The battles over the biennial state budget and education funding that consumed much of legislators’  time in 2005 are over, but that doesn’t mean lawmakers won’t have plenty to chew on in 2006. New Hampshire’s 400 representatives and 24 senators will advocate for, or admonish against, a bevy of bills this year, from bans on smoking in restaurants and hunting over the Internet to protecting private property and lowering the drinking age. Legislators will look at almost a thousand pieces of legislation this session, from serious laws to absurd requests—all of which go before public hearings that voters can attend. The legislature’s first session is Wednesday, Jan. 4 at 10 a.m., and the public meetings will start later in the week. It’s interactive government at it’s best, and while you may not be able to join your representatives in Concord, it’s smart to keep up with what’s going on. So break out your notebook and start learning how the State House will affect your house in 2006 and beyond.

ripped from the headlines

It’s usually a safe bet that topics that made headlines during the previous year will be picked up during the next session. Such is the case with the flood of legislation surrounding contraception, eminent domain and health care.

There are nine bills dealing with the state’s eminent domain laws, most of which seek to tighten the restrictions on how and why the state can seize private property for public use. The legislation is a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s controversial Kelo v. New London ruling last summer, in which the court stated that municipal governments can take private property and turn it over to private developers so long as the development is for the public good. Most of the bills would amend New Hampshire’s eminent domain laws to exclude the taking of private property for economic development.

Two bills this year are tackling how pharmacists can dispense emergency contraception drugs (commonly known as the “morning after pill”). The FDA has not approved the drug for sale over the counter, but last year, Sen. Lou D’Allesandro (D-Manchester) backed a measure that would allow pharmacists, working in conjunction with a physician or nurse practitioner, to dispense the morning after pill without a prescription. Rep. Michael Balboni (R-Nashua) is sponsoring a bill that would require pharmacists who dispense the drug to anyone under 16 years of age to notify the child’s parents within 48 hours, and Rep. Bruce Hunter (R-Goffstown) is sponsoring a bill that grants immunity to pharmacists who refuse to dispense the morning after pill.

There are almost a dozen bills this session dealing with health care. These include HB1372, sponsored by Rep. Richard Morris (R-Seabrook), which would establish a committee to study how to provide the state’s uninsured with reliable health care. HB 1570 would extend health insurance benefits to part-time college students, while HB 1702 would set up a state “health access corporation” for uninsured adults, similar to the state’s Healthy Kids program. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Jan. 4, the House will take another look at HB 37, which was retained by the House Commerce Committee earlier in 2005. The bill would extend health insurance coverage for up to one year for college students who must leave school due to serious illness. Named “Michelle’s Law” in honor of Michelle Morse, a Plymouth State University student who lost her insurance coverage in 2003 when she took a leave of absence from school because of colon cancer, the bill is expected to pass through the House and Senate with little to no opposition. Morse died in December 2005.

The same-sex marriage debate will make its way back to the Legislature this year when lawmakers consider a constitutional amendment defining marriage as solely between a man and a woman. A legislative study committee recommended the amendment in December 2005. Supporters feel the amendment will prevent “activist judges” from paving the way for same-sex marriages or civil unions, even though state law prohibits both. Opponents, meanwhile, feel the amendment is unnecessary and homophobic. 

Some legislators are looking to tighten legal loopholes regard illegal immigrants in the state. Rep. David Buhlman (R-Hudson) and other members of the New Hampshire House Immigration Caucus are sponsoring a series of bills that would allow local law enforcement agencies to charge illegal immigrants with trespassing. The bills are partly a response to a series of arrests in Hudson and New Ipswich last summer during which illegal immigrants were charged with criminal trespass. A judge later dismissed the cases, ruling that local police cannot enforce federal immigration laws.

“Generally speaking, we representatives (in the caucus) feel the federal government is falling down on the issue,” Buhlman says. “So we on the state level are doing what we can to close that gap.”

Buhlman says he and other members of the caucus want to see the state’s laws beefed up so that New Hampshire is “unattractive” to illegal immigrants. In addition to amending the state’s trespassing law, these measures include creating harsher penalties for employers of illegal immigrants and establishing a cooperative effort between local and federal law enforcement agencies.

