Budget battles continue in Concord this week as the House hands the Senate a budget with a gaping $15 million hole. The shortfall showed up earlier last week, when it was discovered budget writers had included $15 million in unspent money for the Department of Health and Human Services. However, it turned out that DHHS still needs that money to cover Medicaid costs. Oops.

Despite the error, House members approved the budget and sent it to the Senate, where the $15 million may grow into an even bigger problem. Representatives penciled in a 28-cent increase in the state's cigarette tax as part of the $8.6 billion budget; if the tobacco tax hike doesn't pass muster with the Senate, there will be an added $87 million hole to plug in the state's education fund.

After last week's budget debates, House members have a light schedule this week; however, there's still plenty going on in the Senate.

On Wednesday, April 27, the Transportation and Interstate Cooperation Committee will look at HB 599, a bill requiring car dealers to tell consumers about "event data recording devices" in their cars. These recorders, similar to the black-box flight recorders in airplanes, track travel data, including the speed and direction a vehicle is moving, where the vehicle has traveled and seat belt use. As with flight data, the information could similarly be used in accident and criminal investigations. If the bill passes, car dealers would be compelled to tell consumers about the recorders before the sale; the bill also limits the use of data obtained by the recorder to "the motor vehicle safety and medical research communities to advance motor vehicle safety, and only if the identity of the registered owner or driver is not disclosed."

On tap for Thursday, May 5, the Senate Environment and Wildlife Committee will look at HB 562, which would prohibit the sale of products containing more than one gram of mercury, including lamps, switches and mercury thermometers. The bill is one of three pieces of legislation dealing with mercury pollution that lawmakers have examined this year. Another, HB 371, bans the disposal of mercury-containing products in landfills and transfer stations and is currently being discussed by the Senate Energy and Economic Development Committee. Meanwhile, the House Science, Technology and Energy Committee is looking at SB 128, which makes some changes to the state's 2002 Clean Power Act. Under the new regulations, the state's three coal-burning power plants would be forced to cut mercury emissions to 50 pounds per year by 2009 and to 24 pounds per year by 2013. Carbon dioxide levels would be cut to less than 5,425,866 tons per year.

Also on May 5, the Health and Human Services Committee will hold a hearing on HB 220, which would establish a committee to study the ability of the state's homeless teens "to make a successful transition to adulthood." The state's Education and Health and Human Services departments found 976 homeless students in the state during a one-day count in January. Rep. Elizabeth Blanchard (R-Penacook) is sponsoring the bill.

"Nobody's really got a handle on it," Blanchard said in an earlier interview. "That's the whole purpose for the study committee, to look into this and find out how widespread it is."

As a whole, the state's homeless population has increased to 1,395 people, up from 1,081 last year. The census, conducted by the DHHS, does not include statistics for Manchester or Nashua. Those cities perform their own annual count. The state has two group homes for teenagers, in Manchester and Concord. If established, the committee would also look at helping kids in foster care make the transition to adult life once they reach the age of 18.

All meetings are open to the public. For a full calendar, visit http://gencourt.state.nh.us.