2020 Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1166(New Title) relative to unemployment compensation, certain sanitary protections for COVID-19, extending the federal Family and Medical Leave Act for certain COVID-19 protections, and waiving cost sharing for testing and treatment for COVID-19.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill increases unemployment compensation rates to be a larger fraction of the individual's normal salary and mandates new paid benefits to be provided by employers.

  * The increases in unemployment provided for in this bill are permanent and not limited to the response to COVID-19. Some employees will end up receiving more money on unemployment than they did while working. This is a disincentive to work and is ultimately harmful to individuals. For example, an individual earning $192 per week would be eligible for $220 a week while unemployed.
  * The bill also requires unlimited paid time off for COVID-19 testing requested by the employee, as proposed 277:10-a indicates that only the employee request is required to trigger access to a test or time-off for the test.

• Anti-libertyHB 1234(Second New Title) relative to state and local government administration.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill is an omnibus bill that contains approximately 40 different topics, limiting the ability of the public to participate and comment and forcing legislators to accept unrelated provisions in a single vote.

  * This bill raises protectionist barriers by preventing EMTs or paramedics who are nationally certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians and licensed in their home state from being employed in New Hampshire without first completing NH's processes for licensing.
  * New Hampshire is still in the midst of an opioid crisis and a medical state of emergency. Now is not the time to try a dangerous protectionist experiment that will complicate the process for businesses to attract qualified emergency personnel from other states.
  * While the bill contains a number of positive or neutral provisions, the negative provisions and the limited time for public review are unacceptable.

• Anti-libertyHB 1247(Second New Title) relative to mortgage defaults and nonpayment of rent during the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak state of emergency.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill prohibits a landlord from filing a possessory action based on nonpayment of rent that became due during the state of emergency unless the renter has been provided with a written offer to allow payment over a 6 month period that begins from the date of the written offer.

  * This bill provides a one-size-fits-all solution to the complexities the economic hardships created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated state actions. Small landlords, who themselves may have felt impacts from the state of emergency, may lose their property, which may also have unforeseen negative consequences for the tenants.

• Anti-libertyHB 1454(New Title) relative to alternative learning credit rules of the state board of education.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill increases the complexity for organizations looking to offer alternative "Learn Everywhere" for-credit programs by allowing local school boards to reject alternative learning or work-based programs.

  * Ultimately parents are in the best position to determine what is best for the education of their children. Under current law, parents and alternative learning providers can work with the state board of education to ensure that alternative programs meet education standards. This bill would increase complexity for parents and educators by allowing the local school board to reject the work-based program credit even if it is not executing within the geographic region covered by the board and is supported by the parent.

• Anti-libertyHB 1660establishing a protective order for vulnerable adults.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill creates a system for issuing a civil restraining order for actions that are already treated as a crime.

  * Current statutes [RSA 631: 4,8,9] already address these actions as criminal behaviors: Section 631:4 Criminal Threatening; Section 631:8 Criminal Neglect of Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adults; Section 631:9 Financial Exploitation of an Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adult.
  * This bill violates due process on numerous fronts and because these are civil actions, the poor will not have access to a public defender.
  * Further, the decision to seize firearms and prohibit future purchases is made in a proceeding where the normal rules of evidence need not apply as 173-D:4 VI, as proposed, includes <i>"In any proceeding under this chapter, the court shall not be bound by the technical rules of evidence and may admit evidence which it considers relevant and material."</i>
  * The bill prohibits by law, prosecution of those who committed perjury when filing a petition.

• Anti-libertyHB 250(Second New Title) establishing a dental benefit under the state Medicaid program.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill will increase state spending by providing adults in the Medicaid program with dental coverage.

  * This program provides able-bodied adults in New Hampshire with taxpayer-funded dental coverage.
  * This will likely result in new costs of between $6 million and $11 million in state taxpayer funds and more than $28 million of taxpayer funding overall when state and federal spending are considered. The bill provides no cap on annual per-patient expenses and therefore the total cost impact may be higher.

• Anti-libertyHB 687relative to extreme risk protection orders.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill allows personal property, including firearms, to be taken when no crime has been committed.

  * This bill eliminates traditional due-process protections prior to search and seizure of personal property.
  * The bill violates the 4th Amendment protections under the US Bill of Rights and Article 19 of the NH Bill of Rights: "<i>[Art.] 19. [Searches and Seizures Regulated.] Every subject hath a right to be secure from all unreasonable searches and seizures of his person, his houses, his papers, and all his possessions.</i>"
  * The language in the bill allows for hearsay 'evidence' to be admitted into the trial violating Article 15: "<i>[Art.] 15. [Right of Accused.] No subject shall be held to answer for any crime, or offense, until the same is fully and plainly, substantially and formally, described to him;</i>"
  * The respondent will be stripped of personal property and will need to spend time and money via the court system for return of the property without having committed a crime.
  * Under this bill, courts are not bound by the traditional rules of evidence typically given to the defendant. (159-E:3 IX)

• Anti-libertyHB 712relative to a family and medical leave insurance program.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill creates a new tax on income from wages of at least 0.5% to implement a new family medical leave program.

  * Employees and employers should be free to negotiate benefit programs such as paid family and medical leave insurance without the state forcing all to participate.
  * There is a cap on benefits at 85% of the average salary, so workers who make over the average salary will be paying for benefits that they cannot collect and are disproportionately impacted by the legislation.
  * The current short-term disability insurance market will be negatively impacted by government interference in the insurance marketplace.
  * Long term, the fiscal note for the program estimates that the state of NH will need 43+ additional employees and $6.6 million per year that would need to be subsidized by the participants.

• Anti-libertyHB 731(Second New Title) relative to the state minimum hourly rate.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill establishes a state-dictated minimum wage.

  * Minimum wage laws decrease the number of entry-level jobs and make it harder for people of low skill to get their start in the workforce.
  * Higher wages for everyone are better accomplished through job creation — more jobs mean more competition to hire all workers.
  * Employers and employees should be free to negotiate the terms of employment without interference.
  * Economic conditions and cost of living vary dramatically across the state. A "one-size-fits-all" approach to a minimum wage will put unreasonable pressure on areas of the state with limited employment opportunities and lower costs of living.
  * The very idea of a minimum wage is patronizing and demeaning as it implies that individuals don't know how much they're worth and are incapable of negotiating with an employer.

• Anti-libertySB 122relative to expenditures from the energy efficiency fund.NAY Override
  Why

  By eliminating the existing rebate to residential ratepayers, this bill increases a stealthy tax on New Hampshire electricity consumers.

  * This bill removes long-standing rebates to middle class residential customers, while preserving rebates to commercial/industrial customers, thereby raising rates on residential customers and effectively forcing them to subsidize commercial/industrial customers as well as low-income and local governments.
  * Electric rates are already high in New Hampshire. Efficiency projects that are truly fiscally responsible can and will be funded by electricity consumers themselves. It is unfair to force all ratepayers to fund projects for specific consumers, whether private or governmental.
  * Rather than putting more money into the hands of government in order to pick winners and losers, the money should remain with the ratepayers where it belongs.

• Anti-libertySB 124(New Title) relative to the minimum electric renewable portfolio standards.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill increases state interference in the energy marketplace.

  * This bill may increase energy costs in the state by mandating potentially non-competitive energy sources. Should proponents of these sources be correct that they will be cheaper than alternatives, then no state mandate would be needed.
  * The bill disadvantages increases in other carbon-neutral energy sources such as nuclear.

• Anti-libertySB 19relative to the privacy of certain information concerning public employees.NAY Override
  Why

  This bill enables the disclosure of personal information held by the state to a private organization.

  * This bill allows the state to release the home address, email, and personal phone numbers of state employees to labor unions without regard for whether the employee wishes this data to be released to the organization.
  * In 2018, a constitutional amendment passed with 81% of the vote stating "An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent." — this bill would undermine this constitutional right.
  * Employees who wish to share this information with their union may already do so voluntarily.

9 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1162(New Title) relative to adoption and parentage; the office of the child advocate; reimbursement of court ordered services for juveniles; the legal representation of children in the juvenile justice system; the best interest of the child under RSA 169-C and the duties of the oversight commission on children’s services; insurance coverage for children’s early intervention services; expanding the family-centered early supports and services (FCESS) program to children under the age of 3 who are born substance-exposed; the child abuse and neglect central registry; establishing a kinship navigator program; missing children; dispositional hearings under RSA 169-B; and the rebuttable presumption of harm under the child protection act.Oppose
  Why

  This bill incorporates language from HB 377 that changes the purpose of the Child Protection Act from protection from abuse instead to the state determining the 'best interest of the child'.

  * There is no objective standard to determine the best interest of the child. Under this bill, judicial prerogative to determine the child’s best interest becomes the default, rather than a last resort reserved for when a parent has been proven unfit.
  * According to the National Bureau of Economic Research (<a href=https://www.nber.org/digest/oct05/w11377.html>www.nber.org/digest/oct05/w11377.html</a>) "Doubling the rate of religious attendance raises household income by 9.1 percent, decreases welfare participation by 16 percent from baseline rates, decreases the odds of being divorced by 4 percent, and increases the odds of being married by 4.4 percent." — should the state show a preference for removing a child from a non-religious parent and placing them with a religious family? Clearly not, and while such decisions are unlikely to become commonplace even with this bill, a decision to remove a child from a parent is not something that should be left to such a vaguely worded standard subject to judicial evolution of interpretation.

• Anti-libertyHB 1166relative to unemployment compensation, certain sanitary protections for COVID-19, extending the federal Family and Medical Leave Act for certain COVID-19 protections, and waiving cost sharing for testing and treatment for COVID-19.Oppose
  Why

  This bill increases unemployment compensation rates to be a larger fraction of the individual's normal salary and mandates new paid benefits to be provided by employers.

  * The increases in unemployment provided for in this bill are permanent and not limited to the response to COVID-19. Some employees will end up receiving more money on unemployment than they did while working. This is a disincentive to work and is ultimately harmful to individuals. For example, under the proposed amendment, an individual earning $192 per week would be eligible for $220 a week while unemployed.
  * The committee amendment also requires unlimited paid time off for COVID-19 testing requested by the employee, as proposed 277:10-a indicates that only the employee request is required to trigger access to a test or time-off for the test.

• Anti-libertyHB 1234-FN-A(Second New Title) relative to state and local government administration.Oppose
  Why

  This bill is an omnibus bill that contains approximately 40 different topics, limiting the ability of the public to participate and comment and forcing legislators to accept unrelated provisions in a single vote.

  * This bill raises protectionist barriers by preventing EMTs or paramedics who are nationally certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians and licensed in their home state from being employed in New Hampshire without first completing NH's processes for licensing.
  * New Hampshire is still in the midst of an opioid crisis and a medical state of emergency. Now is not the time to try a dangerous protectionist experiment that will complicate the process for businesses to attract qualified emergency personnel from other states.
  * While the bill contains a number of positive or neutral provisions, the negative provisions and the limited time for public review of the amendment are unacceptable.

• Anti-libertyHB 1245(Second New Title) adopting omnibus legislation concerning state agencies.Oppose
  Why

  This bill contains approximately 36 different topics, limiting the ability of the public to participate and comment and forcing legislators to accept unrelated provisions in a single vote. It grants the state the ability to infringe on private property rights and raises the tobacco possession/sale age to 21.

  * While portions of this this bill are attempting to address public safety, there are insufficient protections for property rights. Unelected state officials are given the right to enter on any property, public or private, for the purpose of investigating the condition, construction, or operation of any potentially hazardous dam or associated equipment, facility, or property to take emergency actions without even a simple review by a judge. It allows property entry if there is a flood warning issued by the National Weather Service but does not require the flood warning to be in a region that is associated with the dam. History has shown that vague emergency powers will be broadly interpreted beyond the original stated intent.
  * This bill bans the sale and possession of tobacco and e-cigarette products by young adults in NH by increasing the age for most provisions from 19 to 21.

• Anti-libertyHB 1247(Second New Title) relative to sexual assault, sexual misconduct in institutions of higher education, and the rights of victims of crime.Oppose
  Why

  This bill prohibits a landlord from filing a possessory action based on nonpayment of rent that became due during the state of emergency unless the renter has been provided with a written offer to allow payment over a 6 month period that begins from the date of the written offer.

  * This bill provides a one-size-fits-all solution to the complexities the economic hardships created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated state actions. Small landlords, who themselves may have felt impacts from the state of emergency, may lose their property, which may also have unforeseen negative consequences for the tenants.

• Anti-libertyHB 1280-FN(New Title) relative to copayments for insulin, establishing a wholesale prescription drug importation program, establishing a New Hampshire prescription drug affordability board, establishing the prescription drug competitive marketplace, relative to the pricing of generic prescription drugs, relative to prior authorization for prescription drug coverage, and requiring insurance coverage for epinephrine auto-injectors.Oppose
  Why

  This bill eliminates the option for individuals to access policies with deductibles for insulin and grants the state the power to import drugs from Canada while not providing the same freedom to private individuals or businesses.

  * While it may be comforting to feel as if we are saving individuals money, each new mandate we add increases the total cost for insurance and may end up making the difference between a family being able to afford insurance and not being able to afford it.
  * Deductibles in medical insurance policies allow insurers to offer policies at lower costs because it helps ensure that the customer takes total cost into account. This bill changes the incentive structure so that there is no reason for someone to choose a lower cost and potentially equally effective generic equivalent since their costs will be the same. This will further drive premium increases.
  * Reducing barriers to accessing potentially lower cost medicine from Canada (or other sources) is commendable; however, the state does not belong in the business of being the sole wholesaler or providing a special grant of privilege to a single wholesaler.

• Anti-libertyHB 1454(New Title) relative to alternative learning credit rules of the state board of education.Oppose
  Why

  This bill increases the complexity for organizations looking to offer alternative "Learn Everywhere" for-credit programs by allowing local school boards to reject alternative learning or work-based programs.

  * Ultimately parents are in the best position to determine what is best for the education of their children. Under current law, parents and alternative learning providers can work with the state board of education to ensure that alternative programs meet education standards. This bill would increase complexity for parents and educators by allowing the local school board to reject the work-based program credit even if it is not executing within the geographic region covered by the board and is supported by the parent.

• Anti-libertyHB 1558-FN(Second New Title) relative to discipline of students, addressing students’ behavioral needs, and making an appropriation therefor; kindergarten funding; violence in schools; policies for students with head injuries; child sexual abuse prevention education and training; authorizing the issuance of bonds or notes by a municipality; adding the chancellor of the university system of New Hampshire to the department of business and economic affairs council of partner agencies; change of school or assignment due to manifest educational hardship; school board expenditure of year-end fund balances; a children’s system of care; student wellness; and criminal background checks for bus drivers.Oppose
  Why

  This bill covers 19 different areas related to education including municipal bonds, school funding, and background checks.

  * This bill allows a school board or charter school board of trustees the ability to extend a suspension for mere possession of a paint ball gun without any requirement that the possession take place on or near school grounds.
  * This bill decreases the town vote threshold from 2/3 to 3/5 for bonds and other long term debt, allowing towns to more easily shift the burden for current spending to future taxpayers.

• Anti-libertyHB 1582-FN(New Title) relative to free tuition at colleges and universities for children of veterans who are totally and permanently disabled; programs to aid veterans’ access to employment, housing, health care, and college degrees; educational assistance for members of the New Hampshire national guard; tuition waivers for children in state foster care or guardianship; and prohibiting higher education institutions from discriminating on the basis of military, law enforcement, or veterans status.Oppose
  Why

  This bill spends state taxpayer dollars on special programs for veterans, performing functions that in many cases are already covered by federal programs.

  * Many local employers already offer beneficial treatment for hiring and training veterans — it is unclear that additional state spending in the area of job training and apprenticeship will have any positive outcome.
  * Proposed changes relative to reducing barriers to employment created by the state's excessive occupational licensing framework are admirable but likely ineffective. Veterans and all New Hampshire residents would be better served by reductions to state-sponsored protectionist legislation.
  * While improved outcomes for veterans from this legislation are uncertain, what is certain is that this bill will increase spending and result in higher taxes for everyone, including New Hampshire's veterans.

• Anti-libertyHB 1639-FN(New Title) relative to health care.Oppose
  Why

  This bill covers 17 different topics. Among these are a new insurance mandate for potentially ineffective antibiotics therapy, as well as raising barriers to competition and growth in the healthcare market.

  * Traditionally, where we have had insurance coverage mandates, they were for therapies where there was the highest degree of scientific consensus recommending it, considering efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness. This is not the case here. The CDC explicitly recommends against long-term antibiotic treatments for tick-borne illnesses such as Lyme, saying it has outcomes that are no better than a placebo (<a href=https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/postlds/index.html>www.cdc.gov/lyme/postlds/index.html</a>), but brings risks of serious, sometimes deadly complications. The Infectious Disease Society of America also notes that such treatment is ineffective and presents a harm to public health, due to the creation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
  * Although we support the "right to try" for patients, and would not ban long-term antibiotic treatments for Lyme, neither should we mandate that insurance plans cover this treatment.
  * The bill would also require any new ambulatory surgical center, hospital, walk-in-care center (and other similar health care facilities) that would be located within 15 miles of an existing critical access hospital to inform the hospital and allow it to object to the new nearby competition. While this is not a full return to the failed certificate of need mechanism of years past, it does raise new barriers to competition and potentially limits growth in the healthcare sector. Just months ago, experts predicted a shortage of testing facilities and hospital beds and now the legislature is considering raising new barriers to expansion.

