Transcript Highlights:

• , which means you're the ex in the executive branch.
• , which means you're the ex in the executive branch.
• :33.680> um<00:55:34.559> Northeast executive director of the um Northeast executive director
• Yeah, I'm not going to execute today. Enough discussion.
• <01:59:26.400> Been come out of executive session. Been come out of executive session.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So there's a cost there, but there is a data linkage between the courts and sentencing guidelines. it's
• Now my next question to you is: can the Sentencing Guidelines Commission comply with data requests that
• The goal was to have the Sentencing Guidelines Commission serve simply as a place where the information
• Now my next question to you is: can the Sentencing Guidelines Commission comply with data requests that
• So, if we're going to be aggregating that data through the Sentencing Guidelines Commission, I believe

Bills: HF3901, HF962, HF4428, HF4478, HF1775

Keywords: foster care, ombudsperson, investigative powers, children's rights, complaint process, HF4428, Medical Assistance, Medicaid, community engagement, work requirement, work mandate, employment requirement, community service, 80 hours, half-time student, income threshold, federal minimum wage, eligibility verification, benefit suspension, benefit termination

Transcript Highlights:

• He had been handed a life sentence.
• He had been handed a life sentence.
• She got 60 days and he got a life sentence.
• She got 60 days and he got a life sentence.
• We sat with the monster was sentenced.

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Um, I open the executive easy one today.
• <00:16:01.279> three<00:16:02.000> to language in sentence three to language in sentence
• explaining that one sentence. explaining that one sentence.
• executive session on House Bill 1043. executive session on House Bill 1043.
• executive session on House Bill 1451. executive session on House Bill 1451.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• The offenses there are individuals who have been sentenced for major crimes and there's because of their
• for minor crimes with less sentenced for minor crimes with less than<00:30:48.760> a<00:30:48.840
• <00:31:26.240> for<00:31:26.400> major have been sentenced for major have been sentenced
• <00:43:01.840> And<00:43:02.080> so, done with the sentence.
• And so, done with the sentence.

Bills: SR185, HB2452, HB2329, HB2272, HB2273, HB2335, HB1656, HB2207, HB2289, HB1854, HB2581, HB20, HB2296, HB1707, HB2297, HB1890, HB2241, HB2474, HB1688, HB2546, HB1574, HB1546, HB2218, HB1163, HB1514, HB1749, HB2385, HB1576, HB1974, HB2022, HB1973, HB2005, HB1894, HB1515, HB1718, HB1591, HB2475, HB1721, HB1864, HB1946, HB1920

Keywords: Department of Education, capital improvement program, performance audit, infrastructure, transparency, state bonds, general obligation bonds, GO bonds, bond authorization, state debt limit, constitutional debt limit, Article VII Section 13, Hawaii bonds, state borrowing, public finance, capital improvement projects, supplemental appropriations, judiciary appropriations, refunding bonds, reimbursable bonds

Transcript Highlights:

• I do have some issues when especially men don't articulate the end of their sentences.
• So, I apologize end of their sentences.
• new executive new executive running<03:33:06.320> the<03:33:06.440> state<03:33:06.720
• <04:11:01.440> Guidelines Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines
• Roll call granted. executive agencies. There is no reason executive agencies.

Keywords: 918, senate, all

Summary: The Senate convened under a call, established a quorum, received the House message on Senate File 4807 concerning benefits for veterans of the secret war in Laos, and voted not to concur in the House amendments, appointing a three-member conference committee. The chamber also received a batch of House files, laid several of them on the table, and adopted committee reports and other routine motions. Senate Resolution 84 was referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration, and Senator Murphy designated special orders for immediate consideration. The main floor debate centered on Senate File 4059, the supplemental finance omnibus bill. Senators described the bill as a slim, supplemental budget focused on urgent affordability needs, including $52 million for state grants in higher education, $15 million for LIHEAP, school district compensatory revenue adjustments, support for public television stations facing federal cuts, Medicaid fraud enforcement, and consumer restitution for scam victims. The Jobs article was presented first, with roughly $4.9 million in Workforce Development Fund appropriations for workforce and job-training programs, including support for rural oncologist training, homelessness-related employment programs, youth training, local news talent development, transportation-related employment assistance, and manufacturing support. Several amendments were offered and debated. Senator Farnsworth offered the A14 amendment to extend unemployment benefits for laid-off Iron Range miners, but withdrew it after being told it would unbalance the bill and after receiving a commitment to continue working on the issue in conference committee. Senator Draheim offered the A18 amendment to redirect Cookie Cart funding to rural hospital maternity training grants; after debate, the Senate rejected the amendment by a roll call vote of 32 ayes and 34 nays. The discussion emphasized competing priorities between youth workforce programs and rural health care needs. The Senate then moved into Article 1 on K-12 education, where Senator Kunesh outlined provisions including anti-grooming language, a district health insurance reporting requirement, extension of a gender-neutral bathroom grant, compensatory hold-harmless aid, operating capital flexibility, literacy aid hold harmless language, and several cost-neutral district fund transfers. Senator Nelson offered the A29 amendment to require school sports teams and participants be designated by biological sex at birth; debate on that amendment began near the end of the transcript, but no final vote was shown before the excerpt ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the executive director of the Reading Center, Dyslexia Institute of Minnesota, a 74-year-old nationally
• graders in those classrooms and saw them seeing themselves in the instruction through pictures, sentences
• graders in those classrooms and saw them seeing themselves in the instruction through pictures, sentences
• second graders in those classrooms and saw them seeing themselves in the instruction with pictures, sentences
• second graders in those classrooms and saw them seeing themselves in the instruction with pictures, sentences

