The House met four times, handling three hundred and sixty seven bills in total. One hundred and thirty five on the consent calendar, one hundred and thirty four concurrence messages, and ninety eight bills on the regular calendar. Concurrence messages are what’s asked of the House when the Senate passes the same bill as the House, with differing text, and vice versa. The House has the options to either move concur with the Senate’s changes to a bill, passing the bill onto the Governor’s desk. Move non-concur, which would kill the bill due to a lack of agreement between bodies. Or move non-concur and request a committee of conference. Which prompts the chair of each body to appoint members to deliberate on the bill and come to a consensus. The Speaker of the House appoints four members, and the Senate President three. The committee must either unanimously agree to the text of the bill and it’s passage, or the bill dies. 

So begins the silly season of the legislature. Where bills with a low chance of final passage are tacked onto other bills with greater chances in a last ditch effort to improve the chance of the latter. It is Christmas in May, putting ornament provisions onto bills which would otherwise slide through without debate. These additions to bills are usually what’s called a non-germane amendment. When an amendment is proposed it goes through the Speakers office, who then determines whether or not the content of said amendment is germane to the content of the bill it is amending. If it is deemed non-germane, that amendment must receive it’s own public hearing in the committee of the bill which the amendment is being proposed to, noticed to the public the same way a regular piece of legislation would be. During silly season, committees of conference can add and retract provisions of different pieces of legislation nearly at will. Resulting in the not-so beautiful Christmas trees of the legislature in May. It’s one of the many ways D.C. politics has infected our legislature. 

The Criminal Justice committee had a non-germane amendment before it this month. Proposed to legislation which I co-sponsored, which originally was a simple bill to require the superintendent of each county department of corrections to require their contracted behavioral health treatment providers to use screening tools for mental health and substance abuse. Providing where such services exist, community based treatment providers and certified recovery support workers. Coordinating contact with people in custody for the purpose of easing reentry into the community. 

The Chairman of my committee brought forward the non-germane amendment, which added a definition of anti-semitism for the purpose of enforcing anti discrimination laws. At first glance, a menial addition to our discrimination protection laws. At a closer glance, it codified multiple private organizations’ definition of anti semitism into public law - including definitions which would legally enforce that critique of the nation-state of Israel, equated to anti-semitism. This is dangerous territory we are broaching. It is a clear violation of free speech and expression rights. I, and nine other colleagues of mine pulled this legislation off the consent calendar when it came before the floor. We argued the point but ultimately lost 168-186.

My legislation HB1589, relative to raising the base adequacy amount for our public schools students. A nearly two hundred million dollar in our students which passed the House, and it’s relevant committees twice on a bipartisan basis. After hearing the bill in April, the Senate education committee voted on a partisan 3-2 vote to move that the bill be referred for interim study. The referral to interim study is the way a body of the legislature acts on a bill without taking an up or down vote. The bill when voted to an IS gets an ‘interim study’ during the fall session of the Second year. The committee holding that study will at it’s conclusion vote on whether it recommends the bill for future legislation in a coming legislature or not. Interim study is a kind way of killing the bill. Our towns are saddling the burden of our public schools on the backs of the local taxpayers. While wealthier towns aren’t feeling as much of the burden, this is killing the property poor towns in our State. The State has consistently shirked it’s responsibility to it’s taxpayers in providing adequate statewide funding to the towns. It is past due that some money is put to fixing this gap and the State Senate’s action this month show it’s more interested in appeal to the those who’d rather the system implode than it is to the students of the State of New Hampshire. Oh well, we may have lost this one but the work is far from over. 

HB1169, creating a private right of action for those facing hair based discrimination, after a month of back and forth discussion with the Senate Judiciary Committee; passed unanimously on the 22nd, without amendment. Passing the Senate floor the same day. It is now in the enrolled bills process onto the Governor. It was a delicate one but in the end, it got over the line. 

I am so proud of the work I have been honored to be able to do in the legislature. The wins, the losses, and the unbelievable - have all been a privilege to go through. When it works this body is the best legislative body in all fifty of our great States. Bringing together people from all across the State, who come to their seats with a tile, all sitting together in the chamber built in 1819, to create a mosaic of stories which form the grand story of our great State. As I mull the final decision as to whether I will seek another term let me first acknowledge my profuse gratitude for the opportunity to serve in the State House. 

There is nothing akin to it.