From the Women’s Defense League
On Thursday, January 30th, beginning at 10:00 AM there will be two gun control bills heard in the New Hampshire Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee. The hearing will be in rooms 202-204 in the Legislative Office Building behind the State House.
The first bill is really two gun control bills in one as you can see below. The other is a gun control bill to ban people from practicing their fundamental human right to self defense when practicing their right to vote. You can find information about that one here: Gun control bill suppresses voting rights as well.
Two Gun Control Bills in One
The out-of-state gun control lobbyists are trying to outdo themselves with this one. They’ve taken two gun control measures that continually fail to pass and are wrapping them into one – House Bill 56 – Requiring a background check and mandatory waiting period during certain firearms transfers.
You should be aware that all FFL dealers (gun shops, etc.) require a background check with every purchase. That is federal law.
Gun control lobbyists would like Granite Staters to believe that New Hampshire has zero background checks when purchasing firearms. That’s a lie.
Now, onto the latest draconian gun control bill. We’ll break it out into the two different parts that were formerly two different bills, both of which failed last year in the NH Senate:
Requiring a Background Check
This language has been resurrected from the depths of Hell for over a decade. And as always, this law will make it so anyone who provides firearm training, other than those who are already FFL dealers, will NOT be able to provide firearm SAFETY training. Year after year after year, we have explained how this bill harms those who seek gun safety training but year after year after year, gun control lobbyists and those they support in the NH Legislature don’t care. They claim to be all about gun safety but when it boils down to facts and reality, it’s more about control. They care nothing about actual gun safety.
Mandatory Waiting Period
This language seeks to stop law-abiding Granite Staters, who pass a federal background check, from taking possession of their legally purchased firearm for 3 days. If you’re a woman with a stalker or abusive partner and don’t have a restraining order, you’re out of luck when it comes to protecting yourself and practicing your fundamental human right to self-defense. NH’s 2A doesn’t mention anything about a waiting period, neither does the Constitution. The only people who want a waiting period are those who seek to enable criminals.
What can you do?
SHOW UP at the hearing. You don’t have to testify. You can sign in and show your opposition by being there. The gun control crowd REALLY WANTS this bill to pass. They spent over $1 MILLION to push gun control last session. YOUR presence helps negate their out-of-state money.
CALL and EMAIL the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee members. You can reach the Representatives below. You can also call the main committee number and tell them you are against this legislation – (603) 271-3529:
Name | Email Address | Phone |
Terry Roy (R) | Terry.Roy@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 239-3369 |
Richard Lascelles (R) | (603) 325-5523 | |
Linda Harriott-Gathright | linda.harriottgathright@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 880-4537 |
Ricky Devoid (R) | Rick.Devoid@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 848-2551 |
David Meuse (D) | David.Meuse@leg.state.nh.us | |
Pete Morency (R) | Peter.Morency@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 752-7325 |
Nancy Murphy (D) | Nancy.Murphy@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 424-0254 |
Alissandra Murray (D) | Alissandra.Murray@leg.state.nh.us | |
Jodi Newell (D) | Jodi.Newell@leg.state.nh.us | |
Ray Newman (D) | Ray.Newman@leg.state.nh.us | |
Kathleen Paquette (R) | Kathleen.Paquette@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 305-2774 |
Mark Proulx (R) | Mark.Proulx@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 669-7179 |
Jennifer Rhodes (R) | Jennifer.Rhodes@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 762-8069 |
Matt Sabourin dit Choiniere (R) | Matt.Sabourin@leg.state.nh.us | |
Buzz Scherr (D) | buzzfornh@gmail.com | (603) 498-6916 |
Brian Valerino (R) | Brian.Valerino@leg.state.nh.us | (603) 723-7247 |
SIGN IN online opposing the bill –

If you have ANY questions at all, please email info@wdlnh.org. We will help you write testimony if you’re interested, help you walk through signing in online if you need it, and be available on the day of the hearing at the State House.