Today, we learned that this was the last day of the House Session until the Fall when we come back for “Veto Day.” Today’s program included three memorials by colleagues who remembered past House Members who passed away this year.
Judy Aron
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (5/30/24)?
by Judy Aron
Today, we learned that we voted either Concur, Non-Concur, or Non-Concur with Committee of Conference (CoC) on 93 House bills and 20 Senate bills. Most bills passed the recommended motion of the committee chair with a voice vote. Some bills and their amendments were debated, and others were voted on with just a brief explanation of what the Senate’s fingerprints… I mean, amendments… were tacked onto the bills.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (5/23/24)?
by Judy Aron
Today, we learned that session days can be very long as we toiled over Senate bills from 9:00 a.m. until 7:10 p.m., with time, of course, for an hour-long lunch break. All in all, we slogged through 45 bills on the regular calendar and two more taken off consent.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (5/9/24)?
by Judy Aron
Today, we learned that session days can be productive when Republicans show up and vote together. Our numbers were less than usual, but so were the “other guys.” With 19 or so bills, it was supposed to be a short day – and that did not actually happen.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (5/2/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that when Republicans do not show up, it can be a pretty disappointing day in the House. Additionally, the same thing happens when we have a few person advantage and a handful of “Republicans” vote along with House Democrats to kill perfectly good bills, and conversely pass pretty awful ones. If you know some good Conservatives in your district, please urge them to sign up to run in June.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (4/11/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that one of the most outstanding renditions of the national anthem was sung by the Seacoast Men of Harmony and that the Scottish Arts Center entertained us for Tartan Day with bagpipes and fiddle music. It was superb.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (3/28/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that it took from 9am until 7pm, with an hour or so break for lunch, to get through 43 bills on the regular calendar, 2 off the consent calendar, plus 3 that were taken off the table, and 1 more that was reconsidered. It was a long day and I’ll try to review some highlights.
So, Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (3/21/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that it took from 10 am until 8 pm, with an hour break for lunch, to get through 44 bills, their amendments, and all the various motions. It was a very long day, but we got some good work accomplished. I won’t go through everything, but let’s review some highlights.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (3/14/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that the House needed a lesson on microphone etiquette. The General Court Technical Services (GCTS) Team came to work on the microphones prior to the House session and shared some tips and techniques with our House Clerk, Paul Smith.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (3/7/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that we had a full day with 52 House bills on the agenda but didn’t get through all of them. As the hour got late, we saved 10 for next week. We also learned that when Republicans show up, they stop bad bills from advancing and move good bills forward. Read more below.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (2/22/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that we were able to get through reconsideration of HB154 (reconsideration failed), 44 regular calendar bills and 1 bill pulled off consent, between 9 am and 5:30 pm, with an hour for lunch (thankfully provided by the NH Nurses Association). Everyone was prepared to stay much longer into the evening, but speeches were relatively short, and we had a nice amount of voice votes on bills, too!
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (2/15/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned from the Governor’s last State of the State address that New Hampshire ranks highly in many areas and has implemented programs that are being copied in other states. He lauded the legislature’s many accomplishments and complimented agency heads for their work.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (2/8/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that State Representative Matthew (Matt) Coker (R-Meredith) officially switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican. The Republican Caucus welcomed him warmly and looks forward to working with him to serve his constituents with integrity and conviction.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (2/1/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that this was the first day we began tackling our 2024 bills. Before we did that, though, we welcomed our two newest members of the House, Rep. Sean Durkin (R- Coos Dist1) and Rep. Mike Murphy (R-Gorham). We also took some time to remember the Hon. Suzanne Smith (D-Grafton 8), who passed away in early January 2024.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From Thursday’s House Session (1/4/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that today we were able to finish up all of the leftover 2023 retained House bills and were successful in passing some really good bills… and killed some bad ones, too. It was a good two days!
So Kids, What Did We Learn From Wednesday’s House Session (1/3/24)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that today was the first of two days this week that the House will determine the fate of around 66 bills that were retained from last year. We voted on 37 of those bills today.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (10/26/23)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that today was Veto Day! The House had on its docket 4 House bills that were vetoed by Governor Sununu. A vetoed bill needed 2/3 of those voting to override the veto. Otherwise, the veto was sustained. Because of the way the question to the House is worded, a “Yes” vote was to override the veto – a “No” vote was to sustain the veto.
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (06/29/23)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that when Republicans show up they can get the job done. You can see how razor-slim the votes were on some of these bills when they were voted on party lines – slim as in 1 vote! Two things we learned for sure this year: attendance matters, and so does “sticking together.”
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (06/15/23)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that it was the start of horse-trading… I mean… Committee of Conference season. The House voted on about 27 House bills that were amended by the Senate to determine whether we’d Concur or not, or Non-Concur and Create a Committee of Conference to hash out differences. About 17 bills were concurred on a … Read more
So Kids, What Did We Learn From This Week’s House Session (06/08/23)?
by Judy Aron
We learned that Republican attendance still put them in the minority today as compared to the Democrat caucus. With 8 Republican members out, and 4 on the Dem side, it put the numbers around 191D-187R in the morning and hovering around 188D-182R later in the day. It is the reason some nanny state bills passed … Read more