Harsher penalties for crimes against unborn children, quicker removal of MTBE from gas supplies, and tracking devices in consumer products are just some of the bills state legislators will mull over this week.

The House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee will hold a subcommittee work session on Wednesday, Feb. 2 on HB 209, which establishes a separate offense for causing death or injury to an unborn child. The bill is sponsored by Rep. Packy Campbell (R-Farmington), who said the measure isn't a pro-life/abortion rights issue but is an effort to "present a different argument and...a different perspective than what's been presented in the past.

"We've been told over and over again that some people believe a fetus is an unborn child; we've got to respect that belief," Campbell said. "We have an obligation to protect that unborn child."

For example, under the bill, someone convicted of assault against a pregnant woman would be charged twice for the crime, Campbell said.

The bill has gained momentum and support due to a similar law passed in California, Campbell said. Some pro-choice groups have opposed t the bill, but Campbell said, "It defines in the statute in a much bigger way a woman's right to have an abortion.

"What the sticking point is," he said, "is you have a definition of an 'unborn child' in the statute."

On Thursday, Feb. 3, the House Commerce Committee will meet at 11 a.m. to look at HB 203, which requires merchants to inform customers about tracking devices contained in any products they sell. Rep. Howard Dickinson (R-Center Conway) is sponsoring the bill.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, the Transportation and Interstate Cooperation Committee will look at SB 195 on Wednesday, Feb. 9. The bill would change the effective date in the law requiring the elimination of certain gasoline additives, including MTBE, from state gas supplies to no later than Jan. 1, 2007. The previous effective date was any time after Jan. 1, 2007.

MTBE was added to gas supplies in four counties in the late 1990s to comply with the Federal Clean Air Act. In 2002, MTBE was found in many of the state's groundwater supplies, and a recent study by the U.S. Geological Survey found increased levels of the contaminant in public supply wells in Rockingham County.

-Larry Clow

All meetings are open to the public. For a full calendar, visit the Legislature's Web site at http://gencourt.state.nh.us/ie/.