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SB270 • 2026

relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Keith Murphy (R), Thomas Walsh (R), Lisa Mazur (R), Bob Lynn (R), Joe Alexander (R), Sheila Seidel (R)
Last action
2026-01-07
Official status
SENATE
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

What This Bill Does

  • relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-01-07 S

    Refer to Interim Study, MA, VV; 01/07/2026; SJ 1

  2. 2025-11-07 S

    Committee Report: Referred to Interim Study, 01/07/2026; Vote 5-0; CC; SC 46

  3. 2025-03-20 S

    Rereferred to Committee, MA, VV; 03/20/2025; SJ 8

  4. 2025-03-12 S

    Committee Report: Rereferred to Committee, 03/20/2025, Vote 4-0, CC SC 13

  5. 2025-02-26 S

    Hearing: 03/04/2025, Room 100, SH, 01:00 pm; SC 11

  6. 2025-01-23 S

    Introduced 01/09/2025 and Referred to Judiciary; SJ 3

Official Summary Text

relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
SB 270 - AS INTRODUCED

2025 SESSION
25-0306
06/09

SENATE BILL
270

AN ACT
relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

SPONSORS: Sen. Murphy, Dist 16; Rep. Lynn, Rock. 17; Rep. T. Walsh, Merr. 10; Rep. Alexander Jr., Hills. 29; Rep. Mazur, Hills. 44; Rep. Seidel, Hills. 29

COMMITTEE: Judiciary

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ANALYSIS

This bill allows individuals to retrieve personal and work-related items from an impounded vehicle so long as the individual is accompanied by the vehicle's owner.

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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.
25-0306
06/09

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five

AN ACT
relative to allowing owners to gather items necessary for work from impounded vehicles.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Review of Fees for Removal and Impoundment. Amend RSA 262:35-a, III to read as follows:
III.
(a)
Any time that a person is storing a vehicle pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision, the person may remove any items from within the vehicle that are not a part of or accessories to the vehicle. The person may hold any such items, other than wallets, purses, life essential clothing, mail, legal documents, car seats, eyeglasses, medicine, medical equipment, or house keys pending payment of any fees due under this subdivision. If fees remain unpaid after 20 days, the person may dispose of the items.

(b) Individuals other than the vehicle's registrant shall be permitted to retrieve, at no cost, items necessary for work and other personal belongings from an impounded vehicle if accompanied by the vehicle’s owner and upon producing sufficient proof of ownership of the items. The custodian shall allow access to the vehicle for this purpose, provided that such access does not interfere with the removal and storage process. Items that are essential for daily living, such as work tools, clothing, medication, and personal documents, shall be retrievable without restriction under this section.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.