• Anti-libertyHB 250(Second New Title) establishing a dental benefit under the state Medicaid program.Oppose
  Why

  This bill will increase state spending by providing adults in the Medicaid program with dental coverage.

  * This program provides able-bodied adults in New Hampshire with taxpayer-funded dental coverage.
  * This will likely result in new costs of between $6 million and $11 million in state taxpayer funds and more than $28 million of taxpayer funding overall when state and federal spending are considered. The bill provides no cap on annual per-patient expenses and therefore the total cost impact may be higher.

• Anti-libertyHB 731-FN(Second New Title) relative to the state minimum hourly rate.Oppose
  Why

  This bill establishes a state-dictated minimum wage.

  * Minimum wage laws decrease the number of entry-level jobs and make it harder for people of low skill to get their start in the workforce.
  * Higher wages for everyone are better accomplished through job creation — more jobs mean more competition to hire all workers.
  * Employers and employees should be free to negotiate the terms of employment without interference.
  * Economic conditions and cost of living vary dramatically across the state. A "one-size-fits-all" approach to a minimum wage will put unreasonable pressure on areas of the state with limited employment opportunities and lower costs of living.
  * The very idea of a minimum wage is patronizing and demeaning as it implies that individuals don't know how much they're worth and are incapable of negotiating with an employer.

14 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 687relative to extreme risk protection orders.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill allows personal property, including firearms, to be taken when no crime has been committed.

  * This bill eliminates traditional due-process protections prior to search and seizure of personal property.
  * The bill violates the 4th Amendment protections under the US Bill of Rights and Article 19 of the NH Bill of Rights: "<i>[Art.] 19. [Searches and Seizures Regulated.] Every subject hath a right to be secure from all unreasonable searches and seizures of his person, his houses, his papers, and all his possessions.</i>"
  * The language in the bill allows for hearsay 'evidence' to be admitted into the trial violating Article 15: "<i>[Art.] 15. [Right of Accused.] No subject shall be held to answer for any crime, or offense, until the same is fully and plainly, substantially and formally, described to him;</i>"
  * The respondent will be stripped of personal property and will need to spend time and money via the court system for return of the property without having committed a crime.
  * Under this bill, courts are not bound by the traditional rules of evidence typically given to the defendant. (159-E:3 IX)

6 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1162relative to adoption and parentage.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, incorporates language from HB 377 that changes the purpose of the Child Protection Act from protection from abuse to the state determining the 'best interest of the child'.

  * There is no objective standard to determine the best interest of the child. Under this bill, judicial prerogative to determine the child’s best interest becomes the default, rather than a last resort reserved for when a parent has been proven unfit.
  * According to the National Bureau of Economic Research (<a href=https://www.nber.org/digest/oct05/w11377.html>www.nber.org/digest/oct05/w11377.html</a>) "Doubling the rate of religious attendance raises household income by 9.1 percent, decreases welfare participation by 16 percent from baseline rates, decreases the odds of being divorced by 4 percent, and increases the odds of being married by 4.4 percent." — should the state show a preference for removing a child from a non-religious parent and placing them with a religious family? Clearly not, and while such decisions are unlikely to become commonplace even with this bill, a decision to remove a child from a parent is not something that should be left to such a vaguely worded standard subject to judicial evolution of interpretation.

• Anti-libertyHB 1166establishing a committee to study obtaining health insurance for those persons who are uninsured in New Hampshire.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, increases unemployment compensation rates to be a larger fraction of the individual's normal salary and mandates new paid benefits to be provided by employers.

  * The increases in unemployment provided for in this bill are permanent and not limited to the response to COVID-19. Some employees will end up receiving more money on unemployment than they did while working. This is a disincentive to work and is ultimately harmful to individuals. For example, under the proposed amendment, an individual earning $192 per week would be eligible for $220 a week while unemployed.
  * The committee amendment also requires unlimited paid time off for COVID-19 testing requested by the employee, as proposed 277:10-a indicates that only the employee request is required to trigger access to a test or time-off for the test.

• Anti-libertyHB 1234(New Title) relative to the heating of certain state-owned buildings in Concord and making an appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, is an omnibus bill that contains approximately 40 different topics, limiting the ability of the public to participate and comment and forcing legislators to accept unrelated provisions in a single vote.

  * As amended, this bill raises protectionist barriers by preventing EMTs or paramedics who are nationally certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians and licensed in their home state from being employed in New Hampshire without first completing NH's processes for licensing.
  * New Hampshire is still in the midst of an opioid crisis and a medical state of emergency. Now is not the time to try a dangerous protectionist experiment that will complicate the process for businesses to attract qualified emergency personnel from other states.
  * While the bill contains a number of positive or neutral provisions, the negative provisions and the limited time for public review of the amendment are unacceptable.

• Anti-libertyHB 1245(New Title) establishing a legislative committee to review all non-regulatory boards, commissions, councils, advisory committees, and task forces established by statute, repealing various statutory boards, commissions, councils, committees, task forces, and reducing the membership on certain statutory committees.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, contains approximately 36 different topics, limiting the ability of the public to participate and comment and forcing legislators to accept unrelated provisions in a single vote. It grants the state the ability to infringe on private property rights and raises the tobacco possession/sale age to 21.

  * While portions of this this bill are attempting to address public safety, there are insufficient protections for property rights. Unelected state officials are given the right to enter on any property, public or private, for the purpose of investigating the condition, construction, or operation of any potentially hazardous dam or associated equipment, facility, or property to take emergency actions without even a simple review by a judge. It allows property entry if there is a flood warning issued by the National Weather Service but does not require the flood warning to be in a region that is associated with the dam. History has shown that vague emergency powers will be broadly interpreted beyond the original stated intent.
  * This bill bans the sale and possession of tobacco and e-cigarette products by young adults in NH by increasing the age for most provisions from 19 to 21.

• Anti-libertyHB 1247relative to notice of rent increases in certain residential rental property.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill requires in-person or certified mail notice of at least 60 days of a proposed rent increase that
  exceeds 5 percent or notice of at least 90 days of an increase that exceeds 8 percent.

  * Terms for permissible increases should be the subject of private rental and/or lease agreements and not done by state mandate.
  * This places a burden upon property owners that the state has not chosen to place upon themselves. Increases in taxes or utility rates driven by state policy come with no such in-person or certified mail requirement, and may also result in a landlord facing state-driven increases in costs that will not be able to be passed on to tenants.
  * This bill will tend to drive up rents as property owners manage their risk of unexpected cost increases by passing on higher initial rental costs in the initial agreement.

• Anti-libertyHB 1280relative to copayments for insulin.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill eliminates the option for individuals to access policies with deductibles for insulin and grants the state the power to import drugs from Canada while not providing the same freedom to private individuals or businesses.

  * While it may be comforting to feel as if we are saving individuals money, each new mandate we add increases the total cost for insurance and may end up making the difference between a family being able to afford insurance and not being able to afford it.
  * Deductibles in medical insurance policies allow insurers to offer policies at lower costs because it helps ensure that the customer takes total cost into account. This bill changes the incentive structure so that there is no reason for someone to choose a lower cost and potentially equally effective generic equivalent since their costs will be the same. This will further drive premium increases.
  * Reducing barriers to accessing potentially lower cost medicine from Canada (or other sources) is commendable; however, the state does not belong in the business of being the sole wholesaler or providing a special grant of privilege to a single wholesaler.

• Anti-libertyHB 1454relative to credit for alternative, extended learning, and work-based programs.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases the complexity for organizations looking to offer alternative "Learn Everywhere" for-credit programs by allowing local school boards reject alternative learning or work-based programs.

  * Ultimately parents are in the best position to determine what is best for the education of their children. Under current law, parents and alternative learning providers can work with the state board of education to ensure that alternative programs meet education standards. This bill would increase complexity for parents and educators by allowing the local school board to reject the work-based program credit even if it is not executing within the geographic region covered by the board and is supported by the parent.

• Anti-libertyHB 1558relative to the provision of special education services for older students.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, covers 19 different areas related to education including municipal bonds, school funding, and background checks.

  * This bill allows a school board or charter school board of trustees the ability to extend a suspension for mere possession of a paint ball gun without any requirement that the possession take place on or near school grounds.
  * This bill decreases the town vote threshold from 2/3 to 3/5 for bonds and other long term debt, allowing towns to more easily shift the burden for current spending to future taxpayers.

• Anti-libertyHB 1582providing free tuition at colleges and universities for children of veterans who are totally and permanently disabled.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, spends state taxpayer dollars on special programs for veterans, performing functions that in many cases are already covered by federal programs.

  * Many local employers already offer beneficial treatment for hiring and training veterans — it is unclear that additional state spending in the area of job training and apprenticeship will have any positive outcome.
  * Proposed changes relative to reducing barriers to employment created by the state's excessive occupational licensing framework are admirable but likely ineffective. Veterans and all New Hampshire residents would be better served by reductions to state-sponsored protectionist legislation.
  * While improved outcomes for veterans from this legislation are uncertain, what is certain is that this bill will increase spending and result in higher taxes for everyone, including New Hampshire's veterans.

• Anti-libertyHB 1639relative to "In and Out Medical Assistance."NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, covers 17 different topics. Among these are a new insurance mandate for potentially ineffective antibiotics therapy, as well as raising barriers to competition and growth in the healthcare market.

  * Traditionally, where we have had insurance coverage mandates, they were for therapies where there was the highest degree of scientific consensus recommending it, considering efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness. This is not the case here. The CDC explicitly recommends against long-term antibiotic treatments for tick-borne illnesses such as Lyme, saying it has outcomes that are no better than a placebo (<a href=https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/postlds/index.html>www.cdc.gov/lyme/postlds/index.html</a>), but brings risks of serious, sometimes deadly complications. The Infectious Disease Society of America also notes that such treatment is ineffective and presents a harm to public health, due to the creation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
  * Although we support the "right to try" for patients, and would not ban long-term antibiotic treatments for Lyme, neither should we mandate that insurance plans cover this treatment.
  * The bill would also require any new ambulatory surgical center, hospital, walk-in-care center (and other similar health care facilities) that would be located within 15 miles of an existing critical access hospital to inform the hospital and allow it to object to the new nearby competition. While this is not a full return to the failed certificate of need mechanism of years past, it does raise new barriers to competition and potentially limits growth in the healthcare sector. Just months ago, experts predicted a shortage of testing facilities and hospital beds and now the legislature is considering raising new barriers to expansion.

• Anti-libertyHB 250(New Title) requiring reports by the board of dental examiners.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, will increase state spending by providing adults in the Medicaid program with dental coverage.

  * This program provides able-bodied adults in New Hampshire with taxpayer-funded dental coverage.
  * This will likely result in new costs of between $6 million and $11 million in state taxpayer funds and more than $28 million of taxpayer funding overall when state and federal spending are considered. The bill provides no cap on annual per-patient expenses and therefore the total cost impact may be higher.

• Anti-libertyHB 731(New Title) establishing a state minimum wage and providing for adjustments to the minimum wage.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill establishes a state-dictated minimum wage.

  * Minimum wage laws decrease the number of entry-level jobs and make it harder for people of low skill to get their start in the workforce.
  * Higher wages for everyone are better accomplished through job creation — more jobs mean more competition to hire all workers.
  * Employers and employees should be free to negotiate the terms of employment without interference.
  * Economic conditions and cost of living vary dramatically across the state. A "one-size-fits-all" approach to a minimum wage will put unreasonable pressure on areas of the state with limited employment opportunities and lower costs of living.
  * The very idea of a minimum wage is patronizing and demeaning as it implies that individuals don't know how much they're worth and are incapable of negotiating with an employer.

14 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1218(New Title) relative to net energy metering limits for customer generators and the purchase of output of limited electrical energy producers.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would increase costs for New Hampshire ratepayers.

  * This bill subsidizes businesses and municipalities that choose to operate large scale energy generation facilities by increasing the subsidized net metering cap from the current 1 megawatt limit up to 5 megawatts.
  * The recipients of these subsidies will get millions more at the expense of others without providing any substantial benefits to the grid, as the energy from these systems may be intermittent or unreliable.
  * Net metering subsidies for renewables may no longer make sense as studies claim that solar energy is cheaper than fossil fuels. If this is true, then operators of these facilities already have a significant competitive advantage and would not require subsidy to be profitable.
  * This bill has essentially no impact on individual homeowner use of net metering as the existing threshold of 1 megawatt is already approximately 100 times larger (as compared to a 10 kilowatt system) than what a typical homeowner is capable of generating via rooftop solar (<a href=https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why>www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why</a>).

• Anti-libertyHB 1218(New Title) relative to net energy metering limits for customer generators and the purchase of output of limited electrical energy producers.
  Why

  This bill would increase costs for New Hampshire ratepayers.

  * This bill subsidizes businesses and municipalities that choose to operate large scale energy generation facilities by increasing the subsidized net metering cap from the current 1 megawatt limit up to 5 megawatts.
  * The recipients of these subsidies will get millions more at the expense of others without providing any substantial benefits to the grid, as the energy from these systems is often intermittent and unreliable.
  * Net metering subsidies for renewables may no longer make sense as studies claim that solar energy is cheaper than fossil fuels. If this is true, then operators of these facilities already have a significant competitive advantage and would not require subsidy to be profitable.
  * This bill has essentially no impact on individual homeowner use of net metering as the existing threshold of 1 megawatt is already approximately 100 times larger (as compared to a 10 kilowatt system) than what a typical homeowner is capable of generating via rooftop solar (<a href=https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why>www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why</a>).

• Anti-libertyHB 1549establishing the office of school counseling and psychology, establishing the position of school counselor coordinator, and making an appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill with the committee amendment creates a new office within the department of education and a new counselor coordinator position for that office.

  * Costs for education continue to rise in the state. Often, these increased costs are at least partially due to continued expansion of bureaucratic infrastructure positions that have no direct role in education. This bill continues the expansion of overhead positions.
  * While the amendment defers determination of the funding of the new position to a future biennium, creating a new mandate with deferral of funding allows a future spending increase to claim that the state is 'simply fulfilling an earlier mandate' which diffuses accountability.

• Anti-libertyHB 1580(New Title) regulating the use of unmanned aircraft systems.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill prohibits anyone from weaponizing drones and prohibits private individuals from collecting images from a drone if they contain pictures of individuals without the consent of everyone in the images even if the individuals are in a public place without any expectation of privacy.

  * Invasions of privacy are already a crime under RSA 644:9. This bill goes beyond criminalizing invasions of privacy in that it would prohibit private individuals from collecting recognizable photographs of individuals in public places even if they have no expectation of privacy in that location.
  * The limitations on use by police for surveillance without a warrant are laudable; however, the exclusions for "law enforcement investigations" 422-D2 II(a) and exceptions for (images) "derived from lands owned by or under the control of the government entity" (422-D:3) weaken this protection.
  * This bill would make it a class A felony for someone to mount a flamethrower on a drone — even if this was done on a large private property for purposes of pest control.

• Pro-libertyHB 1642(New Title) prohibiting the state or a state official from using a face recognition system.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill prohibits the state, its political subdivisions, and officials from utilizing facial recognition systems or associated facial recognition system data.

  * State use of facial recognition poses a significant threat to our privacy and could hamper First Amendment protected protests and other legal activities.
  * A false match can lead to lengthy interrogations and increase the risk of negative outcomes with improperly initiated police encounters.
  * As recently as December of 2019, there have been well-publicized concerns from federal studies that showed "Facial-recognition systems misidentified people of color more often than white people" (<a href=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/12/19/federal-study-confirms-racial-bias-many-facial-recognition-systems-casts-doubt-their-expanding-use/>www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/12/19/federal-study-confirms-racial-bias-many-facial-recognition-systems-casts-doubt-their-expanding-use/</a>).
  * The committee minority amendment 2020-1255h, while not offering protection as strong as the original bill, is still a step in the right direction.

• Pro-libertyHB 1647relative to post-conviction DNA testing.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill amends the statute governing post-conviction DNA testing procedures so that it applies to individuals on probation, parole, or anyone whose liberty is otherwise restrained.

  * While exoneration via DNA testing is most critical for the falsely convicted who are still in custody, any time an inhabitant's rights are improperly restrained by the state a great injustice is being done with potentially long-term and multi-generational impacts.

• Anti-libertyHB 1662relative to the purchase, use, and possession of tobacco products and e-cigarettes.Oppose
  Why

  This bill bans the sale and possession of tobacco and e-cigarette products by many adults in NH.