The fight to save the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard was big news in 2005. Even though the Shipyard escaped the axe in this round of federal base closures, Rep. Jim Splaine (D-Portsmouth) wants to make sure the Seacoast Shipyard Association, the private non-profit group that lobbies on behalf of the Shipyard, is financially equipped to fight another day. Splaine and a number of other Seacoast lawmakers are sponsoring a bill that would make a $7,500 annual appropriation to the SSA. In 2005, the same group of representatives successfully lobbied for the state to grant the SSA $100,000 to fight the Shipyard’s potential closure. The yearly grant will keep the SSA going and give it a financial foundation should future closure threats arise, Splaine says.

“We don’t know what will happen in five years. We don’t know the stability of the workload for the Shipyard in two years … so the SSA needs continued appropriation,” he says.

Splaine also has a number of bills coming up in 2006 that deal with causes he’s fought for during his almost three decades in the legislature. This year, he will make another attempt to convince lawmakers to abolish the death penalty in the state with HB 1422. He almost succeeded in 2000; however, then-Gov. Jeanne Shaheen vetoed the law. In 2005, Splaine and Rep. Steve Vaillancourt (R-Manchester) teamed up and passed a law eliminating the death penalty for anyone under the age of 18. Under HB 1422, executions would be replaced with life sentences without chance of parole.

“This issue has never been about whether somebody who commits a terrible crime should be punished severely. In my judgment, putting somebody in jail for rest of life with no hope of parole until they’re dead is a death penalty,” he says.

New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary may get a little bit more protection with another bill introduced by Splaine. Some members of the Democratic National Committee are lobbying to put other primaries and caucuses closer to, or before, New Hampshire’s primary. They argue that the state’s lack of economic and ethnic diversity does not accurately reflect the rest of the country. HB 1125 would let the New Hampshire secretary of state change the filing period for primary candidates in the event that the primary is scheduled earlier than usual. Splaine authored the legislation passed in the 1970s that cemented New Hampshire’s primary status.

alcohol, drugs and other vices

Vice is a perennial topic in the Legislature, whether lawmakers are trying to encourage it (see last year’s string of bills in support of legalized gambling), tax it (the state’s tobacco tax was increased in 2005) or legalize it (a number of bills last year attempted to soften the state’s stance on marijuana).

This year is no different, though gambling is notably absent from legislators’ agendas. Rep. Paul Ingbretson (R-Pike) is making a second attempt to set up a committee to study how state and federal laws affect the use and possession of drugs. In 2005 Ingbretson sponsored a failed resolution urging the U.S. Congress to reconsider the country’s “War on Drugs” because of its enormous cost and the ill effects it has had on society. This time around, Ingbretson’s bill, HB 1437, is calling for a legislative study committee to look at “state and federal drug laws from a financial and social perspective including the effects on state, county, and local communities, the costs of incarceration, the cost of welfare, and the cost of law enforcement.”

“These are the kinds of questions that really deserve answers when you consider such a far-reaching policy,” he says.

This new bill has a better chance of making it out of the Legislature because it’s more localized to our state, Ingbretson says. However, support among lawmakers is tough to come by sometimes because politicians don’t want to appear as though they’re pro-drug use.

“I have no love of drugs, I don’t even take hospital drugs,” he says. “I don’t smoke and I don’t drink, but the drug war is obscene.” Ingbretson says the drug war has done more harm than good, causing the national crime rate to increase and the country’s prison population to skyrocket.

Taking the opposite tack, and also with a second attempt at legislation that failed last session, is Rep. Peyton Hinkle (R-Merrimack). He’s sponsoring another bill that would require those convicted of drug offenses to register with local law enforcement agencies, similar to the sex offender registry system.

Meanwhile, there will be two bills battling the rate of the state’s tax on tobacco. During the last session, lawmakers approved a 28-cent per-pack tax increase on cigarettes, bringing the rate from 52 cents to 80 cents. This was done to plug some holes in the state’s education funding plan. Rep. David Buhlman (R-Hudson) is sponsoring HB 1319, which would roll the rate back to 52 cents per pack. On the other side of the issue, Rep. Susan Almy (D-Lebanon) is supporting HB 1515, which would increase the tobacco tax to 85 cents per pack and earmark the extra revenue for New Hampshire’s tobacco use prevention fund.

