HB 1202-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2024 SESSION
24-2357
11/05
HOUSE BILL 1202-FN
AN ACT relative to the issuance of permits for the alteration of driveways exiting onto public ways.
SPONSORS: Rep. Alexander Jr., Hills. 29; Rep. Read, Rock. 10; Rep. Berry, Hills. 39; Rep. Sweeney, Rock. 25; Rep. Plett, Hills. 29; Rep. Yokela, Rock. 32; Rep. Seidel, Hills. 29; Rep. Damon, Sull. 8; Rep. Baroody, Hills. 39; Sen. Murphy, Dist 16
COMMITTEE: Public Works and Highways
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ANALYSIS
This bill establishes certain deadlines for issuance of permits for the alteration of driveways exiting onto public ways.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
24-2357
11/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Four
AN ACT relative to the issuance of permits for the alteration of driveways exiting onto public ways.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Driveway Construction Permits. Amend RSA 236:13 to read as follows:
236:13 Driveways and Other Accesses to the Public Way.
I. It shall be unlawful to construct, or alter in any way that substantially affects the size or grade of, any driveway, entrance, exit, or approach within the limits of the right-of-way of any class I or class III highway or the state-maintained portion of a class II highway that does not conform to the terms and specifications of a written permit issued by the commissioner of transportation.
II. Pursuant to this section, a written construction permit application must be obtained from and filed with the department of transportation by any abutter affected by the provisions of paragraph I. Before any construction or alteration work is commenced, said permit application shall have been reviewed, and a construction permit issued by said department within 30 days, except for permits issued pursuant to paragraph III, which shall be issued within 45 days. Said permit shall:
(a) Describe the location of the driveway, entrance, exit, or approach. The location shall be selected to most adequately protect the safety of the traveling public.
(b) Describe any drainage structures, traffic control devices, and channelization islands to be installed by the abutter.
(c) Establish grades that adequately protect and promote highway drainage and permit a safe and controlled approach to the highway in all seasons of the year.
(d) Include any other terms and specifications necessary for the safety of the traveling public.
III. For access to a proposed commercial or industrial enterprise, or to a subdivision, all of which for the purposes of this section shall be considered a single parcel of land, even though acquired by more than one conveyance or held nominally by more than one owner:
(a) Said permit application shall be accompanied by engineering drawings showing information as set forth in paragraph II.
(b) Unless all season safe sight distance of 400 feet in both directions along the highway can be obtained, the commissioner shall not permit more than one access to a single parcel of land, and this access shall be at that location which the commissioner determines to be safest. The commissioner shall not give final approval for use of any additional access until it has been proven to him that the 400-foot all season safe sight distance has been provided.
(c) For the purposes of this section, all season safe sight distance is defined as a line which encounters no visual obstruction between 2 points, each at a height of 3 feet 9 inches above the pavement, and so located as to represent the critical line of sight between the operator of a vehicle using the access and the operator of a vehicle approaching from either direction.
IV. No construction permit shall allow:
(a) A driveway, entrance, exit, or approach to be constructed more than 50 feet in width, except that a driveway, entrance, exit, or approach may be flared beyond a width of 50 feet at its junction with the highway to accommodate the turning radius of vehicles expected to use the particular driveway, entrance, exit or approach.
(b) More than 2 driveways, entrances, exits or approaches from any one highway to any one parcel of land unless the frontage along that highway exceeds 500 feet.
IV-a. If the department fails to act within the times required in paragraph II, the department shall issue a permit by default, which shall allow the applicant to proceed with the project as presented in the application. Such default permit shall be issued by the department within 5 business days following default and may contain a statement indicating that the department has not fully reviewed the plan. The department and the applicant may by mutual agreement extend any of the deadlines in this section.