  * This bill extends the current prohibition on tobacco products to adults under 20 years of age and extends the ban on the sale and possession of rolling papers to adults under 21 years of age.
  * While tobacco products are harmful, applying restrictions on their use to adults is paternalistic.
  * Any OTP motion (should one appear) should be opposed. No explicit NHLA recommendation is made with respect to either the committee majority or minority approach to avoid passage of the bill.

14 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertySB 475enabling municipalities to adopt a property tax credit for densely-built workforce housing.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill allows municipalities to raise taxes on existing property owners by providing preferential tax credits to densely-built housing.

  * Relaxation of zoning and/or codes and other government barriers to building should be prefered ways of increasing available housing instead of social engineering where the state determines the appropriate use of property.

• Anti-libertySB 493(New Title) relative to register of deeds fees and voluntary contributions used to support the land and community heritage investment program (LCHIP), and establishing a committee to study the economic impact of land conservation and to review the LCHIP surcharge.
  Why

  This bill increases the fee for recording a deed, mortgage, etc. from $25 to $35.

  * This is a 40% increase over the existing fee and is estimated to extort an additional $1.5 million in FY 2021 from New Hampshire property owners.
  * This is not a 'fee for service' as the funds are not used to defray the cost of maintaining deed records, but rather funds a program unrelated to the property being registered.

• Pro-libertySB 697(New Title) allowing qualifying patients to access all the alternative treatment centers under the use of cannabis for therapeutic purposes law and clarifying a provision on the limitations on the therapeutic use of cannabis.
  Why

  This bill allows qualifying cannabis patients to make purchases from any dispensary in the state.

  * Patients should not be denied access to medicine simply because they are visiting a different area of the state.
  * Oppose committee amendment 2020-0771s which implies that a medical cannabis card should be revoked for obtaining more than 2 ounces of cannabis in any 10-day period. Existing law already allows for revocation of a card for rules violations or other violations of the relevant RSA. It is worth noting that the NH Democratic platform contains "We believe that marijuana should be legalized, taxed, and regulated." — it makes little sense to support legalization for recreational use while penalizing patients who use cannabis for medical purposes.
  * Whether committee amendment 2020-0771s is adopted or not, support passage of the resulting bill.

• NeutralSB 732prohibiting the sharing of location data.Neutral
  Why

  This bill prohibits the sharing of location data by providers of mobile services and application providers.

  * This bill attempts to prohibit the sharing of location data with third parties unless the sharing was explicitly authorized by the individual. The intent of this bill is in fact Pro-Liberty. However, there are issues with the language that prevent a positive recommendation for the bill and its associated amendment.
  * The bill defines "Authorized Use" in I(a)(1) but never goes on to use the term within the section on restrictions. While it seems likely that judicial review of the law would divine legislative intent, the legislature should seek to tighten the language. An amendment that adds "IV. (f) Any authorized use of location data." should be considered.
  * Per I(a)(2), the bill excludes from authorized use location data that is: "shared in exchange for products or <b>services</b>." — this is paternalistic in its current form. Individuals should be free to make decisions about trading location data for a product or service, and in fact this directly contradicts I(a)(1), which states that authorized use includes "For the purpose of providing a <b>service</b> explicitly requested by such customer".

32 bills with no position.

• Anti-libertyCACR 17relating to taxation. Providing that a new state broad-based tax may be enacted only to reduce property taxes.YEA ITL
  Why

  This proposed constitutional amendment provides that a state broad-based tax may only be enacted to reduce property taxes.

  * This proposed constitutional amendment is misleading as there is nothing that would prevent property taxes from being raised in a subsequent year, resulting in a total tax burden and/or property tax burden that is higher than when the broad-based tax was introduced. The bill is intended to provide cover for a new broad-based tax that ultimately will hurt New Hampshire residents.

• Anti-libertyHB 1102requiring food service establishments to establish food allergy awareness procedures.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  As amended, this bill requires that all food service establishments must at all hours have a person in charge who is a certified food protection manager, with approved training, as well as mandating signage.

  * Many restaurants are already choosing to cater to the needs of customers with food allergies and sensitivities, both to improve business, and to protect against liability. General mandates, like this one, have unintended consequences and are often poorly suited to situations in which they are applied.
  * The position of food production manager was added by HHS to regulations in 2019, and is not codified into current law.
  * This bill is poorly and confusingly written, first applying section 143-A:8-a to, "Each food service establishment licensed by the state under RSA 143-A:6" then stating in Section 143-A:8-a part III that "This section shall not apply to any food service establishment exempt from licensure or inspection under RSA 143-A:5", but then amending the exceptions in RSA 143-A:5 to say that the allergy provisions of Section 143-A:8-a (which is all of it) will be applied to certain categories of exempt establishments.
  * Current New Hampshire law exempts locally-licensed food service establishments and food retail stores from state licensure. This bill overrides that longstanding policy, and local control, by directly imposing HHS regulations on locally-licensed establishments.
  * If a person is allergic, informing the restaurant before ordering is common sense. To mandate that private parties place signs explaining common sense is an unlimited and unending task, and not an appropriate role of the state.

• Pro-libertyHB 1114relative to state motor vehicle inspections.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill would reduce the burden on NH citizens by removing annual vehicle inspection requirements for private passenger vehicles that are used for non-commercial purposes.

  * 33 states, including states with much harsher winters than NH (e.g. Michigan, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Minnesota), do not require any periodic safety inspections. Another 6 states require only biennial inspections.
  * Yearly inspections are a special hardship on those with older vehicles and lower incomes, who often need the vehicle in order to get to work. Vehicles often fail for causes that have no material impact on safety.
  * A comprehensive study by Brigham Young University concluded "This finding strongly suggests that vehicle safety inspection programs are no longer necessary, and are simply a form of residual government oversight." (<a href=https://goo.gl/D9rxE7>https://goo.gl/D9rxE7</a>)

• Anti-libertyHB 1115relative to the discharge of a firearm in the compact part of a city or town.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill infringes upon the rights of property owners.

  * Under current law, firearms may be safety utilized outside of the compact area of a town, which includes areas at least 300 feet from nonresidential and commercial buildings. This distance and the associated property usage were already defined when properties were acquired. This bill would increase the distance to 900 feet, which would deny full use of property that may have been acquired with this specific usage in mind.

• Anti-libertyHB 1143repealing limited liability for manufacturers, distributors, dealers, or importers of firearms or ammunition.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill repeals limited liability for firearm and ammunition sellers and manufacturers.

  * Firearms dealers and manufacturers are already required to meet numerous federal, state, and local regulations, regulations that exceed other industries. There is no need to have these regulations if the consumer can then sue them even if they are not party to the sale.
  * New Hampshire has a significant number firearms manufacturers (http://www3.nssf.org/share/PDF/EconomicImpact/2018data/newhampshire.pdf) and this bill would put those firms at financial risk or force them to consider moving those jobs elsewhere.
  * According the CNBC, the medical industry is the 3rd leading cause of death (https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/22/medical-errors-third-leading-cause-of-death-in-america.html) yet has a similar protection: 508:18 Liability Limited; Health Care Facilities and Personnel.

• Anti-libertyHB 1159relative to cyberbullying, cyberstalking, and doxxing of a public servant.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill would make it a misdemeanor for anyone to reveal personally-identifiable information of a public servant if the purpose could be interpreted as harassing, threatening, or intimidating that public servant.

  * Public servants who do not like the political positions of their constituents will use this as a weapon to silence dissent. There is no enhanced penalty in the bill to provide enhanced punishment for false reports.
  * Harassment is already a crime under RSA 644:4 for all forms of communication.
  * Threatening is already a crime under RSA 631:4.
  * While the appropriate motion for this bill is ITL, a vote for IS is acceptable.

• Anti-libertyHB 1160allowing municipalities to collect an occupancy fee from operators of local room rentals.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill authorizes local municipalities to impose a $2 per day local occupancy tax.

  * Occupancy taxes in NH are already high enough.
  * If local hotel operators wish to cooperate on efforts to increase local tourism, they can do so voluntarily — they should not be compelled to do so by local government.
  * There is little-to-no accountability to local government to spend this money effectively, since local businesses cannot opt out. Government can waste the money, or effectively use it to offset existing expenses, since money is fungible. This should be accomplished on a voluntary basis, so that the fund is accountable to local operators.

• Anti-libertyHB 1169relative to requiring a roll call vote when one member of a public body participates electronically.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill hurts government transparency.

  * Under current law, votes in meetings of public bodies subject to RSA 91-A are required to use a roll call vote for all votes when a member participates and votes electronically. This bill would eliminate that requirement and reduce transparency.
  * In the modern era, particularly for the smaller boards to which the existing law applies, the requirement for roll call is a small inconvenience and certainly is far less than the overhead that government regulations regularly place upon private individuals.

• Anti-libertyHB 1186establishing a committee to study the filing of certain organizational income reports with the secretary of state.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill creates a political investigatory commission from members of the house and senate who are tasked to investigate for-profit and non-profit advocacy and lobbyist organizations and refer cases to the attorney general or secretary of state.

  * No objective criteria is established for which organizations will be subject to inquiry, which runs the risk of this being a political witch hunt.
  * Investigations initiated from a highly politicized body such as the general court that target advocacy and lobbyist organizations may have a chilling effect on freedom of speech and political activism in New Hampshire.

• Pro-libertyHB 1202relative to matters discussed in nonpublic session under the right-to-know law.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill outlines the rights of an individual being discussed in a nonpublic session under the right-to-know law.

  * Under current law, a public body normally subject to RSA 91-A may hold a private meeting to discuss matters that would likely adversely affect the reputation of any person, other than a member of the public body itself, unless the person being discussed requests an open meeting. This bill would allow the person being discussed in the private session to be present, optionally with council present at the session, and provide them with 48 hours notice to support their ability to attend. This would help to protect the rights of the person being discussed.
  * The committee majority expresses concerns that a 48 hour delay could raise a safety issue; however, if there are truly safety issues, nothing in the law would prevent engagement of law enforcement. In addition, existing law already provides that a person being discussed should have the option for an open meeting, which already presumes that prior notification of a reasonable amount of time should be provided. This bill simply clarifies that notification time frame.

• Pro-libertyHB 1226prohibiting surveillance by the state on public ways or sidewalks.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill prohibits the state and its political subdivisions from utilizing technological surveillance techniques to determine the location of motor vehicles or the identity or location of pedestrians.

  * In 2018, New Hampshire citizens overwhelmingly approved an amendment to the state constitution: <b>[Art.] 2-b. [Right of Privacy.] An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent.</b> This bill is a small step in that direction and will help to ensure that our state remains relatively free from broad-based technological surveillance.

• Anti-libertyHB 1229requiring proposed natural gas facilities to include decommissioning costs.Oppose
  Why

  This bill requires proposed natural gas facilities to include decommissioning costs in its application and requires a separate state-managed fund be created to cover 25 percent of the decommissioning costs.

  * This bill creates an additional unique burden on natural gas facilities that is not applied to certain other facilities such as geothermal, wind, solar, and hydro-power.
  * While one may argue the merits of tracking decommissioning costs for aggressively modified land use, this bill requires that the separate fund be able to be raided by future actions of the legislature due to the clause that requires that the decommissioning fund also be used for "significant changes in regulatory procedures" that might impact ability to provide services.
  * According to testimony, under existing law the SEC cannot issue a certificate to any energy facility project that lacks plans for a fully-funded decommissioning plan.

• Anti-libertyHB 1247relative to notice of rent increases in certain residential rental property.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill requires in-person or certified mail notice of at least 60 days of a proposed rent increase that
  exceeds 5 percent or notice of at least 90 days of an increase that exceeds 8 percent.

  * Terms for permissible increases should be the subject of private rental and/or lease agreements and not done by state mandate.
  * This places a burden upon property owners that the state has not chosen to place upon themselves. Increases in taxes or utility rates driven by state policy come with no such in-person or certified mail requirement, and may also result in a landlord facing state-driven increases in costs that will not be able to be passed on to tenants.
  * This bill will tend to drive up rents as property owners manage their risk of unexpected cost increases by passing on higher initial rental costs in the initial agreement.

• Anti-libertyHB 1253establishing an advisory council on the dispensing of eyeglasses and contact lenses.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill establishes an advisory council that will seek to increase barriers to entry for registered opticians.

  * There is no compelling public need for this new advisory council. Establishing the council and requiring it to meet quarterly will set the expectation that the council needs to justify its existence and will result in additional rules and continuing education mandates that will increase costs and limit entry into the marketplace.

• Pro-libertyHB 1275relative to laboratory testing.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill allows individuals to order their own laboratory testing without a licensed medical practitioner's order.

  * Allowing individuals to get routine testing done without having to see a physician first will increase personal freedom and potentially reduce costs.
  * The majority report seems to assume that the laboratory testing will be done exclusively for "diagnosing" or following up on particular disorders or conditions. However, there may be any number of other reasons for an individual to order tests. For example, an individual might be working to get in better shape via diet and exercise, and is using the labs to track their progress via their base metrics.
  * Preventing individuals from ordering their own tests is paternalistic and presumes to know what their intentions are.

• Anti-libertyHB 1280relative to copayments for insulin.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill eliminates the option for individuals to access policies with deductibles for insulin.

  * While it may be comforting to feel as if we are saving individuals money, each new mandate we add increases the total cost for insurance and may end up making the difference between a family being able to afford insurance and not being able to afford it.
  * Deductibles in medical insurance policies allow insurers to offer policies at lower costs because it helps ensure that the customer takes total cost into account. This changes the incentive structure so that there is no reason for someone to choose a lower cost and potentially equally effective generic equivalent since their costs will be the same. This will further drive premium increases.

• Anti-libertyHB 1285relative to possession of firearms on school property.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill creates unarmed victim zones in and around schools.

  * This bill would ban law-abiding adults from carrying a firearm on school property and would deny a mother who walks to pick up her child at school a tool to protect herself and her children.
  * This bill would mandate that firearms be left in vehicles which would increase the risk of theft.
  * Studies have shown no correlation between the enactment of gun-free zones and improved safety (<a href=https://www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/analysis/gun-free-zones.html>www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/analysis/gun-free-zones.html</a>).

• Anti-libertyHB 1286relative to the licensure and regulation of music therapists.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill expands occupational licensing without a compelling public interest.

  * Per the proposed amended bill, music therapy does not include the screening, diagnosis, or assessment of any physical, mental, or communication disorder. Music therapists are not qualified mental health professionals.
  * This bill would simply create a new state-granted barrier of entry into a profession that will limit consumer choices and ultimately grow state government.

• Anti-libertyHB 1287relative to the duration of antibiotic therapy for tick-borne illness.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill requires insurance coverage for long-term antibiotic therapy for tick-borne illness.

  * The details of insurance coverage ought to be left to the free market to work out. When specific treatments are mandated to be covered by insurance, the increased costs are borne by all policyholders.
  * Traditionally, where we have had insurance coverage mandates, they were for therapies where there was the highest degree of scientific consensus recommending it, considering efficacy, safety and cost-effectiveness. This is not the case here. For example, the CDC explicitly recommends against long-term antibiotic treatments for Lyme, saying it has outcomes that are no better than a placebo, but brings risks of serious, sometimes deadly complications both for the individual taking the medication and others due to the creation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
  * This change would be considered a state-mandated benefit, and under federal law, the cost of coverage for this benefit for policies sold through the health insurance exchange would have to be borne by New Hampshire taxpayers.
  * Although we support the "right to try" for patients, and would not outlaw long-term antibiotic treatments for Lyme, neither should we mandate that all insurance plans cover this treatment.

• Pro-libertyHB 1309relative to the effect of warrant articles.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill would require that approved petition warrant articles be binding on the applicable town or school district unless restricted by any other provision of law.

  * Once a governing body has voted to approve a petition warrant article, it is a reasonable expectation of the voters that the warrant would be carried out.
  * Article 1 of the New Hampshire Constitution states: "All men are born equally free and independent; Therefore, <b>all government of right originates from the people, is founded in consent</b>, and instituted for the general good.". Failing to carry out a legal article is in direct opposition to the consent of the people.

• Pro-libertyHB 1312relative to persons held in civil contempt.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the committee amendment, requires family division circuit courts to make written findings of fact prior to incarcerating a person for civil contempt.

  * This bill would still allow courts to apply an extreme sanction of incarceration for civil concept when a parent disregards child support obligations, but would require that there be written findings of fact to support the incarceration.
  * While it may be comforting to believe courts always make the right decisions and avoid 'debtor prison' sanctions, the evidence suggests that improper decisions can and do happen. In 2014, the ACLU of New Hampshire secured the release of three people imprisoned for failing to pay court-imposed fines that they could not afford (<a href=https://www.aclu-nh.org/en/cases/modern-day-debtors-prisons>www.aclu-nh.org/en/cases/modern-day-debtors-prisons</a>). The temptation to incarcerate someone who is unable to pay when child support is involved is even higher than when simple fines are unpaid. While abuses may be rare, this will be of little comfort to an individual who is unjustly incarcerated.

