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Committee hears cleanup bill for New Hampshire trust code to align tax and fiduciary defaults
Summary
Senate Bill 52 proposes changes to default tax clauses and fiduciary standards in the New Hampshire trust code to reflect modern trust administration and Internal Revenue Service practice; trust industry representatives described the state's competitiveness and asked committee members to adopt clarified language.
Senator Dan Innes introduced Senate Bill 52 as a statutory clean‑up to the New Hampshire trust code, saying New Hampshire’s modern trust statutes have attracted trust assets and businesses to the state. The bill would amend default tax‑savings clauses to better align with Internal Revenue Service rules and clarify that fiduciaries who exercise powers traditionally reserved to trustees — such as trust advisors or trust protectors — are held to the same good‑faith obligations when exercising discretionary authority.
Glenn Perlow, general counsel at Jordan Park Trust Company and president of the New Hampshire Trust Council, said the trust industry has grown in New Hampshire, with witnesses citing more than $1.6 trillion (as stated) in assets managed in the state. Perlow and Heather Perkins Ognetson, a trust law practitioner, said the revisions eliminate duplicative cross‑references and conform statutory language to modern directed‑trust constructs where duties are split among multiple fiduciaries.
Ognetson said the bill replaces specific uses of the word "trustee" with the broader term "fiduciary" in targeted sections to ensure that individuals serving in directed‑trust roles are subject to the same standards of good faith and conflict avoidance. She also explained the tax clause revision would reference relevant sections of the Internal Revenue Code to avoid unintended estate or gift tax consequences if drafting errors remove limits on removal and replacement powers.
Committee members and representatives praised the state’s trust statute reforms that made New Hampshire an attractive trust jurisdiction. No formal committee vote occurred at the public hearing; representatives of the trust industry asked the committee to advance the technical updates.
