Updates

Be still my foolish heart! On Thursday, we killed a book ban, slowed down the relentless assault of school vouchers on property taxpayers, overturned a GOP effort to starve hungry kids, and passed a resolution condemning unnecessary restrictions on medication abortions.

Last week’s session of the New Hampshire House of Representatives was a mix of the good, the bad and the ugly—with an extra dose of ugly. Here are the highlights and lowlights.

It’s not unusual for an elected official to say in a social media post that he or she is “proud” to be at an event. But it’s definitely a bit unusual for one say they were humbled and inspired by one. Count me in as officially humbled and inspired by what I saw and heard at the first-ever convening of state legislators by the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.

Last week, any confusion around the use of a dangerous restraint technique on children in educational and treatment settings in New Hampshire was officially laid to rest when Gov. Sununu signed HB 491 into law. 

By now—if you’ve had the stamina to consume any news beyond Trump’s indictments and the attempted asphyxiation of eastern US cities by Canada—you may have heard the New Hampshire House and Senate passed a new state budget. Here’s a quick recap of the good, the bad and the ugly.

On Thursday, the work of LGBTQ advocates, healthcare advocates, and Democratic leadership paid off with outstanding attendance that resulted two well-earned victories. While celebrations are in order, so is caution. Here’s why.

If there is one thing you learn as a state rep, it’s to never be surprised at anything that takes place on the floor of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. But on Thursday, we surprised state house observers (and ourselves) by passing a bipartisan 2024-2025 budget by a loud and overwhelming voice vote. Here’s a quick rundown of what’s in, what’s out, and what else we voted on.

Until this week, the near-even split between Democrats and Republicans in the New Hampshire House of Representatives had mainly worked in favor of the GOP. But on Wednesday, key votes began to swing the other way. Here’s a quick recap.

With little notice, New Hampshire passed a very unfortunate milestone last week as our state hit and then surpassed 3,000 deaths from COVID-19. A few thoughts…

While housing, energy costs, abortion rights, and the future of public education have dominated local news reports in this session of the legislature, efforts are also underway in Concord to further reduce the risk of tragic incidents involving interactions between police and members of New Hampshire’s minority communities.

A disappointing day earlier this week for me personally along with legislative advocates and citizen supporters of bills that would reduce the risk of gun violence and gun suicide in NH.

An intense month of public hearings wrapped up on Friday for the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee. Up next: completing votes on all 56 bills by February 24.

Summer in New Hampshire is beach, boat, and fireworks season. But it’s also the time of year when bills that made it through New Hampshire’s legislative Hunger Games finally reach the governor’s desk for action. Here’s a quick recap of some of the good, the bad, and the ugly bills that have made it to the finish line so far.

On Thursday, members of the NH House of Representatives took final action on remaining committee of conference reports. For some bills it was the final step before moving on to Gov. Sununu for signature or veto. For others—thankfully—it was the end of the line. Here are some of the highlights.

Last Thursday, members of the NH House of Representatives had the opportunity to listen to a speech from former Polish President Lech Walesa, who broke the stranglehold of communism in his country decades ago. They also decided the fate of 81 bills and formed conference committees to hash out differences with the Senate on dozens more. Here are the highlights.

On Wednesday and Thursday May 4-5, the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted on the remaining bills already passed in the Senate. Complicating matters were potential “poison pill amendments” added to several bills. Here were some of the key votes from this week’s session.

On Thursday, the New Hampshire House of Representatives met for the first time in 2022 without Rep. Katherine Rogers (D-Concord), who died of cancer earlier this month. Over the course of the day, the House voted on close to 30 bills already passed in the Senate. Here are the highlights.

On Thursday, the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted on the remaining House bills in the 2022 session. Here is a wrap-up of some of the key votes.

Last Tuesday through Thursday, the New Hampshire House of Representatives met at the State House in Concord to vote on close to 400 bills. While some were non-controversial, debates on many others were heated and contentious. Here are some of the highlights.

As New Hampshire readies for a Thanksgiving holiday where twice as many people are expected to gather together to celebrate as in 2020, hospitals are under tremendous strain to not only deal with the patients they already have—but to prepare to accommodate those likely to be sickened over the holiday.