• Anti-libertyHB 1319prohibiting the siting of new landfills or expansions of existing landfills near state parks, national parks, or United States Department of Agriculture forest land.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits issuance of a permit for new or expanded landfills within two miles of the boundary of any state or national park.

  * This is an arbitrary restriction on both the placement of new landfills and sustainment of existing landfills that may result in increased costs and a manufactured crisis of a shortage of landfill space.
  * This restriction may result in the placement of a landfill at a far greater distance from the source of the waste, potentially resulting in a higher lifetime usage of energy to dispose of waste in a landfill.
  * Existing law already mandates that permits "ensure that appropriate measures will be taken to prevent present and future damage to the public health and safety or to the environment, in the event that the operations at the facility are abandoned, interrupted, or stopped." — RSA 149-M:9 X(b)

• Pro-libertyHB 1345relative to the organization of alternative treatment centers.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill removes the requirement that medical cannabis alternative treatment centers only be organized as not-for-profit entities, allowing the option of these entities to operate for-profit.

  * This bill reduces restriction on trade and therefore reduces the impacts of state interference in the marketplace.
  * Profit represents the creation of wealth from mutually-beneficial transactions. The opportunity to create wealth promotes investment and employment.

• Anti-libertyHB 1350requiring a locking safety device be provided for commercial firearm sales and transfers.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill prohibits the sale or transfer of a firearm unless accompanied by an approved safety device.

  * Most gun locks distributed with new firearms as required by federal law are little more than a collection of metal and plastic that is destined for a landfill, and unnecessarily add waste.
  * Responsible firearms owners use and store firearms responsibly with or without a mandate for a disposable lock.

• Anti-libertyHB 1374relative to voluntarily surrendered firearms.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill would allow state agencies to waste taxpayer money.

  * Under current law, voluntarily-surrendered firearms must be sold at public auction or kept by the state agency for its own use, with the proceeds from firearms sold at public auction deposited in the general fund. This bill would change that so instead of selling an asset and adding to the general fund, the agency would be able to potentially spend taxpayer funds to destroy the firearm.
  * Requiring that the firearms be sold is a means to keep government honest about the final transfer of the firearm so it does not get 'lost'.

• Pro-libertyHB 1376establishing a civil penalty for unauthorized sharing of electronic location information.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits mobile telecommunications service providers from sharing location data without an explicit request or affirmative waiver.

  * Individuals should have an expectation of privacy unless they have been informed and consent to sharing data.

• Pro-libertyHB 1391relative to prohibiting discrimination in housing against persons with pets.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, as amended by the committee, represents a modest improvement in the freedom to contract.

  * This bill allows for the option of a modest additional security deposit for new rental agreements allowing pets. This provides more freedom both for property owners who will better be able to manage risks associated with pet damage and for renters who may see an increase in available properties willing to accept pets.
  * The potential increased supply of properties willing to accept pets may reduce rents as renters with pets often have few options to choose from due to the increased risks and/or perception of increased risks of property damage.
  * No new security deposits are allowed for a support or service animal to which a person with disabilities would be entitled pursuant to the Federal Fair Housing Act or for an animal that a tenant was permitted to have in her or his household prior to the passage of this legislation.

• Anti-libertyHB 1401prohibiting smoking and e-cigarettes in motor vehicles when a passenger is under 16 years of age.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits smoking cigarettes or e-cigarettes in a vehicle when a passenger under 16 years of age is present.

  * The government does not have the right to demand what someone does in their own private property.
  * Police should be solving crimes and not trying to catch moderately 'irresponsible' parents.

• Anti-libertyHB 1410prohibiting the use of flavors and certain chemicals in vaping products.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases the risk of disease in New Hampshire residents.

  * This bill bans e-cigarette liquid flavors other than menthol and tobacco.
  * Adults should be free to utilize products that they choose without the interference of the state.
  * This flavor ban may result in more adults smoking cigarettes for a longer period of time as they may not be able to find a low/no-nicotine vaping alternative that allows them to transition to a potentially less harmful alternative. A report by the National Academy of Science found that "across a range of studies and outcomes, e-cigarettes appear to pose less risk to an individual than combustible tobacco cigarettes." (<a href=http://nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2018/public-health-consequences-of-e-cigarettes.aspx>nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2018/public-health-consequences-of-e-cigarettes.aspx</a>).
  * Highly publicized deaths associated with vaping are primarily linked to black market alternatives (<a href=https://www.npr.org/2019/12/19/789892785/vaping-related-lung-injuries-climb-past-2-500-and-54-deaths>https://www.npr.org/2019/12/19/789892785/</a>). This bill would encourage growth of black market alternatives where consumers are left with little recourse from harmful products due to fears of retribution by the state.

• Anti-libertyHB 1422establishing a moratorium on the issuance of permits for new landfills or the expansion of existing landfills for the purpose of studying the creating of municipal waste districts.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill establishes a 2-year moratorium on the issuance of permits for new landfills or the expansion of existing landfills for the purpose of studying the creating of municipal waste districts.

  * Per the fiscal note, the prohibition would result in the temporary closure and cessation of activities at two privately owned and operated municipal solid waste landfills. These two landfills receive approximately 65% of waste generated in the state and their closure would result in expenditures for transportation and disposal, as waste would have to be trucked to out-of-state landfills.
  * This bill would risk a dramatic increase in the energy usage to transport and dispose of New Hampshire waste and would force cost increases and a crisis that is not otherwise needed.
  * The manufactured crisis would no doubt be exploited by future legislation that would attempt to 'solve' the state-created crisis with additional taxes and spending.
  * While the appropriate motion for this bill is ITL, a vote of IS is acceptable.

• Anti-libertyHB 1423relative to reports on education tax credit scholarships.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill increases costs for administering education tax credit scholarships.

  * The education tax credit scholarship program already has reporting requirements in the existing law. This bill expands the reporting requirements, including requiring receipts. This expands the existing requirement to report on administrative expenses while simultaneously increasing those expenses.
  * Ultimately, this bill will result in less time or funding being available to help students participating in the program.

• Anti-libertyHB 1444requiring the adoption of vehicle emissions standards based on the California clean car standards.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill delegates New Hampshire consumer choices for vehicles to a legislative body outside of the state.

  * This bill increases regulation on automobiles, which may increase costs to consumers.
  * This bill reduces New Hampshire sovereignty and delegates New Hampshire's regulatory environment to individuals that residents of our state never voted for.
  * The state should be looking to reduce state barriers to lower electricity costs by eliminating ratepayer subsidy for unreliable and unaffordable power sources. This would help all New Hampshire residents and make electric vehicles more attractive without resorting to increased regulation.

• Anti-libertyHB 1451relative to the definition of contracts relative to official ballot default budgets.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill would shift power from away voters in SB2 towns.

  * Under current law the default budget, based on the prior year budget, serves as an important check on proposed spending increases since voters and leaders understand that rejecting the operating budget warrant article will result in flat spending or the need to call a special meeting to consider a revised operating budget. This bill would weaken that check on run-away spending increases by allowing the default budget to be an increase over the prior year.

• Anti-libertyHB 1455relative to vehicle repairs.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would increase the cost of auto insurance premiums by limiting the ability of insurers to negotiate what is reasonable in the repair process.

  * This bill forces insurance companies to pay for work that may not be required. It elevates manufacturer "recommendations" to the level of manufacturer "requirements," and requires payment of all such repairs. While the committee amendment attempts to mitigate this through the inclusion of "rebuttable presumption" language, the cost and risk associated with defending a position likely will result in 'defensive repairs' and drive costs needlessly higher.

• Anti-libertyHB 1459relative to non-academic surveys administered by a public school or a chartered public school to its students.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill erode parental involvement in the non-academic surveys that their children may be required to complete.

  * Prior to SB 43 in 2017, schools would routinely ask students to complete non-academic surveys and questionnaires to assess their attitudes, values, decision-making, and behaviors. SB 43 modified the law to require parents to explicitly give permission for these non-academic surveys. This bill would remove that protection and erode parental involvement by forcing a parent to explicitly opt their child out of these surveys. Further, this bill would allow schools to rely on the student to deliver the notice which may result in parents not even having the opportunity to opt out.
  * In the spring of 2014, Bedford middle school students were given an objectionable survey. Out of 160 questions, there were many in-depth inquiries pertaining to sexual activity and preference, suicide, and drug use. In 2018, a Bedford guidance counselor plead guilty to four counts of felonious sexual assault. Allowing staff such as this to participate in the administration of potentially sensitive topics without explicit authorization by the parents is unacceptable.

• Pro-libertyHB 1460relative to the form of municipal budgets.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill requires governing bodies and local budget committees to use full line-item detail in active spreadsheet format for all budgets.

  * This bill increases government transparency by increasing the level of detail and usability of budget data, which will help support the ability of the public to understand how the governing body proposes to spend taxpayer funds.

• Pro-libertyHB 1463relative to the operation of a mixed use school bus.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill removes the commercial license requirement for mixed-use school bus drivers and allows use of a passenger vehicle for transporting students.

  * This bill will help the barrier to entry for school bus drivers. There is a shortage of bus drivers, and removing the commercial license requirement for passenger vehicles and mixed-use (van) school buses could help alleviate the labor shortage.
  * As more and more students are being driven to and picked up from school, the need for large 72 passenger school buses is shrinking. By reducing the regulation on small mixed-use and passenger vehicles, it will lower the cost of transportation for many school districts.
  * Parents carpool kids all the time and don't get commercial licenses. Requiring a commercial license to operate a passenger vehicle or minivan is an overreach of government regulation that doesn't do anything to keep kids safe.
  * The committee majority assertion that "there is no way to ensure or enforce any safety measures on non-certified drivers" is disingenuous given the 28,948 words in RSA 265 "Rules of the Road" alone.

• Anti-libertyHB 1472restricting the distribution of plastic straws.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits a food service business from providing single-use plastic straws unless explicitly requested.

  * By stating that the request must be explicitly from the customer, this bill leaves open to confusion whether a business may offer the straw in the absence of a request and therefore infringes on free speech.
  * The bill is likely to increase CO<sub rise=3 size=7>2</sub> emissions: many customers will pull away from a drive-through window at an establishment that only provides "on request" plastic straws, only to later find that they lack the ability to consume their beverage while on the road, requiring a return trip to the window.
  * The majority committee blurb indicates "This practice has been in place in some NH cities over the past three years with an estimated decrease of plastic straw use of 90%. Some restaurants have converted to paper and other biodegradable material straws." — This is an indication that market forces are already addressing public concerns.

• Pro-libertyHB 1483relative to allowing dogs on open air restaurant patios.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill gives restaurant owners the option of allowing dogs in outdoor dining areas.

  * Restaurant owners should be able to establish their own animal policies/rules on their private property. This bill is a small step in that direction.
  * Restaurant patrons will be made aware of any animal policies via signs on location. At that point, they can make the choice to visit the establishment or not.

• Anti-libertyHB 1487relative to freedom of speech and association on college campuses.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill commandeers private educational facilities and regulates them as if they were a public forum.

  * Although free speech in public forums is to be protected, a private college, like any other private entity, has the right to set and enforce its own rules regarding acceptable expression and communications.
  * The voluntary freedom of association between the student and the college is impaired when a college cannot discipline a student for infraction of campus speech codes.
  * Although a nod to the rights of religious colleges is made, this is only for colleges <i>controlled</i> by a religious organization. Under this bill, a college administration could not discipline a student who disrupted a meeting of a student ministry prayer session voluntarily organized by students, if done at a secular college.

• Anti-libertyHB 1496relative to the regional greenhouse gas initiative cap and trade program for controlling carbon dioxide emissions.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  By eliminating the existing rebate to residential ratepayers, this bill increases a stealthy tax on NH electricity consumers.

  * This bill, with the committee amendment, removes long-standing rebates to residential customers, while preserving rebates to commercial/industrial customers, raising rates on residential customers and effectively forcing them to subsidize commercial/industrial customers.
  * Electric rates are already high in NH. Efficiency projects that are truly fiscally responsible can and will be funded by electricity consumers themselves. It is unfair to force all ratepayers to fund projects for specific consumers, whether private or governmental.
  * Money raised through RGGI, originally slated to support energy efficiency programs, was instead misappropriated into the general fund in 2010. Rather than putting more money into the hands of government in order to pick winners and losers, the money should remain with the ratepayers where it belongs.

• Anti-libertyHB 1500relative to a student loan bill of rights and a student loan ombudsman.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases the costs of doing business and will result in increased spending of taxpayer funds.

  * This bill creates a new salaried state government employee and will increase costs for the New Hampshire banking department that will likely result in additional spending in the coming years. The purpose of this new spending is to ensure that students are aware of the implications and programs available associated with student loans. Colleges and universities already fill this need.
  * This bill will increase the cost of being in the student loan business and will result in additional costs which will be passed on to future student borrowers.

• Pro-libertyHB 1502relative to equipment required for vehicle inspections.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill allows non-functional aftermarket equipment to be on the vehicle and pass inspection so long as the needed safety equipment works.

  * This bill is a common sense approach to vehicle safety. If the vehicle meets safety standards of the state, we should not reject a safety inspection on aftermarket items that don't reduce vehicle safety.
  * Unused, non-functional-but-installed fog lights could cause a vehicle to fail inspection even if the primary driving lights work perfectly. This inspection rule does not help safety, and causes unnecessary repairs to vehicles that aren't safety related.

• Anti-libertyHB 1533limiting the increase in property taxes for certain persons.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill will financially hurt most property owners in New Hampshire by increasing their property taxes to defray the limited increase in their neighbors' tax rate.

  * Property taxes are too high in NH, and giving a select group of people a limit on tax increases is unconstitutional. The difference will have to be made up by the other property owners, who already suffer from a significant tax burden.
  * The legislature should be looking at ways to reduce everyone's taxes instead of trying to limit the increase of a few. Lower taxes for all through lower spending is more sustainable than trying to limit increases for some.

• Anti-libertyHB 1539relative to the relocation of children with elevated lead levels.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill will increase rents and reduce availability of safe and affordable housing.

  * This bill would potentially subject property owners to significant and unpredictable costs by requiring the property owner to pay moving expenses and differential rent for renting a new property. The rent differential will result in rent increases for any property currently renting below the HUD rate as property owners will need to manage their risk. These increases at the bottom of the market are likely to result in additional rent increases in other properties.
  * If the parties wish to agree to a lump sum payment in lieu of moving expenses and potential rental subsidy, this bill would require that the property owner refund the full security deposit regardless of any damage to the property or rental arrears. This would encourage disgruntled tenants who wish to break a lease to damage an older property including any prior HUD approved (<a href=https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/LBPH-15.PDF>www.hud.gov/sites/documents/LBPH-15.PDF</a>) encapsulation abatement as a means to break the lease. This could result in lead exposures to children in the dwelling and nearby dwellings, resulting in this bill having the opposite of the intended effect.

• Anti-libertyHB 1552requiring learner's permits for certain persons seeking drivers' licenses.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases state bureaucracy and regulation without any demonstrated benefit.

  * This bill will increase the barrier to a young adult starting to drive by delaying their learning until they can schedule a written test.
  * Requiring a written exam prior to hands-on learning with a responsible adult will disadvantage individuals who have alternate learning styles.
  * This bill may result in less safe roads as teens who delay hands-on driving experience may have fewer hours behind the wheel when they are first able to drive on their own.

• Pro-libertyHB 1559relative to sealing records in nonpublic session under the right-to-know law.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill provides for a modest improvement in government transparency.

  * With the committee amendment, this bill would automatically unseal minutes from nonpublic sessions associated with the acquisition, sale, or lease of real or personal property after one year unless a majority of the members vote that the minutes should remain sealed.
  * People have a right to know how their money is being spent, and what policies are being enacted in their name. Pragmatically, transparency is required in order to keep corruption and waste in check. While it is always challenging for the public to hold officials accountable, without reliable information it is nearly impossible.

• Anti-libertyHB 1564prohibiting the use of polystyrene foam.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits sale of most foods in polystyrene containers.

  * This bill would increase the costs to consumers as polystyrene is an inexpensive means to temporarily store food and insulate food at the same time.
  * Polystyrene cups require less energy to produce than paper cups, meaning less energy is consumed when they are disposed of.

• Anti-libertyHB 1570establishing an architectural paint program.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill establishes a paint recycling program that requires producers of paint sold at retail in New Hampshire to create a program for collecting, transporting, recycling, processing, and disposing of post-consumer paint.

  * The Dept. of Environmental Services does not have the resources to manage and review the audits the proposed program requires.
  * This bill will not only increase paint prices in NH, it will also increase taxes to cover the costs of managing the program.
  * Smaller paint companies will not be able to afford the cost of this program, and will be forced out of NH, leaving customers fewer options for paint.
  * Consumers would be charged a fee during purchase, forcing users who use all of their paint to subsidize inefficient users of paint.

