Cities and towns could have helped owners fund flood protection

Cities and towns could have arranged private financing for flood protection work through a local district. Eligible owners could have sought financing for flood protection fixed to existing buildings. New construction would not have qualified. The city or town would have had to adopt a district and hold a hearing. A qualified audit would have had to recommend the work and show expected savings above its cost.

Cities and towns could have offered a lower assessed property value or an annual tax credit for flood protection work. The breaks would have applied to property with qualifying flood protection work and stayed with the property when ownership changed. A city or town would have had to adopt either tax break. The exemption could not have exceeded the improvement's value. Annual credits would have been $100 to $1,000, with total credits capped by that value. A city or town could have offered the annual credit for up to five years.

A city or town could have voted to charge a flood fee and put the money in a local fund. The fee could have covered all properties in a city or town or only those in a flood district. The fund could have provided grants or low-cost loans to people and businesses in flood districts. The city or town's lawmaking body would have had to approve the fee. A fee charged on assessed property value within a flood district could have been up to $0.50 per $1,000 of assessed value.

The state would have set aside $500,000 for the Department of Business and Economic Affairs to study flood risks and ways to reduce damage. The study would have covered flood-prone properties across New Hampshire. Any federal or private grants the department secured for the study would have offset the state funding. The funding would have applied to the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026.