Buhlman says the tobacco tax increase was first voted down in the state Senate last year, but was pushed through later on during budget negotiations. Smokers have “taken it on the chin for too long.”

“Whenever there’s a problem, the state turns to cigarette smokers and has them take the hit,” he says, adding that smokers, for the most part, are people with low incomes. “It’s unfair to keep hitting the same group of defenseless people.”

The biggest hit facing smokers this year is a proposed ban on smoking in restaurants and bars throughout the state. Sponsored by Rep. Shelia Fancoeur (R-Hampton), HB 1117 has already gained plenty of bipartisan support, and the New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association, which had come out against the ban in the past, dropped its opposition in late 2005. New Hampshire would be the last New England state to adopt a smoking ban; ten other states in the nation have banned smoking in restaurants and bars.

A Dover lawmaker also wants to see more money put toward smoking prevention. Rep. William Knowles (D) has legislation coming up this year that will set aside tax revenue generated by the sale of tobacco to minors for use in tobacco prevention programs. New Hampshire currently does not have any money devoted to youth smoking prevention. Money for the smoking prevention fund is supposed to come from a multi-state tobacco settlement, signed in 1998 by 46 states, including New Hampshire, requiring tobacco companies to make annual payments to states to reimburse health care costs associated with tobacco use. The $3 million earmarked for smoking prevention in the 2006-2007 budget was instead used to fill a budget shortfall, according to Knowles.

Knowles sponsored the legislation at the request of a member of Dover Youth 2 Youth, a student organization at Dover Middle School and Dover High School that promotes drug-free activities. There are no hard numbers on exactly how many cigarettes are sold to underage smokers; however, Knowles says Dover Youth 2 Youth estimates the state could raise $2.8 million in tax revenue on the estimated amount of cigarettes sold to, or purchased for, minors.

Other representatives are trying to loosen the restrictions placed on some substances. Rep. Jim Splaine has written a bill that would lower the drinking age for members of the armed forces to 18. Splaine says he would like to see the drinking age lowered to 18 for everyone, but not allowing those in the military to drink if they’re under 21 is “especially hypocritical.”

“We expect 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds to learn how to use a gun and learn how to decide when to use that weapon … and then we say, ‘You don’t have the privilege to drink,’” he says.

Splaine’s legislation has attracted international attention, including coverage in Stars & Stripes, the U.S. military’s official newspaper. The bill has stirred plenty of debate here in New Hampshire, with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, New Futures and other youth drinking prevention groups coming out against it.

Splaine was the primary sponsor for the legislation in the early 1980s that raised the drinking age from 18 to 21, a fact he hopes will lend him some credibility during the debate. While he’s unsure how the bill will fare, Splaine says just having the debate is important.

“It has at least opened up the issue of how we’re not teaching people who are (under 21) the way we should be about the use of alcohol. … We can do better.”

the environment

Two of the largest environmental issues legislators will consider this year are renewable energy sources and how to best protect the state’s groundwater supplies.

Six separate bills relative to groundwater withdrawals will go before lawmakers this year. Sen. Iris Estabrook (D-Durham) is either the primary or co-sponsor of four of those bills, one of which would place a temporary moratorium on large groundwater permits and withdrawals. She says the increased interest in water issues is due in part to the controversy surrounding the proposed USA Springs water bottling plant along Route 4 in Barrington and Nottingham.

“We’ve known for a number of years that our groundwater resources are limited, and it’d be wise to plan for the future,” she says. “We haven’t done that to the fullest extent we should be doing.”

Many of the renewable energy bills are a follow-up to a study committee Rep. Sam Cataldo (R-Farmington) chaired last year that examined how the state could encourage the use of wind, biodiesel and other renewable sources.

This time around, Cataldo is sponsoring two bills that aim to promote the use of geoexchange energy systems in the state. In geoexchange systems, heated water from under the earth’s surface is used for home heating and cooling. One bill would exempt geoexchange systems from local property taxes. Another bill would establish a “geothermal assessment project,” in which state agencies would scour New Hampshire for the best places to install geothermal heat pumps. The state is full of geothermal hot spots, according to Cataldo. Eventually, he’d like to see a geothermal plant in every county to provide heating and cooling for residents. At the very least, he wants to see more geothermal systems and less dependency on fossil fuels.