• Anti-libertyHB 1589requiring businesses in the state to take cash for monetary transactions.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill would limit the speech of individuals running retail establishments by prohibiting them from posting signs that indicate cash payment is not accepted and would require that all establishments accept cash.

  * Businesses should be free to determine appropriate means of payment, and customers are free to decide if these means of payment are acceptable and make decisions about where to shop.
  * The poor wording of the bill's mandate on "cash", without any additional qualifiers, would seem to require that merchants accept the Venezuelan Bolívar. This is problematic because the socialist policies that Venezuela has pursued have resulted in substantial devaluation of their cash, and this bill would prohibit retailers from charging a higher amount to offset their risk of further devaluation.

• Anti-libertyHB 1608prohibiting the manufacture, sale, transfer, and possession of large capacity ammunition feeding devices.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits the manufacture, sale, transfer, and possession of standard-capacity firearm magazines.

  * The bill language redefines standard-capacity magazines to be high-capacity magazines based on an arbitrary number of rounds.
  * Criminalizing the mere possession of an item is antithetical to a free society. Crimes should be punished; but mere possession of a physical item like a stamped metal part with a spring and a molded plastic insert should not be punishable.
  * The amendment allows a carve out for movies, but still prohibits a person from purchasing a similar size magazine to protect themselves.
  * A number of people in New Hampshire are employed making parts used in firearm magazines, and these jobs would be at risk of being located to other states.

• Anti-libertyHB 1617clarifying the prohibition against the use of mobile electronic devices while driving.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases the penalties imposed for violations of the prohibition against using mobile electronic devices while driving.

  * This bill severely raises the fines for mobile electronic device usage and requires suspending an individual's license for a third offense.
  * Handheld phone bans cause some drivers to hide their phone use by placing the phone in their lap and taking their eyes off the road, which is far more dangerous. Increasing the fines will only incentivize them even further to try to hide them.
  * Studies show that bans on use of handheld devices while driving have had no effect on accident rates (e.g. NE Burger, DT Kaffine, B Yu Transportation research part A: policy and practice 66, 162-172, and IIHS Status Report, Vol. 45, No. 2).

• Anti-libertyHB 1622relative to the use of passenger restraints in motor vehicles.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill mandates the use of seatbelts.

  * This bill is paternalistic in that it forces adults to wear seatbelts when traveling in motor vehicles.
  * According to the CDC, New Hampshire already has a lower rate of death from vehicle accidents than the national average (<a href=https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/pdf/seatbelts/Restraint_Use_in_NH.pdf>www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/pdf/seatbelts/Restraint_Use_in_NH.pdf</a>).

• Pro-libertyHB 1630relative to pet vendors.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases the limit of pets that may be transferred without a pet vendor license from 25 to 35 dogs and from 25 to 50 cats.

  * The bill also contains provisions to provide an option to individuals who have a long-standing hobbyist service to transiently and moderately exceed the limit and seek exemption from licensure. This could happen in cases where a hobbiest breeder has a larger-than-normal litter.

• Anti-libertyHB 1676requiring monitoring of certain radioactive air pollutants.Oppose
  Why

  This bill increases state spending to replicate monitoring sites that are already in place.

  * This bill increases state spending — plausibly greater than $100,000 per year — with equipment purchase and maintenance.
  * There is an extensive network of monitors that are deployed and have been since the Seabrook Station came online. No significant incidences have ever occurred. The nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard also monitors for nuclear pollutants. These are external monitoring stations.
  * Seabrook Station has over 80 monitors inside the plant and on its property.

• Anti-libertyHB 1701relative to the recycling of single use plastics.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would create a new salaried state position to oversee a single-use single plastic recycling program that largely already exists.

  * Hannaford, Shaws, Market Basket, Target, Whole Foods, Wal-Mart and many other stores already provide this service without the need for a government mandate or salaried position.

• Anti-libertyHB 546relative to the regulation of art therapists.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill restricts competition and access to art therapy services by imposing arduous and excessive licensing requirements.

  * Only 13 states currently license art therapy. Licensing often creates unintended consequences and in this case, restricts access to resources. As hiring a certified and licensed professional becomes more expensive, more individuals will seek substitutes to professional services or neglect to obtain services entirely in order to save money.
  * The requirements of this bill are excessive, mandating thousands of hours of school and thousands of hours of additional experience, under specific conditions. It prohibits even those who are licensed therapists who have received training in art therapy and have years of experience, but hold a more generalized degree in psychotherapy, from serving as art therapists.
  * Licensing is no replacement for references and reputation. Some licensed service providers are incompetent and many unlicensed service providers are highly competent. Licensing creates a false sense of security for consumers and reduces the overall quality of work provided by raising barriers to entry and reducing competition.
  * Licensing makes it more difficult even for experienced, educated, and competent workers to start small businesses. We should be reducing the already significant regulatory load on small businesses, not increasing it.

127 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1660establishing a protective order for vulnerable adults.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill creates a system for issuing a civil restraining order for actions that are already treated as a crime.

  * Current statutes [RSA 631: 4,8,9] already address these actions as criminal behaviors: Section 631:4 Criminal Threatening; Section 631:8 Criminal Neglect of Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adults; Section 631:9 Financial Exploitation of an Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adult.
  * This bill violates due process on numerous fronts and because these are civil actions, the poor will not have access to a public defender.
  * Further, the decision to seize firearms and prohibit future purchases is made in a proceeding where the normal rules of evidence need not apply as 173-D:4 VI, as proposed, includes <i>"In any proceeding under this chapter, the court shall not be bound by the technical rules of evidence and may admit evidence which it considers relevant and material."</i>
  * The bill prohibits by law, prosecution of those who committed perjury when filing a petition.

• Anti-libertyHB 712relative to a family and medical leave insurance program.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill creates a new tax on income from wages of at least 0.5% to implement a new family medical leave program.

  * Employees and employers should be free to negotiate benefit programs such as paid family and medical leave insurance without the state forcing all to participate.
  * There is a cap on benefits at 85% of the average salary, so workers who make over the average salary will be paying for benefits that they cannot collect and are disproportionately impacted by the legislation.
  * The current short-term disability insurance market will be negatively impacted by government interference in the insurance marketplace.
  * Long term, the fiscal note for the program estimates that the state of NH will need 43+ additional employees and $6.6 million per year that would need to be subsidized by the participants.

• Anti-libertySB 436relative to the penalties for various motor vehicle violations.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill provides for enhanced penalties for certain motor vehicle violations if the operator was also using a mobile electronic device.

  * Penalties for each of the violations listed in RSA 265, RSA 265-A, and RSA 630:3 are presumably set based on the potential impact of the infraction. A blanket increase of the penalty when these actions are also accompanied by a mobile device infraction are unlikely to change behaviors of individuals; however, the option of enhanced penalties will be used by prosecutors to coerce individuals to accept a lower penalty plea vs. facing a more serious charge even if the individual is innocent.

• Anti-libertySB 486relative to insurance plans that cover maternity benefits.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill mandates additional insurance coverage in a manner that goes beyond the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.

  * Insurance mandates add to the cost of policies by requiring purchasing "insurance" for something that the consumer may or may not want. This may lead to increased premiums for everyone.
  * Per the fiscal note, federal law requires the cost of state mandates for policies sold through the insurance exchange to be borne by the State so this bill would increase spending.

• Anti-libertySB 603relative to financial assistance for biomass and forest product workers.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill expands state job training and placement spending.

  * While government-sponsored job training programs are effective at spending taxpayer money, there is little evidence that they have any lasting impacts. Taxpayers have been funding jobs programs since the 1960s, yet federal auditors can find little evidence that they are effective: Government Accountability Office, "Multiple Employment and Training Programs," GAO-11-92, January 2011, p. 11 (<a href=https://www.gao.gov/new.items/d1192.pdf>www.gao.gov/new.items/d1192.pdf</a>).
  * New Hampshire’s preliminary seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for January 2020 was 2.6%. The state should not be spending money to provide job matching services as this is already well supported by the free market.

• Anti-libertySB 620relative to coverage for certain biologically-based mental illnesses.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill mandates additional insurance coverage in a manner may go beyond the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.

  * Insurance mandates add to the cost of policies by requiring purchasing "insurance" for something that the consumer may or may not want. This may lead to increased premiums for everyone.
  * Per the fiscal note, federal law requires the cost of state mandates for policies sold through the insurance exchange to be borne by the State so this bill may increase state spending.

• Anti-libertySB 623requiring insurance coverage for PFAS and PFC blood tests.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill mandates additional insurance coverage in a manner that goes beyond the requirements of the Affordable Care Act.

  * Insurance mandates add to the cost of policies by requiring purchasing "insurance" for something that the consumer may or may not want. This may lead to increased premiums for everyone.
  * Per the NH DHHS website (<a href=https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/pfcs/blood-testing.htm>www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/pfcs/blood-testing.htm</a>), a PFAS blood test cannot: tell you where or how you were exposed to PFAS found in your body; tell you what, if any, health problems might occur or have occurred because of PFAS in your body; or be used by your doctor to guide treatment decisions.
  * Per the fiscal note, federal law requires the cost of state mandates for policies sold through the insurance exchange to be borne by the State so this bill would increase spending.

• Anti-libertySB 683establishing a New Hampshire innovation program in the department of business and economic affairs and making an annual appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, with the proposed amendment, establishes a committee that pre-supposes that it is the proper role of the state to 'invest' taxpayers' money in risky start-up businesses.

  * The committee created by this bill is directed to find evidence to support a pre-supposition that it is the proper role of the state to provide funding to start-up businesses.
  * The state should not be in the business of choosing winners or losers; all businesses should be allowed to compete in a free market.

• Anti-libertySB 687relative to transparency in prescription drug pricing and establishing a New Hampshire prescription drug affordability board.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill attempts to reduce costs by authorizing new fees on health insurance providers, drug manufacturers, distributors, and others.

  * This bill mandates new annual reporting requirements on manufacturers and creates a new state bureaucracy that will need to be serviced by these providers in a belief that doing so will improve affordability. This bureaucracy and its reporting requirements, along with new fees, will result in increased costs that will be passed on to New Hampshire residents.

• Anti-libertySB 726relative to programs to aid veterans' access to employment, entrepreneurship, housing, health care and college degrees.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill spends more than a quarter of a million dollars per year on special programs for veterans, performing functions that in many cases are already covered by federal programs.

  * Many local employers already offer beneficial treatment for hiring and training veterans — it is unclear that additional state spending in the area of job training and apprenticeship will have any positive outcome.
  * Proposed changes to 110-B:73-b and 188-F:16-b relative to reducing barriers to employment created by the state's excessive occupational licensing framework are admirable but likely ineffective. Veterans and all New Hampshire residents would be better served by reductions in state-sponsored protectionist legislation.
  * While improved outcomes for veterans from this legislation are uncertain, what is certain is that this bill will increase spending and result in higher taxes for everyone, including New Hampshire's veterans.

• Anti-libertySB 730establishing the granite state paid family leave plan.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill provides a new taxpayer-funded benefit to state employees.

  * Many state employees work under collectively-bargained contracts. Providing a new benefit outside of the context of contract negotiations eliminates the option of trading or offsetting other potential salary or benefit increases during negotiations.
  * Even prior to covering the cost of any negotiated coverage with a private vendor, this bill would commit the state to spending IT and staff infrastructure costs in excess of $1.5 million per year.
  * While the appropriate motion for this bill is ITL, IS is acceptable.

• NeutralSB 732prohibiting the sharing of location data.Neutral
  Why

  This bill prohibits the sharing of location data by providers of mobile services and application providers.

  * This bill attempts to prohibit the sharing of location data with third parties unless the sharing was explicitly authorized by the individual. The intent of this bill is in fact Pro-Liberty. However, there are issues with the language that prevent a positive recommendation for the bill and its associated amendment.
  * The bill defines "Authorized Use" in I(a)(1) but never goes on to use the term within the section on restrictions. While it seems likely that judicial review of the law would divine legislative intent, the legislature should seek to tighten the language. An amendment that adds "IV. (f) Any authorized use of location data." should be considered.
  * Per I(a)(2), the bill excludes from authorized use location data that is: "shared in exchange for products or <b>services</b>." — this is paternalistic in its current form. Individuals should be free to make decisions about trading location data for a product or service, and in fact this directly contradicts I(a)(1), which states that authorized use includes "For the purpose of providing a <b>service</b> explicitly requested by such customer".

• Anti-libertySB 750providing for premium-free insurance to persons who donate a kidney.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill forces state taxpayers to buy organs from kidney donors by funneling taxpayer funds through health insurance premiums.

  * Donation of a kidney is currently a deeply personal and altruistic act. While there may be reason to eliminate restrictions on private compensation for the act, New Hampshire taxpayers should not be forced to participate in the practice of organ sales.
  * While the appropriate motion for this bill is ITL, IS is acceptable.

• Anti-libertySB 754establishing a dental benefit under the state Medicaid program.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill will increase state spending by providing adults in the Medicaid program with dental coverage.

  * This program provides able-bodied adults in New Hampshire with taxpayer-funded dental coverage at taxpayer expense.
  * Testimony at the public hearing indicated costs between $6 million and $11 million in state taxpayer funds and more than $28 million of taxpayer funding overall when state and federal spending are considered. These costs were stated to be a 'starting point' as the bill provides no cap on annual per-patient expenses.

29 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1221relative to privacy for an employee's personal financial and credit information.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits employers from using credit history in employment decisions.

  * Employers are already required to get consent of an applicant before acquiring a credit report by federal law. This is not an invasion of privacy if consent is given (<a href=https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf>www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf</a>).
  * Employers only get a modified variation of credit history. They do not see a credit score. An employer pulling this info has no effect on credit score (<a href=https://www.businessinsider.com/employers-cannot-check-your-credit-score-2014-5>www.businessinsider.com/employers-cannot-check-your-credit-score-2014-5</a>).
  * Employers are already required to notify an applicant of failing to hire due to credit history. This provides the applicant the chance to review the credit history for incorrect information.

• Anti-libertyHB 1427removing the authorization for OHRV use on certain sections of state highway.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill repeals the law that allows OHRV use on select roads in northern New Hampshire.

  * This bill will hurt tourism and recreation in NH. Hunters and recreational riders rely on these roads to travel.
  * The Jericho ATV Festival is one of the biggest events in northern NH and this bill will discourage tourism to the festival and will also discourage hunting tourism which relies on OHRV use to transport equipment and game.

• Pro-libertyHB 1480relative to the use of system benefits charges.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill removes one of the loopholes passed into law last year that allows the System Benefits Charge to be increased without the approval of the legislature.

  * New Hampshire ratepayers should not be subject to further increases to the systems benefits charge without approval of elected representatives. The charge is a hidden tax on ratepayers.

• Anti-libertyHB 1492establishing a tax on the retail sale of certain electronic devices to fund education.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill places a sales tax on the retail sale of electronic devices.

  * This bill establishes a 4.3% sales tax on electronics.
  * The implementation of this bill would be a significant administrative burden on small businesses.
  * New Hampshire enjoys a constant flow of retail customers from surrounding states; this tax will raise prices and drive these customers away.

• Anti-libertyHB 1621relative to the use of protective head gear while operating motorcycles and motorized bicycles.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill mandates the use of helmets when operating a motorcycle or motorized bicycle.

  * This bill is paternalistic in that it forces adults to wear helmets when operating motorcycles and motorized bicycles.
  * Free individuals should have the freedom to choose what safety equipment they wear on their body. NH does not require safety clothing for any other passenger vehicles.
  * Laconia Motorcycle Week is the oldest continuous motorcycle event in the U.S. and a huge boon to the state economy and the Lakes Region. This law will hurt all local businesses that benefit from that rally, which brings many out-of-state riders into New Hampshire.

• Anti-libertyHB 1652including ski area ticket sales under the meals and rooms tax and dedicating the revenue to the governor's scholarship program for New Hampshire resident students.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill adds sales of ski area lift tickets to the meals and rooms tax.

  * Incremental expansion of the meals and rooms tax is an additional step toward a general sales tax.
  * Increased taxes would hurt tourism at both the ski areas directly impacted by the new tax and surrounding businesses that benefit from the increased tourism.

• Anti-libertyHB 1699relative to a tax on electronic cigarettes.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill dramatically increases taxes on certain electronic cigarette liquid.

  * This bill increases the tax rate on open and closed e-cigarette systems. In the case of open systems, the tax rate is increased from 8% to 40%.
  * This tax hike will increase the risk of death or disease of e-cigarette users. Consumers may opt to obtain these products online or from black market sources that may be distributing contaminated product.

30 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertySB 446relative to airport fees for transportation network companies.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill gives airports the authority to tax services that they are not providing. Airports already have fees and don't need the authority to create new taxes.

  * NH residents are continually feeling squeezed as taxes keep increasing. Allowing airports to arbitrarily charge taxes and fees for services they don't provide creates a dangerous precedent for other popular destinations to charge fees to transportation network companies.

