This week, the House met in session, with 47 bills on the regular calendar and 31 (including two from my committee) on the consent calendar. First, we had memorial remarks for a former member from Hollis. Then we approved the consent calendar, after HB 631 was removed. The sponsor attempted to withdraw HB 431, establishing a study commission on education rules, but the education committee objected because they were using it for another purpose. The withdrawal motion failed, 160-207, so we’ll see HB 431 next week.
HB 109, making it a crime to falsely report police misconduct, was debated briefly and passed, 198-173. HB 218, giving victims of crime with a free police report, had a floor amendment to provide a “written report” instead of the “initial report;” this was debated since the written report was new work for the police, and the initial report was expected by the various victim support organizations. That amendment failed, 157-213, and the bill passed on a voice vote.
HB 10, establishing the parental bill of rights, was debated on the committee amendment, which then passed 210-162. A floor amendment to delete many of the enforcement provisions was debated and failed, 163-209; the bill was not tabled, 162-211, and passed, 212-161.
HB 433, allowing 17 year olds to marry if one spouse was in the military, was debated and passed, 193-178. I reluctantly voted for it – I hate making exceptions for special cases, but I think the idea of an absolute ban on marrying before age 18 is too extreme.
HB 718, having the state board of education report the unfunded impact to school districts for any rules which exceed minimum standards, was debated on whether this was possible, and passed, 211-163. The opposition seemed to think the fiscal impact needed to be exact, to the penny, when, for decision making purposes, knowing if it’s $500 or $50,000 is usually close enough.
HB 68, requiring best interest placements in different schools within the same school district, had a clarifying amendment passed, 201-160, then was debated. The bill requires superintendents have a valid reason for denying such a request, and to explain why a request was denied within 10 days. This only applies to larger school districts with more than one school at that grade level, and seems like a good policy to have – schools frequently have different cultures, and it’s easy to see that a student might fit better in one than another. The opposition seemed more concerned with administrative convenience than the student. The bill passed, 217-156.
HB 235, amending the educator code of conduct and code of ethics to explicitly include duty to parents, was debated and passed, 209-164. This is an obvious help to enforcing parental rights. HB 329, requiring school districts to have policies on air quality and temperature (obviously leaning towards requiring air conditioning in all schools), was debated and killed as unnecessary, 210-162. HB 676, revising the parent/education service provider advisory commission, requiring regular meetings and reports, and adding two surveys for EFA students, was briefly debated and passed, 205-166. The opposition was overwhelmingly House Democrats, who have been opposing the EFA program because of lack of oversight…
CACR 5, allowing absentee voting for any reason, was debated and killed, 201-169. I was opposed for two reasons: first, absentee voting is easier to manipulate for fraudulent voting, and second, it hurts our tradition of election day by causing voting to be spread out over the weeks (or months!) before the election.
HB 136, allowing absentee ballots to be delivered to the polls up until they close, instead of by 5 pm, was killed, 203-169, without debate. HB 288, originally requiring absentee ballots be requested 6 months in advance of the election, was amended to require the ballot request no more than 6 months before the election, which makes a lot more sense – who knows more than 6 months in advance that they can’t go to the polls? Only overseas voters, military or otherwise, who can file no sooner than January. Yes, there are some snowbirds who leave for the south in October, but applying for an absentee ballot can be done anytime they’re in New Hampshire. This bill, as amended, passed, on a voice vote. HB 344, allowing absentee ballots start processing before election day, was killed, 204-168, with minimal comment.
HB 389, requiring candidates to file a report attesting that they spent no more than $1000 in an election, was killed without comment. After all, House members are the candidates most likely to spend less than $1000 – and most of us don’t need to file a report (I didn’t, because I didn’t spend money on my campaign – just time.) HB 403, expanding the weather conditions extreme enough to enable absentee voting (currently winter storm, blizzard, or ice storm) was killed on a voice vote. HB 474, simplifying the selection of the second witness when counting write-in votes, passed without discussion. The details were driven by the new ballot counting machines, but it should apply to hand counts as well.
HB 630, prohibiting deepfake materials in political campaigns, was debated as to whether the current statutory language covers non-AI deepfakes, such as Photoshop manipulations. The speaker in support of the bill was the computer expert I’d worked with last year, when we banned deepfakes by state agencies, and so I voted for the bill; the committee disagreed, and HB 630 was killed, 201-169.
HB 233, requiring meetings of the vaccine association be recorded and posted on line, was amended to delete the requirement for posting questions and answers, since we’d learned (from both sides) that most questions were on vaccine policy, which is not the responsibility of this association. It was then debated on whether this was the first step to requiring all non-profits to comply with the transparency requirements for public groups. I argued that the vaccine association was formed by the legislature; its duties are assigned by statute; the Insurance department collects an “assessment” (they don’t call it a tax) from health insurers, as directed by the association, to fund its vaccine purchases; and the department of health & human services provides administrative support to the association, as well as specifying what vaccines to purchase. It’s not really a private organization. The bill passed, 208-164.
HB 278, requiring proxy carbon pricing in state procurement, was debated and killed, 213-159.