V. The same powers, requirements, and permitting timelines concerning highways under their jurisdiction that are conferred upon the commissioner of transportation by paragraphs I, II, III, [and] IV, and IV-a shall be conferred upon the planning board or governing body in cities and towns in which the planning board or governing body has been granted the power to regulate the grading and improvement of streets within a subdivision as provided in RSA 674:35, and they shall adopt such regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. Such regulations may delegate administrative duties, including actual issuance of permits within permitting timelines, to a highway agent, board of selectmen, or other qualified official or body. Such regulations, or any permit issued under them, may contain provisions governing the breach, removal, and reconstruction of stone walls or fences within, or at the boundary of, the public right of way, and any landowner or landowner's agent altering a boundary in accordance with such provisions shall be deemed to be acting under a mutual agreement with the city or town pursuant to RSA 472:6, II(a).
VI. The commissioner of transportation or planning board shall retain continuing jurisdiction over the adequacy and safety of every existing driveway, entrance, exit, and approach to a highway, whether or not such access was constructed or installed pursuant to a permit under this section, and, unless the access is a public highway, the owners of property to which the access is appurtenant shall have continuing responsibility for the adequacy of the access and any grades, culverts, or other structures pertaining to such access, whether or not located within the public right of way. If any such access is or becomes a potential threat to the integrity of the highway or its surface, ditches, embankments, bridges, or other structures, or a hazard to the safety of the traveling public, by reason of siltation, flooding, erosion, frost action, vegetative growth, improper grade, or the failure of any culvert, traffic control device, drainage structure, or any other feature, the commissioner of transportation or planning board or their designee may issue an order to the landowner or other party responsible for such access to repair or remove such hazardous condition and to obtain any and all permits required therefor. The order shall describe the hazard, prescribe what corrective action or alteration in the location or configuration of such access shall be required, and set a reasonable time within which the action shall be completed. Such an order shall be sent by certified mail, and shall be enforceable to the same extent as a permit issued under this section. If the order is not complied with within the time prescribed, the commissioner or planning board or their designee may cause to be taken whatever action is necessary to protect the highway and the traveling public, and the owner or other responsible party shall be civilly liable to the state or municipality for its costs in taking such action.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
24-2357
11/26/23
HB 1202-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT relative to the issuance of permits for the alteration of driveways exiting onto public ways.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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Estimated State Impact - Increase / (Decrease) | ||||||
| FY 2024 | FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | ||
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Revenue Fund(s) | None | |||||
Expenditures | $0 | $752,184 | $742,063 | $752,139 | ||
Funding Source(s) | Highway Fund | |||||
Appropriations | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
• Does this bill provide sufficient funding to cover estimated expenditures? [X] No • Does this bill authorize new positions to implement this bill? [X] No | ||||||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill establishes deadlines for issuance of permits by the Department of Transportation for the alteration of driveways exiting onto public ways. Depending on the type of permit applied for, the deadline shall be 30 or 45 days, for which failure to act by the deadline will result in the issuance of a permit by default. The Department states it receives approximately 1,200 driveway permit applications statewide annually, approximately 75 of which are for proposed major traffic generators. Minor permits are currently processed within 30 to 60 days provided supporting documentation is submitted with the application. Applications for major traffic generators, which as a group comprise anything larger and more complicated than basic driveways with no mitigation requirements, are more difficult to review and approve.
The Department states accelerating review of driveway permit applications will require additional monitoring, review, decision, and action by staff at multiple locations across the six maintenance district offices and at bureaus located in Concord. The Department states it would need four (4) new positions to comply with this bill, as well as contract with on-call consultant engineer firms to review applications, traffic impact studies, warrant analyses and design plans to supplement Department staff during periods of higher-than-normal application submittals to meet the proposed accelerated deadlines. Below is a summary of the Department’s estimated costs associated with this bill:
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 |
Four (4) New Positions Needed: | $602,184 | $592,063 | $602,139 |
On-Call Consultant Engineer | $150,000 | $150,000 | $150,000 |
Total Cost | $752,184 | $742,063 | $752,139 |
It should be noted that this bill provides neither appropriation nor authorization for new personnel. The Department states without a mechanism to charge applicants for driveway permits, the Department is unable to recoup any of these additional expenses.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Transportation