• Pro-libertySB 450relative to brew pubs allowing customers to bring dogs to outdoor areas.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill gives owners of brew pubs the option to allow customers to bring dogs to open-air patio areas.

  * Operators of these facilities should have the option to conduct business in a manner that they find appropriate and allow the market to decide if the decision is beneficial or not.
  * This bill could be improved if it were expanded to apply to all restaurant open-air patios regardless of whether or not they hold a brew pub license under RSA 178:13.

• Anti-libertySB 469relative to shooting ranges.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill would allow municipalities to restrict shooting ranges through local ordinances, creating a patchwork of varying regulations around the state.

  * The safest gun owners are those who train regularly with their tools. Limiting access to shooting ranges would lower firearm safety in the state.
  * Hunters must train to assure that their shots are precisely placed, thereby avoiding animal suffering from inaccurate shot placement.
  * As drafted, the bill would impact all citizens', including law enforcement's, ability to train.
  * The "2 seconds between shots" rule proposed in 159-B:2(I) would allow municipalities to essentially ban multiple members from using a range at the same time.

• Anti-libertySB 493relative to register of deeds fees used to support the land and community heritage investment program (LCHIP), and establishing a committee to study the economic impact of land conservation and to review the LCHIP surcharge.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill increases the fee for recording a deed, mortgage, etc. from $25 to $35.

  * This is a 40% increase over the existing fee and is estimated to extort an additional $1.5 million in FY 2021 from New Hampshire property owners.
  * This is not a 'fee for service' as the funds are not used to defray the cost of maintaining deed records, but rather funds a program unrelated to the property being registered.

• Anti-libertySB 540repealing the emergency medical services personnel licensure interstate compact.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill raises protectionist barriers by preventing EMTs or paramedics who are nationally certified by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians and licensed in their home state from being employed in New Hampshire without first completing NH's processes for licensing.

  * New Hampshire is still in the midst of an opioid crisis. Now is not the time to try a dangerous protectionist experiment that will complicate the process for businesses to attract qualified emergency personnel from other states.

• Anti-libertySB 609relative to passenger restraints.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill mandates the use of seatbelts.

  * This bill is paternalistic in that it forces adults to wear seatbelts when traveling in motor vehicles.
  * Since this bill allows for the violation as a primary enforcement, it increases the potential for contact between law enforcement and citizens, increasing the risk of adverse interactions that otherwise would be avoided.

• Pro-libertySB 697allowing qualifying patients to access all the alternative treatment centers under the use of cannabis for therapeutic purposes law.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill allows qualifying cannabis patients to make purchases from any dispensary in the state.

  * Patients should not be denied access to medicine simply because they are visiting a different area of the state.
  * Oppose committee amendment 2020-0771s which implies that a medical cannabis card should be revoked for obtaining more than 2 ounces of cannabis in any 10-day period. Existing law already allows for revocation of a card for rules violations or other violations of the relevant RSA. It is worth noting that the NH Democratic platform contains "We believe that marijuana should be legalized, taxed, and regulated." — it makes little sense to support legalization for recreational use while penalizing patients who use cannabis for medical purposes.
  * Whether committee amendment 2020-0771s is adopted or not, support passage of the resulting bill.

• Anti-libertySB 712establishing a surcharge on certain saltwater licenses and establishing a fund for derelict fishing gear and coastal cleanup.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill adds a new fee of up to $25 on both commercial and non-commercial saltwater fishing licenses, forcing responsible anglers to cover the costs of cleanup for irresponsible anglers.

  * This bill attempts to address the problem of abandoned gear that contributes to coastal pollution such as micro-plastics by applying a new fee to existing license fees. For resident commercial saltwater licenses, based on committee testimony, this is up to a 50% increase in the license fees.
  * The increased fees may result in an increase in people fishing without a license who may then be more likely to abandon gear.
  * The portion of the bill that would redirect fines for littering in coastal waters or beaches and for abandoning fishing gear to the derelict fishing gear, coastal cleanup, and fishing for energy fund is acceptable.

• Anti-libertySB 719relative to lost or stolen firearms.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill further victimizes crime victims.

  * This bill requires a person who owns a firearm that is lost or stolen to report the event to police within 72 hours or face up to a misdemeanor charge. A study by the non-partisan RAND Corporation found no impact on public safety from lost or stolen firearms laws (<a href=https://www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/analysis/lost-or-stolen-firearms.html>www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/analysis/lost-or-stolen-firearms.html</a>). Note that the RAND corporation is rated as "Pro-Science, least bias and high for factual reporting" (<a href=https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/rand-corporation/>mediabiasfactcheck.com/rand-corporation/</a>).
  * Crime victims should not be further victimized by the state or fear reporting a crime four days after an event for concern that they may face charges for late reporting.

24 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 1101imposing a waiting period between the purchase and delivery of a firearm.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill mandates a minimum 3-day waiting period prior to taking possession of a firearm.

  * Proponents of the bill claim this is about reducing suicides; however, the bill does not contain an exemption for someone who already owns a firearm and is purchasing another firearm.
  * Current law already allows dealers the ability to deny a sale to anyone that they believe is not being truthful in filling out the required paperwork or anyone whom they have concerns about selling to.
  * The net effect of the bill is a minimum of two trips to the dealer, increasing costs and the environmental impacts of the purchase.

• Anti-libertyHB 1149relative to child obscenity.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill makes it a felony to possess or create non-pornographic sexualized images of children unless it is being done for commercial purposes.

  * Creation, distribution, and possession of child pornography is already criminalized under NH RSA 649-A. This bill expands prohibition to suggestive poses for “purely prurient purposes”. Creating a new felony based on the assumed state of mind of the offender creates a subjective offense that is subject to abuse.
  * It is unclear what message the state would be trying to send if it accepted that such images are acceptable as long as they are being used to sell a legal product.

• Anti-libertyHB 1205relative to the reduction in the calculation of state retirement system annuities at age 65.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill increases state spending by providing 10% larger pension checks from age 65 to full social security retirement age.

  * Three quarters of the $37 million in unfunded liability will likely need to be funded by local property taxes, for the next 20 years. Half the affected population is teachers, one quarter local and county employees.
  * Increases in state spending ultimately result in increases in property taxes or the introduction of new taxes.

• Anti-libertyHB 1218relative to net energy metering and limits for customer generators.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would increase costs for New Hampshire ratepayers.

  * This bill subsidizes businesses and municipalities that choose to operate large scale energy generation facilities by increasing the subsidized net metering cap from the current 1 megawatt limit up to 5 megawatts.
  * The recipients of these subsidies will get millions more at the expense of others without providing any substantial benefits to the grid, as the energy from these systems is often intermittent and unreliable.
  * Net metering subsidies for renewables may no longer make sense as studies claim that solar energy is cheaper than fossil fuels. If this is true, then operators of these facilities already have a significant competitive advantage and would not require subsidy to be profitable.
  * This bill has essentially no impact on individual homeowner use of net metering as the existing threshold of 1 megawatt is already approximately 100 times larger (as compared to a 10 kilowatt system) than what a typical homeowner is capable of generating via rooftop solar (<a href=https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why>www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why</a>).

• Anti-libertyHB 1221relative to privacy for an employee's personal financial and credit information.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits employers from using credit history in employment decisions.

  * Employers are already required to get consent of an applicant before acquiring a credit report by federal law. This is not an invasion of privacy if consent is given (<a href=https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf>www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf</a>).
  * Employers only get a modified variation of credit history. They do not see a credit score. An employer pulling this info has no effect on credit score (<a href=https://www.businessinsider.com/employers-cannot-check-your-credit-score-2014-5>www.businessinsider.com/employers-cannot-check-your-credit-score-2014-5</a>).
  * Employers are already required to notify an applicant of failing to hire due to credit history. This provides the applicant the chance to review the credit history for incorrect information.

• Anti-libertyHB 1281requiring insurance coverage for epipens.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill mandates epinephrine auto-injector coverage in insurance policies.

  * Insurance mandates add to the cost of policies by requiring purchasing "insurance" for something that the consumer may or may not want. This may lead to increased premiums for everyone.
  * The state should be looking to reduce barriers to participation in the marketplace to help control costs.

• Anti-libertyHB 1341relative to vested status of group II members in the state retirement system.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases pensions for police, fire, and corrections officers who were working but not vested in 2011.

  * This bill increases spending and will lead to higher local property taxes or an increased need for state taxes.
  * Most private sector employees no longer have pensions. Asking New Hampshire taxpayers to absorb future tax increases to provide additional pension benefits to public sector employees who have worked without the promise of this benefit for more than a decade without clearly showing where funding will come from is misleading and unfair.

• Anti-libertyHB 1350requiring a locking safety device be provided for commercial firearm sales and transfers.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill prohibits the sale or transfer of a firearm unless accompanied by an approved safety device.

  * Most gun locks distributed with new firearms as required by federal law are little more than a collection of metal and plastic that is destined for a landfill and unnecessarily add waste.
  * Responsible firearms owners use and store firearms responsibly with or without a mandate for disposable lock.

• Pro-libertyHB 1351relative to immunity from arrest or prosecution for certain alcoholic beverage violations for a person under 21 years of age who reports a situation involving risk of alcohol overdose.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill provides a person under 21 with immunity from prosecution for underage drinking if a related medical emergency is reported in a good faith and timely manner.

  * The purpose of state restrictions on the possession and use of alcohol is ostensibly to reduce the risk of harm. Current law may increase that risk in some cases by causing an individual to delay requests for help for fear of criminal prosecution.

• Anti-libertyHB 1379requiring a background check for commercial firearms sales.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill redefines the meaning of commercial sale and subjects almost all firearms transfers to an NICS background check.

  * The bill prohibits a transfer unless a "proceed" response has been received from either the NH Gun Line or the ATF, meaning if the government simply chooses not to process the background check, they can by failure to act, prohibit sales/transfers of all firearms.
  * Background checks are already required at all dealers.
  * State law already mandates that unless you know the person personally, you may not sell a pistol or revolver to them.
  * Transfer for the simple purpose of firearms training would be treated as a misdemeanor-level crime.

• Anti-libertyHB 1427removing the authorization for OHRV use on certain sections of state highway.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill repeals the law that allows OHRV use on select roads in northern New Hampshire.

  * This bill will hurt tourism and recreation in NH. Hunters and recreational riders rely on these roads to travel.
  * The Jericho ATV Festival is one of the biggest events in northern NH and this bill will discourage tourism to the festival and will also discourage hunting tourism which relies on OHRV use to transport equipment and game.

• Anti-libertyHB 1434repealing premium contribution requirements for certain state and judicial retirees.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill burdens New Hampshire taxpayers with additional cost for certain retired state workers.

  * This bill repeals the requirements for retired state employees and judicial retirees who are Medicare-eligible to pay premium contributions for the state retiree health plan. This will risk a future spending increase for New Hampshire taxpayers or result in reduction in benefits for all retirees.
  .

• Anti-libertyHB 1454relative to credit for alternative, extended learning, and work-based programs.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill increases the complexity for organizations looking to offer alternative "Learn Everywhere" for-credit programs by allowing local school boards to set the rules for these programs.

  * Ultimately parents are in the best position to determine what is best for the education of their children. Under current law, parents and alternative learning providers can work with the state board of education to ensure that alternatives programs meet education standards. This bill would would increase complexity for parents and educators by requiring approval from each local school board even when the work-based program is not executing within the geographic region covered by the board.

• Pro-libertyHB 1480relative to the use of system benefits charges.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill removes one of the loopholes passed into law last year that allows the System Benefit Charge to be increased without the approval of the legislature.

  * New Hampshire ratepayers should not be subject to further increases to the systems benefits charge without approval of elected representatives. The charge is a hidden tax on ratepayers.

• Anti-libertyHB 1509relative to emergency threat protection orders for individuals at post secondary educational institutions.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill allows the seizing of firearms from adults.

  * This bill enables hearsay evidence to be used as a portion of the basis to seize firearms.
  * The bill is almost a verbatim rewrite of HB696 that was vetoed last year and numerous suggestions for improvement to the legislation were not adopted into the updated version.
  * The bill may do little to improve public safety as it assumes that the state can properly identify a person who is a danger to themselves or others but that the danger is eliminated by reducing access to that person's firearms while still allowing the dangerous individual to freely attend class, purchase gasoline, and have access to children.
  * While the recommendation is Interim Study and this is acceptable, the appropriate motion on this bill is ITL.

• Anti-libertyHB 1580regulating the use of drones.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, as amended, prohibits anyone from weaponzing drones and prohibits private individuals from publishing images collected from a drone if they contain recognizable pictures of individuals without the consent of everyone in the images.

  * Invasions of privacy are already a crime under RSA 644:9. This bill goes beyond criminalizing invasions of privacy in that it would prohibit private individuals from recording recognizable photographs of individuals in public places even if they have no expectation of privacy in that location.
  * The limitations on use by police for surveillance without a warrant are laudible; however, the exclusions for "law enforcement
  investigations" 422-D2 II(a) and exceptions for (images) "derived from lands owned by or under the control of the government entity" (422-D:3) weaken this protection.
  * This bill would make it a class A felony for someone that mounts a BB gun on a drone — even if this was done on a large private property for purposes of protecting livestock from a predatory animal.

• Anti-libertyHB 1621relative to the use of protective head gear while operating motorcycles and motorized bicycles.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill mandates the use of helmets when operating a motorcycle or motorized bicycle.

  * This bill is paternalistic in that it forces adults to wear helmets when operating motorcycles and motorized bicycles.
  * Free individuals should have the freedom to choose what safety equipment they wear on their body. NH does not require safety clothing for any other passenger vehicles.
  * Laconia Motorcycle Week is the oldest continuous motorcycle event in the U.S. and a huge boom to the state economy and the lake region. This law will hurt all local businesses that benefit from that rally which brings a lot of out of state riders into New Hampshire.

• Pro-libertyHB 1625reducing the penalty for certain first offense drug possession charges.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill reduces penalties for first-time victimless crimes.

  * This bill reduces the crime for certain first-time possession charges from a felony to a misdemeanor. This small improvement will help reduce the impact from the state from ruining the life of someone who been caught up in a first time offense in the failed War on Drugs.

• Anti-libertyHB 1627creating an animal health certificate database.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill creates an animal health database and requires pet vendors, animal shelters, and vets to submit electronic records to the department of agriculture.

  * This bill will allow the state to create a database of health records for animals, but also allows the department of agriculture to collect any data they deem necessary. This is an overreach of the state's responsibility.
  * With data breaches increasing every day, we should not be creating more targets for bad actors to attack to get personal information. While the intentions of the bill are in good faith, this database will only grow with time and reach into other aspects of NH citizen's lives. The amendment's language of "The commissioner shall also ensure that the database is secure from unauthorized access or use" is little more than wishful thinking and attempts to achieve this mandate will drive development and sustainment costs far beyond what was listed in the original fiscal note.
  * Municipalities already get vaccination records. By requiring the veterinarians to do more paperwork and government filing, it will only increase health care costs of animals. This type of regulation has killed the health care industry and will kill the pet care industry next if we allow this bill to pass.

• Pro-libertyHB 1642prohibiting the state or a state official from using a facial surveillance system.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill prohibits the state, its political subdivisions, and officials from utilizing facial recognition systems or associated facial recognition system data.

  * State use of facial recognition poses a significant threat to our privacy and could hamper First Amendment protected protests and other legal activities.
  * A false match can lead to lengthy interrogations and increase the risk of negative outcomes with improperly initiated police encounters.

• Pro-libertyHB 1648relative to the home cultivation of cannabis plants and the possession of certain cannabis-infused products.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill legalizes adults' possession of small amounts of cannabis.

  * This bill would make it legal for adults 21 and older to possess up to 3/4 ounce of cannabis, five grams of hashish, and up to 300 mg of cannabis-infused products, and to cultivate up to six plants (including up to 3 mature plants) in a secure location.
  * The bill does not impose any taxes or create any new bureaucracy.
  * All neighboring jurisdictions have legalized possession and cultivation of cannabis for adults; Granite Staters should not have less freedom with regard to cannabis than adults in Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and Canada.

• Anti-libertyHB 1650establishing a road usage registration fee and making an appropriation therefor.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill increases vehicle registration fees and sets an automated annual escalation in these fees of 2.4% and creates a new fee based on miles traveled.

  * This bill simply raises more revenue; it does not reduce other taxes or fees in any way. If there is merely a desire to ensure that road maintenance burden is shared by all drivers, this new fee should be accompanied by a reduction in other fees or taxes.
  * Currently there is no order mandated with respect to registration renewal and vehicle inspections. This bill does not change that but pre-supposes that inspection data will be available at time of registration renewal.

• Anti-libertyHB 1652including ski area ticket sales under the meals and rooms tax and dedicating the revenue to the governor's scholarship program for New Hampshire resident students.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill adds sales of ski area lift tickets to the meals and rooms tax.

