 by the commissioner of the department of
14 revenue administration based on the average change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban
15 Consumers, Northeast Region as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States
16 Department of Labor. The average change shall be calculated using the calendar year ending 12-
17 months prior to the beginning of the program year.
18 X. Each year, on or about May 1, the department of revenue administration shall mail the
19 current year forms necessary to apply for property tax relief to each homeowner who received
20 property tax relief under the provisions of paragraph IV in the prior year.
21 9 Study Committee on Low and Moderate Income Homeowners Property Tax Relief. There is
22 established a committee to study the low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief
23 program authorized by RSA 198:57-58.
24 I. The members of the committee shall be as follows:
25 (a) Three members of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.
26 (b) Four members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house
27 of representatives.
28 II. Members of the committee shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to
29 the duties of the committee.
30 III.(a) The committee shall study, with the assistance of the commissioner of the department
31 of revenue administration, issues relating to the extension of the low and moderate income
32 homeowners property tax relief program to tenants who indirectly pay education property taxes as
33 part of the rent that they pay for the right to live in their principal place of residence and domicile
34 and shall make recommendations regarding said extension;
35 (b) The committee shall also study, with the assistance of the commissioner of the
36 department of revenue administration, the relationship between household income, property values,
37 and property taxation, as well as the sufficiency of data relating to that relationship that is currently
 HB 504-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
- Page 5 -
1 available to the department of revenue administration, including data needed to determine the
2 impact of property tax changes by property classification, value, and ownership status, including
3 owner-occupied, out-of-state, commercial, residential, or other relevant ownership categories, and
4 shall report on its findings and recommendations on said relationship, data sufficiency, and changes
5 in assessment data collected, eligibility, and funding levels that would improve the low and
6 moderate income homeowners property tax relief program.
7 (c) The committee shall also study, with the assistance of the commissioner of the
8 department of revenue administration, the components of a statewide property tax deferral program
9 designed to provide relief to homeowner property taxpayers where taxpayer-specific circumstances
10 temporarily impair such taxpayers ability to timely pay their property tax bills, and shall make
11 recommendations regarding the development of such a program.
12 (d) The committee may solicit input or testimony from any person or organization the
13 committee deems relevant to the study.
14 IV. The members of the committee shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The
15 first meeting shall be called by the first-named house member. The first meeting of the committee
16 shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section. Four members of the committee
17 shall constitute a quorum.
18 V. The committee shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation
19 to the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate clerk, the
20 house clerk, the governor, and the state library on or before November 1, 2021.
21 10 Effective Date.
22 I. Section 9 of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
23 II. The remainder of this act shall take effect July 1, 2021.
 LBA
21-0628
1/6/21
HB 504-FN-LOCAL- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT relative to the state education property tax and the low and moderate income
homeowners property tax relief program.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None
Estimated Increase / (Decrease)
STATE: FY 2021 FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024
Indeterminable Indeterminable
Appropriation $0 $0
Increase Increase
Indeterminable Indeterminable Indeterminable
Revenue $0
Decrease Decrease Decrease
Indeterminable Indeterminable
Expenditures $0 $0
Increase Increase
Funding Source: [ X ] General [ X ] Education [ ] Highway [ ] Other
LOCAL:
Revenue $0 Indeterminable Indeterminable Indeterminable
Expenditures $0 Indeterminable Indeterminable Indeterminable<