Winnipesaukee River Basin Program Commission

I. There is established a commission to study transferring ownership and/or operation of the Winnipesaukee River Basin program (WRBP) to an alternative authority which supports the municipalities served by the WRBP. II. The members of the commission shall be as follows: (a) One member of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate. (b) Three members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives. (c) The commissioner of the department of environmental services, or designee. (d) One member of the public, appointed by the Winnipesaukee River Basin program advisory committee. (e) One member of the public, appointed by the mayor of Laconia. III. Legislative members of the commission shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the commission. IV. The commission shall: (a) Identify all of the state-owned physical assets that are necessary for the operation of the Winnipesaukee River Basin program (WRBP). (b) Evaluate whether the WRBP should continue to be owned and operated by the state or whether ownership and/or operational control should be transferred to an alternative authority. (c) Determine if ownership of the WRBP were to be transferred to such an authority, how should the value of the assets being transferred be determined. (d) Identify what statutory provisions would need to be amended in order to transfer ownership and/or operational control of the WRBP. (e) Receive input from the department of environmental services, the Winnipesaukee River Basin program advisory board, and the municipalities served by the WRBP. (f) Identify any other issues that may need to be addressed in order to transfer ownership and/or operational control of the WRBP to an alternative authority. Issues may include but not be limited to legal requirements to create a separate regional authority and governance structure; service and intermunicipal agreements; workforce considerations; organizational requirements for finance, administration and engineering; means for sustainable operations and maintenance; mechanisms for capital projects and bonding/financing future infrastructure costs; organizational structure shortfalls; transfer of federal permit authorities; asset transfer costs and requirements; transfer of legacy financial obligations; and conceptual transition sequence and timeline. V. The members of the study commission shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the commission shall be called by the first-named house member. The first meeting of the commission shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section. Three members of the commission shall constitute a quorum. VI. The commission shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation to the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate clerk, the house clerk, the governor, and the state library on or before November 1, 2026.