  * Incremental expansion of meals and rooms tax is an additional step towards a general sales tax.
  * Increased taxes would hurt tourism both at the ski areas directly impacted by the new tax and surrounding businesses that benefit from the increased tourism.

• Anti-libertyHB 1660establishing a protective order for vulnerable adults.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill creates a system for issuing a civil restraining order for actions that are already treated as a crime.

  * Current statutes [RSA 631: 4,8,9] already address these actions as criminal behaviors: Section 631:4 Criminal Threatening. Section 631:8 Criminal Neglect of Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adults. Section 631:9 Financial Exploitation of an Elderly, Disabled, or Impaired Adult.
  * This bill violates due process on numerous fronts and because these are civil actions, the poor will not have access to a public defender.
  * Further, the decision to seize firearms and prohibit future purchases is made in a proceeding where the normal rules of evidence need not apply as 173-D:4 VI, as proposed, includes <i>"In any proceeding under this chapter, the court shall not be bound by the technical rules of evidence and may admit evidence which it considers relevant and material."</i>
  * The bill prohibits by law, prosecution of those who committed perjury when filing a petition.

• Anti-libertyHB 1662relative to the purchase, use, and possession of tobacco products and e-cigarettes.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill bans the sale and possession of tobacco and e-cigarette products by many adults in NH.

  * This bill extends the current prohibition on tobacco products to adults under 20 years of age and extends the ban on the sale and possession of rolling papers to adults under 21 years of age.
  * While tobacco products are harmful, applying restrictions on their use to adults is paternalistic.

• Anti-libertyHB 1664establishing a climate action plan, an office of the environmental advocate, and an oversight commission on environmental services.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill establishes public policy that NH will reduce greenhouse gas emissions to at least 80% below 1990 levels by 2050 even in the face of increasing population.

  * Though the bill claims to simply set goals, the committee amendment still retains language (125-O:30 III) that requires state agencies to incorporate the goals into rulemaking.
  * The bill requires that the state climate action plan change land-use patterns to support transit-oriented development, which will require additional future 'top down' central planning that are nearly certain to interfere with property rights.
  * This bill is unconstitutional as it conflicts with article 28-a. Mandated Programs.

• Anti-libertyHB 1699relative to a tax on electronic cigarettes.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill dramatically increases taxes on certain electronic cigarette liquid.

  * This bill increases the tax rate on open and closed e-cigarette systems. In the case of open systems the tax rate is increased from 8% to 40%.
  * This tax hike will increase the risk of death or disease of e-cigarette users. Consumers may opt to obtain these products online or from black market sources that may be distributing contaminated product.

51 bills with no position.

• Pro-libertyHB 1103relative to the submission of evidence in divorce proceedings.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill permits the parties in divorce proceedings to request a continuance if meaningful evidence is not submitted 5 days prior to the hearing.

  * This bill would enable all parties to prepare for the proceedings so that each party will know the issues and be fully prepared on the facts. Providing parties with sufficient time to consider evidence may help the court come to a more equitable decision.
  * This bill allows for introduction of new evidence within the 5-day restriction if the evidence was not available 5 days prior to the hearing or if the judge declares it de minimis.

• Anti-libertyHB 1649establishing a road usage fee and making an appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases fees on most vehicles without reducing other fees/taxes to offset the increase.

  * This bill adds a new road usage fee based on the miles per gallon efficiency of the vehicle with a graduated fee for vehicles above 20 MPG. In 2020, even large-class vehicles often have EPA ratings exceeding this metric, resulting in this new fee likely applying broadly to the majority of vehicles. In fact, the fleet average MPG including all passenger cars and light trucks sold after 2014 is estimated to be at least 31 MPG (<a href=https://goo.gl/ndWWaC>https://goo.gl/ndWWaC</a>).
  * This bill simply raises more revenue; it does not reduce other taxes or fees in any way. If there is merely a desire to ensure that road maintenance burden is shared by all drivers, this new fee should be accompanied by a reduction in other fees.
  * This bill will encourage drivers to purchase less fuel-efficient vehicles, resulting in more fossil fuels being burned in NH.
  * This bill will hurt elderly drivers the most. According to the Federal Highway Administration, drivers over the age of 65 drive an average of 7,646 miles per year, yet this bill will tax them an extra 30% more than they drive on average.

12 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertySB 475enabling municipalities to adopt a property tax credit for densely-built workforce housing.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill allows municipalities to raise taxes on existing property owners by providing preferential tax credits to densely-built housing.

  * Relaxation of zoning and/or codes and other government barriers to building should be prefered ways of increasing available housing instead of social engineering where the state determines the appropriate use of property.

• Anti-libertySB 510crediting excess funds in the investor education fund to the FRM victim's fund.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill would require the taxpayers of the State of New Hampshire to take on additional responsibility for the losses of investors in the Financial Resources Mortgage debacle.

  * In a free market, investors evaluate offers, take risks, win some, and lose some. This legislation would have the unintended consequence of future investors using less due diligence to evaluate offers before investing.
  * This situation is a reminder that despite all the laws and criminal penalties and licensing and government agency oversight, malefactors will still behave badly and deceive people; government cannot protect everyone from bad things happening — investors should still look out for themselves and others they care about.

• Anti-libertySB 569relative to the borrowing authority of the university system of New Hampshire.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill removes the annual $500,000 per fiscal year borrowing cap currently imposed on the University of New Hampshire system and reduces restrictions on the usage of the borrowed funds.

  * Borrowing by the University of New Hampshire ultimately puts New Hampshire taxpayers potentially at risk. The university system has already showed multiple times over the past several years that it needs restrictions and oversight on spending such as when they spent $1 million in donated funds on a scoreboard — a move that caused then Governor Hassan to state: "It is concerning and perplexing that the University of New Hampshire decided to use part of this generous donation on an expensive new scoreboard." (<a href=https://www.fosters.com/news/20160916/unh-ripped-for-using-1m-of-major-gift-for-scoreboard>www.fosters.com/news/20160916/unh-ripped-for-using-1m-of-major-gift-for-scoreboard</a>).
  * While the recommendation is Interim Study and this is acceptable, the appropriate motion on this bill is ITL.

• Anti-libertySB 639relative to hazardous pay for certain employees of the state prison and New Hampshire hospital.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill increases salaries of certain state employees outside of collective bargaining agreements, reducing the bargaining power of taxpayers and increasing costs by up to $3 million per year.

  * Increases in compensation and benefits for employees that have chosen to operate under collective bargaining should be negotiated along with all of the terms and conditions of the contract rather than pre-emptively providing an increased benefit with no potential for consideration.
  * While the recommendation is Interim Study and this is acceptable, the appropriate motion on this bill is ITL.

30 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Pro-libertyHB 1103relative to the submission of evidence in divorce proceedings.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill permits the parties in divorce proceedings to request a continuance if meaningful evidence is not submitted 5 days prior to the hearing.

  * This bill would enable all parties to prepare for the proceedings so that each party will know the issues and be fully prepared on the facts. Providing parties with sufficient time to consider evidence may help the court come to a more equitable decision.
  * This bill allows for introduction of new evidence within the 5-day restriction if the evidence was not available 5 days prior to the hearing or if the judge declares it de minimis.

• Anti-libertyHB 1649establishing a road usage fee and making an appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases fees on most vehicles without reducing other fees/taxes to offset the increase.

  * This bill adds a new road usage fee based on the miles per gallon efficiency of the vehicle with a graduated fee for vehicles above 20 MPG. In 2020, even large-class vehicles often have EPA ratings exceeding this metric, resulting in this new fee likely applying broadly to the majority of vehicles. In fact, the fleet average MPG including all passenger cars and light trucks sold after 2014 is estimated to be at least 31 MPG (<a href=https://goo.gl/ndWWaC>https://goo.gl/ndWWaC</a>).
  * This bill simply raises more revenue; it does not reduce other taxes or fees in any way. If there is merely a desire to ensure that road maintenance burden is shared by all drivers, this new fee should be accompanied by a reduction in other fees.
  * This bill will encourage drivers to purchase less fuel-efficient vehicles, resulting in more fossil fuels being burned in NH.
  * This bill will hurt elderly drivers the most. According to the Federal Highway Administration drivers over the age of 65 drive an average of 7,646 miles per year, yet this bill will tax them an extra 30% more than they drive on average.

11 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Pro-libertySB 420permitting qualifying patients and designated caregivers to cultivate cannabis for therapeutic use.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill allows qualifying medical cannabis patients and designated caregivers to cultivate a limited number of plants for therapeutic use.

  * This bill decreases medical costs for patients by allowing them to grow their own medicine.
  * People should not have to choose between fearing criminal prosecution and not having access to medicine.
  * This bill gives patients better access to their medicine. Many patients do not live near the few dispensaries in the state, and will benefit from this bill.
  * The New Hampshire Democratic platform states "We support policies to improve access to health care in our rural communities and other medically underserved areas". What better way to help contribute to access than to allow patients to cultivate their own medicine?

• Pro-libertySB 449permitting tastings by distilleries at farmers markets.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill allows liquor manufacturers to offer samples at farmers markets.

  * This bill is a small improvement in that it reduces restriction of free trade and allows businesses to transact with customers in more locations.
  * Allowing local businesses to showcase local products benefits NH residents and helps the NH economy.

• Pro-libertySB 651prohibiting collective bargaining agreements that require employees to join or contribute to a labor union.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill prohibits collective bargaining agreements that require employees to join or contribute to a labor union and prohibits coercion and intimidation intended to compel an employee to join, affiliate with, or financially support a labor organization or to refrain from doing so.

  * The federal National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) contains several coercive mechanisms that infringe upon the rights of workers and business owners. Among these are section 9a which mandates exclusive representation by a single union and mandates that the union representative is given opportunity to be present at grievance adjustment between employers and employees even if the employee does not wish that the representative is present. In addition, it forces employers to recognize and bargain collectively with unions following a majority vote of their workforces.
  * Right-to-work is the only way currently permitted under federal law to restore some of the freedom of dissenting workers and their employers to withhold support from unions with whom they disagree. While this bill interferes with freedom of contract, it does so in a way intended to remedy current, more egregious limitations of freedom of contract.

9 bills with no position.

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• Anti-libertyHB 253relative to criminal records checks in the employee application process.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill prohibits employers from asking a job applicant about his or her criminal history prior to an interview.

  * The state should not be interfering in or dictating businesses' hiring practices.
  * This bill contains an exemption from this restriction for state or local government agencies while denying this choice to private employers.
  * The state should work to reduce the number of victimless crimes in order to reduce the number of people who are negatively impacted by their prior involvement in the criminal justice system.
  * While this bill has a recommendation of Interim Study, which is acceptable, the appropriate path forward is to find this bill Inexpedient To Legislate.

• Anti-libertySB 410relative to the state minimum hourly rate.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill establishes a state-dictated minimum wage.

  * Minimum wage laws decrease the number of entry-level jobs and make it harder for people of low skill to get their start in the workforce.
  * Higher wages for everyone are better accomplished through job creation — more jobs mean more competition to hire all workers.
  * Employers and employees should be free to negotiate the terms of employment without interference.
  * The very idea of a minimum wage is patronizing and demeaning as it implies that individuals don't know how much they're worth and are incapable of negotiating with an employer.

• Pro-libertySB 449permitting tastings by distilleries at farmers markets.YEA OTP
  Why

  This bill allows liquor manufacturers to offer samples at farmers markets.

  * This bill is a small improvement in that it reduces restriction of free trade and allows businesses to transact with customers in more locations.
  * Allowing local businesses to showcase local products benefits NH residents and helps the NH economy.

• Anti-libertySB 510crediting excess funds in the investor education fund to the FRM victim's fund.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would require the taxpayers of the State of New Hampshire to take on additional responsibility for the losses of investors in the Financial Resources Mortgage debacle.

  * In a free market, investors evaluate offers, take risks, win some, and lose some. This legislation would have the unintended consequence of future investors using less due diligence to evaluate offers before investing.
  * This situation is a reminder that despite all the laws and criminal penalties and licensing and government agency oversight, malefactors will still behave badly and deceive people; government cannot protect everyone from bad things happening — investors should still look out for themselves and others they care about.

13 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

NHLA’s recommendations for this session are published.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 102relative to municipal ordinances regarding the use of plastics.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill allows municipalities to infringe upon the rights of citizens.

  * We believe that government is most accountable and accessible when it is most local. Local control is generally preferable to state or national mandates. We do believe that there is a higher principle, however: the principle of individual liberty. Indeed, the most "local" governance of all is the governance of an individual over his or her own life and property. For this reason, we oppose state laws that grant municipalities the ability to abridge the personal or property rights of individuals.

• Pro-libertyHB 317relative to tinted windows on motor vehicles.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill allows light tinting on driver-side and passenger-side windows.

  *46 other states already allow tinted side windows, with no widespread problems reported.
  * NH law enforcement already encounters tinted windows on the thousands of tourist vehicles that visit NH each year. No widespread problems have been reported with these vehicles either.
  * It is unfair to allow out-of-state visitors to drive with tinted windows while prohibiting NH residents the same freedom.

• Anti-libertyHB 363including the legislature as a public employer under the public employee labor relations act and relative to the duties of the joint committee on legislative facilities.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would make the legislature less able to respond to the will of the people.

  * This bill establishes the legislature as a public employer under the public employee labor relations act and provides procedures for collective bargaining by a defined group of legislative employees. The legislative branch is a political body and the leadership of both chambers and all political parties must have the option of having the people around them that support representing the positions of the voters who elected them.
  * The legislature would be required to negotiate "terms and conditions" of employment for these employees which would potentially place restrictions on staff changes for future legislatures.

• Pro-libertyHB 366adding opioid addiction, misuse, and abuse to qualifying medical conditions under therapeutic use of cannabis.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill adds opioid use disorder to the qualifying conditions for therapeutic cannabis, with certain restrictions.

  * Many patients suffering with opioid use disorder report that cannabis helps with their withdrawal symptoms.
  * If a qualified medical professional believes a patient with opioid use disorder could benefit from using cannabis, the state should not stand in the way.

• Anti-libertyHB 377relative to the best interests of the child under the child protection act.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill changes the purpose of the Child Protection Act from protection from abuse to the state determining the 'best interest of the child'.

  * There is no objective standard to determine the best interest of the child. Under this bill, judicial prerogative to determine the child’s best interest becomes the default, rather than a last resort reserved for when a parent has been proven unfit.
  * According to the National Bureau of Economic Research (<a href=https://www.nber.org/digest/oct05/w11377.html>www.nber.org/digest/oct05/w11377.html</a>) "Doubling the rate of religious attendance raises household income by 9.1 percent, decreases welfare participation by 16 percent from baseline rates, decreases the odds of being divorced by 4 percent, and increases the odds of being married by 4.4 percent." — should the state show a preference for removing a child from a non-religious parent and placing them with a religious family? Clearly not, and while such decisions are unlikely to become commonplace even with this bill, a decision to remove a child from a parent is not something that should be left to such a vaguely worded standard subject to judicial evolution of interpretation.

• Pro-libertyHB 461adding qualifying medical conditions to the therapeutic use of cannabis law.YEA OTP/A
  Why

  This bill adds "moderate to severe insomnia" to the list of qualifying conditions for therapeutic cannabis.

  * If a qualified medical professional believes therapeutic cannabis is an appropriate treatment for a patient's insomnia, the state should not interfere with this decision.

• Anti-libertyHB 462relative to digital electronic product repair.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill mandates that manufacturers of digital electronic products must make product repair information available to independent repair facilities.

  * This bill would place a mandate on manufacturers even if they chose not to offer products for sale in NH, as the bill language places the mandate on manufacturers if a product is "sold or <b>used</b> in this state".

• Anti-libertyHB 478establishing a road usage fee and making an appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases fees on most vehicles without reducing other fees/taxes to offset the increase.

  * This bill adds a new road usage fee based on the miles per gallon efficiency of the vehicle with a graduated fee for vehicles above 20 MPG. In 2018, even large-class vehicles often have EPA ratings exceeding this metric, resulting in this new fee likely applying broadly to the majority of vehicles. In fact, the fleet average MPG including all passenger cars and light trucks sold after 2014 is estimated to be at least 31 MPG (<a href=https://goo.gl/ndWWaC>https://goo.gl/ndWWaC</a>).
  * This bill simply raises more revenue; it does not reduce other taxes or fees in any way. If there is simply a desire to ensure that road maintenance burden is shared by all drivers, this new fee should be accompanied by a reduction in other fees.
  * This bill will encourage drivers to purchase less fuel-efficient vehicles, resulting in more fossil fuels being burned in NH.
  * This bill will hurt elderly drivers the most. According to the Federal Highway Administration drivers over the age of 65 drive an average of 7,646 miles per year (<a href=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ohim/onh00/bar8.htm>www.fhwa.dot.gov/ohim/onh00/bar8.htm</a>), yet this bill will tax them an extra 30% more than they drive on average.

• Anti-libertyHB 546relative to the regulation of art therapists.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill restricts competition and access to art therapy services by imposing arduous and excessive licensing requirements.

