Back on June 8th, amidst a pile of 75 bills signed by Governor Sununu, was SB 498. An Act requiring an annual report detailing activity related to forfeiture of personal property.
This bill requires the attorney general to post an annual report on the department’s website detailing activity related to forfeiture of personal property.
“at a bare minimum, require the attorney general to post an annual, online report that details the type, value and disposition of all property seized on the state and local level, as well as the amount of forfeiture proceeds “received or expended.” In addition, the attorney general’s report must “provide a categorized accounting of all proceeds expended.”
In 2016 New Hampshire rolled back Civil Asset Forfeiture requiring a criminal conviction before any property could be seized. Adding a layer of reporting will help watchdogs and activists keep the state and local LEO’s accountable. Something that, according to the Institute of Justice, is much needed in the Granite State.
New Hampshire is certainly in dire need of reform. When the Institute for Justice graded states on six key metrics for forfeiture transparency and accountability, New Hampshire received failing grades for five of those elements.
We applaud the improvements, thank the Governor for signing the bill, and look forward to what we can learn from the reporting.
