Upcoming Hearings and Votes (Week of 1/8/24)
Welcome to Week Two of the 2024 Legislative Session! Thank you to everyone who signed in or emailed lawmakers about bills last week – your advocacy efforts make a difference.
In this resource, we've compiled a list of bills with upcoming hearings. Additionally, we have summarized key highlights from last week's legislative activities and ways you can continue to take action.
It's worth noting that the House and Senate will not conduct full sessions this week, indicating that no bills will proceed to either chamber for votes in the current week.
Hearings on January 9 (In State House Room 103)
1:10 PM: SB 392 - Increasing Efforts to Make Homes Lead-Safe
SB 392 increases efforts to make New Hampshire homes and communities lead-safe by allocating additional resources to a fund that helps homeowners and landlords remove lead hazards from their buildings.
Hearings on January 10 (In LOB Room 103)
9:00 AM: SB 403 - Investing in the Health Care Workforce
SB 403 aims to grow the state’s healthcare workforce by investing in programs that attract, train, and retain health care professionals.
Hearings on January 11 (In State House Room 100)
9:00 AM: SB 505 - Permanently Banning Hemp-Derived THC Products
SB 505 would permanently ban the sale of hemp-derived THC products in New Hampshire.
If you would like to attend any of these hearings in person, please let us know and a member of our Community Engagement team will be in touch to offer assistance.
What Happened Last Week
House Votes
Drug Checking Equipment (HB 470): The House voted 212-161 to pass HB 470, which legalizes the use and distribution of all drug-checking equipment in New Hampshire. This bill now heads to the Senate – we’ll be in touch for advocacy opportunities when the bill is assigned to a Senate Committee.
Ban on Medical Care for Transgender Youth (HB 619): The House also passed an amended version of HB 619, 199-175. The amended version of this bill bans gender-affirming surgeries for minors, and prohibits New Hampshire doctors from referring a patient’s care to an out-of-state provider. This bill now heads to the Senate – we’ll be in touch with ways to urge lawmakers to oppose this ban when the bill is assigned to a Senate Committee.
Public Hearings
Public hearings were held on bills relating to child care for child care workers (SB 404), improving access to lead testing (SB 399), mandating insurance companies cover youth mental health services (SB 411), and limiting alcohol advertising to youth (SB 335). Senate committees will hold executive sessions to vote on a recommendation for these bills. Nearly 400 people You can still email the committees to encourage them to support these bills:
- Email Senate Health & Human Services about child care
- Email Senate Health & Human Services about improving access to lead testing
- Email Senate Health & Human Services about mandating insurance coverage for youth mental health services
- Email Senate Judiciary about limiting alcohol advertising to youth
Advocacy