  * Only 13 states currently license art therapy. Licensing often creates unintended consequences and in this case, restricts access to resources. As hiring a certified and licensed professional becomes more expensive, more individuals will seek substitutes to professional services or neglect to obtain services entirely in order to save money.
  * The requirements of this bill are excessive, mandating thousands of hours of school and thousands of hours of additional experience, under specific conditions. It prohibits even those who are licensed therapists who have received training in art therapy and have years of experience, but hold a more generalized degree in psychotherapy, from serving as art therapists.
  * Licensing is no replacement for references and reputation. Some licensed service providers are incompetent and many unlicensed service providers are highly competent. Licensing creates a false sense of security for consumers and reduces the overall quality of work provided by raising barriers to entry and reducing competition.
  * Licensing makes it more difficult even for experienced, educated, and competent workers to start small businesses. We should be reducing the already significant regulatory load on small businesses, not increasing it.

• Anti-libertyHB 559enabling municipalities to ban single-use sources of plastic pollution.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, as amended, mandates the characteristics and price of point of sale bags.

  * This bill mandates the characteristics of point-of-sale bags such that traditional single use 20 mil plastic bags would no longer be allowed.
  * This bill may harm the environment as retailers will be forced to use heavier plastic bags and charge a fee with the hope that this results in a substantial increase in the reuse of the bags. If such an increase does not occur, this bill would result in increased plastic being introduced into landfills.
  * The state should not be directing the price or options available to consumers.

• Anti-libertyHB 687relative to extreme risk protection orders.Oppose
  Why

  This bill allows personal property, including firearms, to be taken when no crime has been committed.

  * This bill violates the 4th Amendment protections under the US Bill of Rights and Article 19 of the NH Bill of Rights: "[Art.] 19. [Searches and Seizures Regulated.] Every subject hath a right to be secure from all unreasonable searches and seizures of his person, his houses, his papers, and all his possessions."
  * The language in the bill allows for hearsay 'evidence' to be admitted into the trial violating Article 15: "[Art.] 15. [Right of Accused.] No subject shall be held to answer for any crime, or offense, until the same is fully and plainly, substantially and formally, described to him;"
  * The respondent will be stripped of personal property and will need to spend time and money via the court system for return of the property without having committed a crime.
  * Under this bill, courts are not bound by the traditional rules of evidence typically given to the defendant. (159-E:3 IX)

• Anti-libertyHB 712relative to a family and medical leave insurance program.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill creates a new tax on income from wages of at least 0.5% to implement a new family medical leave program.

  * Employees and employers should be free to negotiate benefit programs such as paid family and medical leave insurance without the state forcing all to participate.
  * The commissioner of the Department of Employment Security in conjunction with an advisory council will be empowered to raise the tax rate or lower the benefits without legislative approval (amendment caps this to 10%).
  * There is a cap on benefits at 85% of the average salary, so workers who make over the average salary will be paying for benefits that they cannot collect and are disproportionately impacted by the legislation.
  * The current short-term disability insurance market will be negatively impacted by government interference in the insurance marketplace.
  * Long term, the fiscal note for the program estimates that the state of NH will need 43+ additional employees and $6.6 million per year that would need to be subsidized by the participants.

• Anti-libertyHB 721relative to special education in towns with no public schools.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would impose new mandates on private schools participating in the town tuitioning (e.g. Croydon) program.

  * This bill, with the proposed amendment, requires all private schools participating in a town-tuitioning (e.g. Croydon) program to be "an approved program as defined in RSA 186-C:2, II." This would require every participating private school to offer the same special education programs as public schools; there is no mention of funding from the federal government or state that would flow to the private schools, in which case it would be an unfunded mandate.
  * Federal and NH law as well as state rules have local public districts in charge of special education services to students, determining what and how those services are provided when appropriate. Currently, private schools that participate in a town-tuitioning program work with the home district to provide special education services to those children that qualify. Also, there are existing federal protections for private-school students with special needs. Per the Americans with Disabilities Act, nonpublic schools must provide "auxiliary aids and services" to children with special needs if they are otherwise qualified for admission. This bill, as amended, imposes significant changes to private schools’ responsibilities if they participate in town-tuitioning programs.

• Anti-libertyHB 731relative to the minimum hourly rate.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill establishes a state-dictated minimum wage.

  * Minimum wage laws decrease the number of entry-level jobs and make it harder for people of low skill to get their start in the workforce.
  * Higher wages for everyone are better accomplished through job creation — more jobs mean more competition to hire all workers.
  * Employers and employees should be free to negotiate the terms of employment without interference.
  * Economic conditions and cost of living vary dramatically across the state. A "one-size-fits-all" approach to a minimum wage will put unreasonable pressure on areas of the state with limited employment opportunities and lower costs of living.
  * The very idea of a minimum wage is patronizing and demeaning as it implies that individuals don't know how much they're worth and are incapable of negotiating with an employer.

• Anti-libertyHB 735relative to carbon pricing.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill creates a complex state tax and refund program.

  * This bill will result in increases to ratepayers — both individuals and municipalities — offset by a partial refund to NH residents. This complex program will disrupt the NH economy.
  * The majority blurb indicates that this is important to achieve a clean energy economy by 2050; however, according to Think Progress, renewables will undercut coal and gas almost everywhere by 2030, rendering this program obsolete (<a href=https://thinkprogress.org/renewables-now-cheaper-than-new-coal-or-gas-across-two-thirds-of-the-world-c4980412cb53/>thinkprogress.org/renewables-now-cheaper-than-new-coal-or-gas-across-two-thirds-of-the-world-c4980412cb53/</a>).

• Anti-libertySB 122relative to expenditures from the energy efficiency fund.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  By eliminating the existing rebate to residential ratepayers, this bill increases a stealthy tax on New Hampshire electricity consumers.

  * This bill removes long-standing rebates to middle class residential customers, while preserving rebates to commercial/industrial customers, thereby raising rates on residential customers and effectively forcing them to subsidize commercial/industrial customers as well as low-income and local governments.
  * Electric rates are already high in New Hampshire. Efficiency projects that are truly fiscally responsible can and will be funded by electricity consumers themselves. It is unfair to force all ratepayers to fund projects for specific consumers, whether private or governmental.
  * Rather than putting more money into the hands of government in order to pick winners and losers, the money should remain with the ratepayers where it belongs.

• Anti-libertySB 124relative to renewable portfolio standards after 2025.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill increases state interference in the energy marketplace.

  * This bill may increase energy costs in the state by mandating potentially non-competitive energy sources. Should proponents of these sources be correct that they will be cheaper than alternatives, then no state mandate would be needed.
  * The bill disadvantages increases in other carbon-neutral energy sources such as nuclear.

• Anti-libertySB 19relative to the privacy of certain information concerning public employees.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill enables the disclosure of personal information held by the state to a private organization.

  * This bill allows the state to release the home address, email, and personal phone numbers of state employees to labor unions without regard for whether the employee wishes this data to be released to the organization.
  * In 2018, a constitutional amendment passed with 81% of the vote stating "An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent." — this bill would undermine this constitutional right.
  * Employees who wish to share this information with their union may already do so voluntarily.

• Pro-libertySB 34relative to the applicability of certain DWI prohibitions.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill clarifies the definition of "drive or attempt to drive" in DWI prohibitions.

  * This bill would exclude safe activity such as sleeping/resting or sheltering in place in a legal parking zone from being considered an attempt to drive. This common-sense definition reduces the risk of facing a DWI charge for activity that poses no threat to the public.
  * Arresting people who do the right thing by not driving while intoxicated does not make the roads any safer. This bill clarifies that sleeping in a vehicle or being outside of a vehicle is not considered driving and should not be arrestable under the driving-while-intoxicated statute.
  * The minority amendment, 2019-2781 limits the clarifications provided by this bill such that only an occupant who is "not seated at the controls of the vehicle" is excluded from the definition of 'drive'. The bill ought to pass with or without this amendment.

42 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard

• Anti-libertyHB 121(New Title) relative to the regulation of massage, reflexology, structural integrator and Asian bodywork therapy establishments.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill requires licensure and inspection of massage establishments.

  * Currently, massage therapists need to be licensed to work legally in New Hampshire. This bill will now require massage establishments to also obtain a license.
  * New establishment fees are undefined and likely much more than an individual license.
  * This will increase costs to small independent businesses both to obtain the new license as well as to allocate time to work with state inspectors. This will be a disproportionate burden on owner/operator establishments in that not only will they have to pay a new license fee but they also may have to cancel client appointments to work with the inspector.
  * This bill allows license revocation or suspension if the licensee "has engaged in illegal activity" (proposed RSA 328-B:8 VI.) which is subjective, overly broad, and does not require conviction before punishment.

• Pro-libertyHB 153relative to circumstances under which police officer disciplinary records shall be public documents.NAY IS
  Why

  This bill makes certain disciplinary records concerning law enforcement officers which have been finally adjudicated subject to the Right-to-Know Law.

  * This bill affirms the right of inhabitants to obtain adjudicated disciplinary records for law enforcement officers. Disclosure would be allowed for records relating to police discharge of a firearm that led to serious injury or death.
  * It would also permit disclosure of disciplinary records, after final adjudication, if a law enforcement officer has been found guilty of sexual assault or a sustained finding of dishonesty including perjury, false statements, filing false reports, destruction, or falsifying or concealing evidence.
  * Public employees who hold extraordinary powers combined with immunities must be held to high standards.

• Pro-libertyHB 155relative to procedures for determining and disclosing exculpatory evidence in a police officer's personnel file.NAY IS
  Why

  This bill requires a determination of whether information in a police officer's personnel file constitutes exculpatory evidence and allows a police officer who has information determined to be exculpatory evidence in his or her personnel file to have an opportunity to challenge the disciplinary finding.

  * This bill will assure that exculpatory evidence is available to prosecutors allowing them to review data and determine if it is appropriate to release to the defense.
  * A fair trial is dependent upon all exculpatory evidences being available to the defense.

• Anti-libertyHB 186establishing a state minimum wage and providing for adjustments to the minimum wage.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill establishes a state-dictated minimum wage.

  * Minimum wage laws decrease the number of entry-level jobs and make it harder for people of low skill to get their start in the workforce.
  * Higher wages for everyone are better accomplished through job creation — more jobs mean more competition to hire all workers.
  * Employers and employees should be free to negotiate the terms of employment without interference.
  * The very idea of a minimum wage is patronizing and demeaning as it implies that individuals don't know how much they're worth and are incapable of negotiating with an employer.
  * While this bill has a recommendation of Interim Study, which is acceptable, the appropriate path forward is to find this bill Inexpedient To Legislate.

• Anti-libertyHB 253relative to criminal records checks in the employee application process.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill prohibits employers from asking a job applicant about his or her criminal history prior to an interview.

  * The state should not be interfering in or dictating businesses' hiring practices.
  * This bill contains an exemption from this restriction for state or local government agencies while denying this choice to private employers.
  * The state should work to reduce the number of victimless crimes in order to reduce the number of people who are negatively impacted by their prior involvement in the criminal justice system.
  * While this bill has a recommendation of Interim Study, which is acceptable, the appropriate path forward is to find this bill Inexpedient To Legislate.

• Pro-libertyHB 481relative to the legalization and regulation of cannabis and making appropriations therefor.NAY IS
  Why

  This bill eliminates penalties for limited personal possession and home cultivation of cannabis for adults 21 and older.

  * This bill would increase personal freedom by allowing adults 21 and older to possess and give away (but not sell) up to one ounce of cannabis, five grams of concentrated cannabis, and infused products with 500 milligrams of THC outside of their homes; and securely cultivate up to six plants, three of which could be mature (with a household limit of 12 total, six mature), and possess the cannabis produced by their plants at home.
  * Legalization would not only prevent innocent people from having their lives significantly impacted by minor possession arrests, but would also reduce the expense of the criminal justice system, allowing police and prosecutors to focus on serious crimes where innocent people have been victimized.
  * Polls have shown 2/3 of Granite Staters and 2/3 of Americans support legalizing cannabis.
  * While the bill creates new taxes and regulatory infrastructure, this compromise is a substantial improvement over current law, which subjects people to criminal penalty and potential destruction of their livelihood for victimless behavior.

• Anti-libertyHB 652relative to suicide prevention.YEA ITL
  Why

  This bill requires the state board of education to adopt rules requiring annual training in suicide awareness and prevention for teachers and administrators while providing no funding for the new mandate.

  * Suicide is a tragic, but rare, occurrence and mandating that almost all school personnel spend two hours every year learning how to detect and prevent such tragedies is another piece of "feel good" legislation that will do nothing to solve a complex problem.
  * Teachers are employed in schools to teach, not become psychologists; schools already have counselors to work with troubled children.
  * This bill will be a boon for the training and certification industrial complex, but for teachers and other school personnel will be just another administrative burden to fulfill.
  * The New Hampshire Constitution Part 1 [Art.] 28-a. [Mandated Programs.] states <i>"The state shall not mandate or assign any new, expanded or modified programs or responsibilities to any political subdivision in such a way as to necessitate additional local expenditures by the political subdivision unless such programs or responsibilities are fully funded by the state or unless such programs or responsibilities are approved for funding by a vote of the local legislative body of the political subdivision."</i>. This bill represents an unfunded mandate on local districts.

• Anti-libertyHB 703relative to providing notice of the introduction of new high-cost prescription drugs.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill complicates the process for the introduction of potentially life-saving drugs to the marketplace.

  * This bill would require prescription drug manufacturers to notify the New Hampshire insurance department in writing when introducing a new prescription drug at a wholesale cost that exceeds the threshold set for a specialty drug under the Medicare Part D program. When this is triggered, the manufacturer will be required to provide the state with data such as a description of the marketing and pricing plans for the drug. The state would then publish this information on its website quarterly.
  * While this new mandate is only a small increase in regulatory costs for the deployment of a new drug, along with other regulatory complexity it will continue to put upward pressure on healthcare costs.

• Anti-libertySB 13relative to limited electrical energy producers and net energy metering.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill would increase costs for New Hampshire ratepayers.

  * This bill subsidizes businesses and municipalities that choose to operate large scale energy generation facilities by increasing the subsidized net metering cap from the current 1 megawatt limit up to 5 megawatts.
  * The recipients of these subsidies will get millions more at the expense of others without providing any substantial benefits to the grid, as the energy from these systems is often intermittent and unreliable.
  * Large subsidies for renewables no longer make sense as studies claim that solar energy is cheaper than fossil fuels. If this is true, then operators of these facilities already have a significant competitive advantage and would not require subsidy to be profitable.
  * This bill has essentially no impact on individual homeowner use of net metering as the existing threshold of 1 megawatt is already approximately 100 times larger (as compared to a 10 kilowatt system) than what a typical homeowner is capable of generating via rooftop solar (<a href=https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why>www.solarreviews.com/blog/10kw-solar-systems-are-becoming-very-popular-here-is-why</a>).

• Pro-libertySB 175relative to qualifying medical conditions for therapeutic cannabis.NAY ITL
  Why

  This bill changes "qualifying medical condition" to any condition for which treatment is determined to be necessary by a provider.

  * Medical cannabis has been proven to be effective in the treatment of a variety of debilitating medical conditions.
  * Medical providers and patients should be able to determine the best course of action to treat the patient's illness.

• Anti-libertySB 182relative to a duty to report when another person has suffered grave physical harm.YEA IS
  Why

  This bill would establish a "duty to report" harm or exposure to harm that is so broad that nearly everyone could be subject to fine.

  * This bill modifies RSA 508 setting a broad new duty to report exposure to harm to authorities.
  * Existing RSA 508:19 I.(f)(1) states that there is a "propensity of an equine to behave in ways that may result in injury, harm, or death to persons on or around them" — should everyone be required to report proximity to horses? Crafting positive obligation 'bad Samaritan laws' is complex and may result in unintended consequences and unnecessary interactions with law enforcement.
  * While this bill has a recommendation of Interim Study, which is acceptable, the appropriate path forward is to find this bill Inexpedient To Legislate.

• Anti-libertySB 248increasing the age for sales and possession of tobacco products.NAY OTP
  Why

  This bill bans the sale and possession of tobacco products by many adults in NH.

  * This bill extends the current juvenile prohibition on tobacco products to adults between the ages of 18 and 21.
  * While tobacco products are harmful, applying restrictions on their use to adults is paternalistic.
  * The federal government has banned the sale of tobacco products to adults under 21 as part of the $738 billion defense spending bill, rendering this unwise legislation also unnecessary.

• Anti-libertySB 304relative to campaign contributions and expenditures, and making an appropriation therefor.NAY OTP/A
  Why

  This bill, as amended, forms a committee to study public funding of certain state election campaigns.

  * Taxpayers should not be forced to pay for the campaign activities of any candidate, particularly those with whom they vigorously disagree.
  * While a study committee is less harmful than the original bill text, there is no compelling reason to spend taxpayer money to study this topic.

34 bills with no position.

Read the full Gold Standard