“We need to go in that direction whether we like it or not,” he says. “We can get rid of coal, get rid of natural gas and stabilize the prices we need here in New Hampshire.”

Cataldo also has a bill that, if passed, would classify biodiesel as a renewable energy source for tax purposes. That way, local municipalities could offer incentives to people using biodiesel.

Rep. James Phinizy (D+R-Acworth) also has his eye on renewable energies this session. He’s co-sponsoring a bill asking the state’s agricultural community to increase their production of renewable energy sources like biodiesel. The resolution has a dual purpose, he says.

“Not only does it maintain open fields and farmland, it also supports farmers,” he says. “At the same time, it places an emphasis on products used for biodiesel or similar projects.”

If passed, the bill would call for agricultural products to satisfy 25 percent of the state’s energy needs by 2025, Phinizy says. “That’s probably an unreasonable target, but if we don’t shoot for the moon, we won’t get half the way (there),” he says.

Phinizy is also co-sponsoring legislation that will encourage the use of renewable energies, and he’s signed on to a bill that will establish a legislative study committee to look at the construction of wind energy facilities in the state. Though wind provides clean energy, Phinizy says there are some important factors that need to be considered as new wind projects come to the state, such as the size of the facilities and how much electricity they generate.

Other bills dealing with the environment include a $2.5 million appropriation to the state’s Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP) to aid in land conservation projects around the state. During budget talks in the 2005 session, lawmakers kept funding for LCHIP at $1.5 million between 2005-2006, even though Gov. John Lynch asked legislators to boost funding to $10 million. Between 2002 and 2004, funding for LCHIP was reduced from $13 million to $1.5 million. There’s also a bill requiring the state Department of Environmental Services to report on and make recommendations regarding global warming issues in New Hampshire. Many of the bills have attracted bipartisan support, according to Phinizy.

“When it comes to energy issues, when it comes to alternative energy, when it comes to environment, it’s important that we all work together,” he says.

taking on Congress, pumpkins and other pet projects

Legislators have also filed a number of bills pertaining to national matters. There are nine bills, most of which are resolutions urging the United States Congress to do everything from amending the No Child Left Behind Act to publicizing a report about the restrictions placed on Italian-Americans during World War II.

Closer to home, ethics will also be on lawmakers’ agenda this session. On Jan. 4, the House will look at SB 206, which would establish an ethics committee for the state’s executive branch. Gov. John Lynch pushed for the legislation last year, but it was held up in committee, where a number of changes were made to the bill, including removal of requirements for a bipartisan membership to the commission. Lynch has come out against these changes, and it’s unclear how the bill will fare in the House. The Senate voted in support of it in 2005.

Rep. Jim Splaine also has legislation coming up that would require amusement park ride operators to undergo some kind of training. Splaine has worked as a ride operator in the summers on and off since the late 1960s, and he says having a training system in place will prevent injuries and save lives.

Epping Rep. Ron Nowe (R) has a bill that would prohibit “remote control or Internet hunting” in the state. Internet hunting allows computer users to remotely aim and fire guns on hunting ranges in other states. Nowe says the practice “isn’t very sporting,” and notes that Internet hunting is already banned in many states, including Maine and Massachusetts. The bill makes it a misdemeanor for hunting preserves in the Granite State to offer Internet hunting; however, it does not prevent New Hampshire residents from using remote hunting sites in other states.

And speaking of remote controls, Rep. Nancy Johnson (D-Milton) is sponsoring a bill that would require remote-controlled model boats to obey the same speed limits as full-sized boats.

Finally, not to be overlooked is Rep. Peter Allen’s (D-Harrisville) bill that would make the pumpkin the New Hampshire state fruit.

Why a pumpkin? The genesis of the bill came from a talk Allen gave at the Wells Memorial School in Harrisville last year. After telling students about his duties as a legislator, Allen says the fourth grade class contacted him and asked if they could get a bill introduced. The students decided to make the pumpkin the official fruit of New Hampshire, a status he “strongly supports.”

“(The pumpkin) was here before we were. Native Americans raised and ate it in New Hampshire,” he says.

Allen expects some of the students to testify on behalf of the bill when it appears before lawmakers this year.

“It’s a wonderful example of education at its finest, because these kids have learned a great deal about civics,” he says.