HB 732, enhancing informed consent for psychotropic drugs for children using Medicaid, was another parental rights bill. The committee amendment made some more explicit definitions, then a floor amendment added these requirements to more professional boards, then the bill was debated on how necessary it was. I wasn’t really convinced it was, but my vice-chair, a sponsor of HB 732, explained that some providers don’t really inform parents of the risks of many ADHD drugs. The bill passed, 206-165.
HCR 7, recognizing abortion as a critical component of reproductive healthcare, was tabled before the undoubtedly lengthy debate, 199-171. HR 16, a resolution recognizing the contributions of front line healthcare workers during Covid, had a minority amendment presented to recognize those workers who were fired for not taking the vaccines. This was briefly debated, then passed, 202-166. The resolution passed on a voice vote.
HB 351, requiring landlords to give at-will tenants at least 60 days notice to quit, was tabled, 352-11. HB 558, creating a county registry of rents, was killed without comment. HB 628, prohibiting discrimination against prospective tenants with Section 8 vouchers, was debated on the point that renting to these tenants means signing up for a complex government program, not just taking the vouchers. It was killed, 213-152.
Dan’s HB 88, creating community property trusts, had the committee amendment adopted, then it was debated. The opposition was concerned about equitable, rather than even, division in divorces; Dan spoke on it being a way for widows (a lot more of them than widowers) to avoid federal taxes. It passed, 211-155. HB 148, allowing classification of individuals by biological sex in certain circumstances (public rest rooms and locker rooms, sports where biological males have an advantage, and prisons or mental hospitals where one can be involuntarily committed) was debated at extreme length, then passed, 201-166.
HB 199, extending the statute of limitations for PFAS damage, from 6 years to 20 years from the discovery from harm, was tabled, 188-170. HB 254, allowing medical aid in dying/physician assisted suicide, was also tabled, 183-182.
HB 273, allowing parent’s access to children’s library records, was actually debated before passing, 196-162. The opponents were correct that, by using the parent’s library card, that information was already available, but the supporters feared that librarians were issuing inappropriate or harmful material to children who had their own cards. The bill passed, 196-162.
HB 280, allowing employers and employees to agree on wage payment methods (checks, cash, direct deposit, debit cards, whatever) without having the method specified in statute, was not tabled, 172-192. Debate was based on opposition to not having the acceptable methods of payment specified in statute; I remember the debates we endured to add debit cards to the list and think the employer and employees know better than we do what method is preferable. The bill passed, 191-176.
HB 379, restricting youth employment hours at night, was debated and killed on a voice vote. HB 386, prohibiting non-compete clauses in contracts with nurse agencies, was tabled on a voice vote. HB 442, prohibiting sub-minimum wages (now paid only to tipped employees), was tabled, 199-153. HB 726, gradually increasing the state minimum wage to $15/hour, was also tabled, 197-159. HB 757, creating a mandatory structure for tip pooling, was tabled, 204-152. Tabling is used instead of voting to kill a bill, since tabling is not debatable.
HB 221, allowing the Public Utilities Commission to assess the cost effectiveness of the systems benefit charge, was not tabled, 151-193, then debated. Having the PUC determine if the energy efficiency programs are money well spent will be worthwhile, as every electricity user pays this charge. The bill passed, 195-151. HB 535, defining the role of the PUC relative to the department of energy was tabled, 194-153. HB 599, creating a study committee on home weatherization initiatives, was also tabled, 198-148.
HB 672, allowing off-grid energy producers, was debated and passed, 215-132. Off grid energy producers are generating stations next to a big user (a data center, for example) that uses all the energy that generator produces. HB 710, allowing utilities to own advanced nuclear resources, was amended to allow them to sign agreements with them, and then passed, 259-85.
HCR 2, declaring advanced nuclear technology to be in the state’s best interest, was briefly debated and passed, 258-83. HCR 4, rejecting offshore wind energy in the state’s waters, was debated and passed, 195-149. Wind energy installations are risky due to heat generation, sea bottom disturbances from long cables, and dangers to the fisheries. HR 15, urging our congressional delegation to try to change the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission policy on transmission projects, passed on a voice vote. This policy presumes transmission projects are prudent and reasonable unless someone proves otherwise; the NH policy is for the project to prove its costs are just and reasonable.
HR 12, urging Congress to amend the Smith-Mundt modernization Act, was debated on federal legalities. This act repealed the long standing prohibition on using federal money for propaganda within the country, according to the committee members; I’ve never heard of it myself. It passed, 192-150, with most of us no better informed than when we started!
HB 290, increasing the tobacco tax, was indefinitely postponed on a voice vote.
Finally, HB 631, allowing residential building in commercial zones by right, also had a motion to indefinitely postpone. This was debated and not passed, 128-211, some more debate, and then the bill passed, 204-134. This wasn’t really partisan: most Democrats supported the bill, but so did 40% of Republicans, including me. The debate was over whether this was a state attempt to destroy local control, or a way to insist towns accepted having the style of older town centers, with homes above shops and shops within residential neighborhoods.
