New Hampshire § 162-H-3 - Section 162-H:3 Site Evaluation Committee Established.

§ 162-H-3. Section 162-H:3 Site Evaluation Committee Established.

I. There is hereby established a committee to be known as the New Hampshire site evaluation committee consisting of 5 members, as follows: (a) The 3 commissioners of the public utilities commission, the chairperson of which shall be the chairperson of the committee; (b) The commissioner of the department of environmental services; and (c) One public member and, when required pursuant to paragraph VI, an alternate public member, both of whom shall be appointed as described in RSA 162-H:4-b. II. All members, including those who sit for a member recused under paragraph VI, shall refrain from ex parte communications regarding any matter pending before the committee. III. Three members of the committee shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of conducting the committee's business, except that the 3 public utilities commissioners alone shall not constitute a quorum. IV. The committee shall be administratively attached to the public utilities commission. V. The chairperson shall serve as the chief executive of the committee and may: (a) Delegate to other members the duties of presiding officer, as appropriate. (b) Perform administrative actions for the committee, as may a presiding officer. (c) Establish, with the consent of the committee, the budgetary requirements of the committee. (d) Engage personnel in accordance with this chapter. VI. If at any time a member must recuse himself or herself on a matter or is not otherwise available for good reason, such person, if a state employee, may designate a senior administrative employee or a staff attorney from his or her agency to sit on the committee. The commissioner of the department of environmental services may, with the consent of the respective commissioner or director, and subject to the approval of the chairperson, designate a senior administrative employee from the department of transportation, the department of natural and cultural resources, the department of business and economic affairs, the division of historical resources, or the department of fish and game, to sit on the committee. In the case of the public member, the alternate public member shall serve as set forth in RSA 162-H:4-b.