§ 21-G:9 — Powers and Duties of Commissioners

The commissioner shall be the chief administrative officer of the department and shall have the following powers and duties:
I. The commissioner shall manage all operations of the department and administer and enforce the laws with which the commissioner or the department is charged. The commissioner shall report directly to the governor.
II. To perform the commissioner's duties, the commissioner shall have every power enumerated in the laws, whether granted to the commissioner, the department, or any administrative unit of the department. In accordance with these provisions, the commissioner shall:
(a) Biennially compile a comprehensive program budget which reflects all fiscal matters related to the operation of the department and each program and activity of the department.
(b) Adopt all rules of the department, whether the rulemaking authority delegated by the legislature is granted to the commissioner, the department, or any administrative unit or subordinate official of the department. All rules shall be adopted pursuant to RSA 541-A, unless specifically and explicitly exempted by law. The provisions of this subparagraph shall control existing legislative enactments unless the provisions of RSA 21-H through RSA 21-P that created the department specifically and clearly confer rulemaking authority on an administrative unit or a subordinate official. The provisions of this subparagraph shall also apply to subsequent legislative enactments unless such enactments are contained in RSA 21-H through RSA 21-P or are specifically exempted from the application of the provisions of this subparagraph by language expressly referring to this subparagraph. For the purposes of this subparagraph, "commissioner of the department of education" means the state board of education.
(c) Exercise general supervisory and appointing authority over all department employees, subject to applicable personnel statutes and rules.
(d) Delegate authority to subordinates as the commissioner deems necessary and appropriate, except that rulemaking authority shall not be delegated. The commissioner shall provide by delegation for a division director to exercise all authority of the commissioner in the commissioner's absence. All such delegations shall be made in writing, shall be disseminated to all division directors, shall clearly delineate the authority delegated and the limitations thereto, and shall be kept on file in the commissioner's office.
(e) Adopt practices which will improve the efficiency of the department and the provision of services to the citizens of the state.
(f) Provide cooperation, at the request of the heads of administratively attached agencies, in order to:
(1) Minimize or eliminate duplication of services and jurisdictional conflicts;
(2) Coordinate activities and resolve problems of mutual concern; and
(3) Resolve by agreement the manner and extent to which the department shall provide budgeting, recordkeeping and related clerical assistance to administratively attached agencies.
(g) Give bond, and require division directors to give bond, to the state as specified in RSA 93-B.
(h) Where functions of departments overlap or a function assigned to one department could better be performed by another department, a commissioner shall recommend appropriate legislation to the next regular session of the legislature.
III. The commissioner may adopt such reasonable internal practices and procedures as may be necessary to carry out the duties of the department and its divisions consistent with this chapter.
IV. [Repealed.]
V. It shall be the duty of all commissioners of executive branch agencies to continually reassess the organization of their agencies, especially with regard to new programs and functions assigned to them. Commissioners are hereby authorized, notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, to:
(a) Transfer or reassign personnel within and between any division, office, unit, or other component of the department.
(b) Delegate, transfer, or assign the authority to administer and operate any program or service of the department to any employee, division, office, bureau, or other component of the department. Such delegation, transfer, or assignment shall include the authority to conduct or perform any act necessary to administer the program or service so assigned.
(c) Propose legislation to the general court to accomplish internal reorganizations deemed desirable.
VI. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, administrative rule, or administrative process to the contrary, the commissioner may advertise requests for proposals and recruitment of personnel by using the Internet rather than traditional newspaper print media. The department shall regularly publish a notice in traditional print media referring prospective service providers and persons seeking state employment to the state's website for detailed information about opportunities.
VII. The commissioner is authorized to require federal and state background investigations on any employee, candidate for employment, contractor or subcontractor of the department that has or will have access to federal tax information for the purpose of determining that individual's suitability to access federal tax information as required by Internal Revenue Code section 6103(p)(4) and any subsequent amendments thereto. The background investigations shall be conducted in accordance with Internal Revenue Code section 6103(p)(4) and shall include, but not be limited to, a fingerprint-based criminal record check of national crime information databases. For the criminal record check authorized under this paragraph, the department shall submit the individual's fingerprints to the department of safety, division of state police, for forwarding to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Upon completion of the criminal record check, the division of state police shall forward the results to the department. The commissioner may adopt rules to effectuate the purposes of this section pursuant to RSA 541-A.

Legislative History

1983, 372:1. 1995, 226:3-6. 2009, 144:40. 2011, 131:1, eff. Aug. 6, 2011. 2012, 247:40, I, eff. Aug. 17, 2012. 2018, 52:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2019.