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• Under that, in the second year, there’s the first sentence and then the second paragraph.
• The last sentence assumes participant must cover the costs associated with installation, maintenance,
• and then the there's the first sentence and then the second<00:35:24.800> paragraph<00:35:25.240
• > the<00:35:25.400> last<00:35:25.640> sentence<00:35:26.359> mot second
• paragraph the last sentence mot second paragraph the last sentence mot assumes<00:35:27.160> participant

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the executive director of the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council.
• 03:59.039> that Chair McDonald, that that's no, that Chair McDonald, that that's no, that sentence
• c> is<01:03:59.839> actually<01:04:00.319> describing<01:04:00.799> the sentence
• is actually describing the sentence is actually describing the process<01:04:01.359> set<01:04
• millions of executive compensation millions of dollars<01:09:06.319> and<01:09:06.719> Excel

Bills: HF4348, HF4186, HF4202, HF4455, HF3884, HF3883, HF3882, HF3881, HF2688, HF3295, HF3862, HF3362, HF4242, HF3798

Keywords: HF4186, Minnesota local government finance, housing and redevelopment authority, HRA, public investment authority, qualifying government, State Board of Investment, SBI, index mutual fund, multifamily housing development, long-term equity investment, investment-grade fixed income, federally insured securities, government-sponsored entities, municipal investing, local government investments, housing finance, public funds, investment policy, risk of loss

Transcript Highlights:

• The committee was told that the executive session would be scheduled for both bills and that the amendment
• have a lot of choices coming up, and I would just, my recommendation to you would be at least not execute
• My name is Jerry Fu, and I am the associate executive director of the New Hampshire School Administrators
• <03:11:13.439> director<03:11:13.720> of I am the associate executive director of I
• am the associate executive director of the<03:11:13.920> New<03:11:14.040> Hampshire<03

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee heard testimony on House Bill 362, which would give the Department of Education rulemaking authority over educator licensing and testing requirements, including professional education assessments. Representative Ladd argued the bill is meant to preserve New Hampshire’s higher standards for teacher preparation and to avoid lowering requirements for licensed educators, while also allowing flexibility for career and technical education (CTE) instructors who may have strong industry experience but not traditional classroom credentials. Members discussed whether the bill should preserve industry-recognized credentials and basic academic skills testing while exempting CTE teachers from content exams; DOE Director Steven Appy said an amendment would clarify that the bill applies to initial licenses, exempt CTE teachers from the content-testing requirement, and keep current administrative practice on basic skills and industry credentials in statute. The committee also noted that an executive session would be scheduled later, likely the following week, to act on the bills and amendment. The committee then took up House Bill 90, dealing with the definition of part-time teachers. Representative Ladd explained that the bill is intended to let university and community college faculty teach limited hours in high school concurrent enrollment settings, especially in subjects like math and STEM where some schools cannot find locally certified teachers with a master’s degree. He said the measure is designed to expand student access to college-level courses, not to replace fully certified teachers or reduce standards, and emphasized that the bill is limited to faculty employed or contracted by the University System of New Hampshire or the Community College System of New Hampshire, with criminal background checks and ethics/conduct rules still applying. No votes were taken during the hearing, and the discussion ended with the understanding that further action would come in executive session.

Transcript Highlights:

• So we would like to see that sentence, that clause removed, but we would like a couple seats on this.
• So we would like to see that sentence, that clause removed, but we would like a couple seats on this.
• commitment; the ACPTC, which serves sexually violent persons who are court ordered after serving a prison sentence
• primarily serves people who have been adjudicated guilty except insane and are serving their presumptive sentence
• Finish your sentence and we're going to move on in the bill.

Bills: HB2050, HB2082, HB2176, HB2195, HB2202, HB2307, HB2584

Keywords: radiologic technologist, radiologist assistant, radiology, imaging, x-ray, diagnostic x-ray, fluoroscopy, mammography, computed tomography, CT technologist, nuclear medicine technologist, bone densitometry, radiation safety, radiation licensing, scope of practice, health workforce, rural health care, critical access hospital, supervision, telehealth

Summary: The committee approved the minutes and then heard House Bill 2050, which updates Department of Health Services rules for radiologic technologists and radiologic assistants. The bill changes school accreditation and training requirements, reduces clinical hours, revises supervision and scope-of-practice rules, adjusts fees, and removes radiologic technologists from the telehealth health care provider definition. Testimony from a radiologic technologist supported the bill as an update to outdated standards and a response to workforce shortages, while a nurse practitioner supported the section allowing NPs to use diagnostic x-ray machines under nursing board standards. HB 2050 passed 7-0 with a do-pass recommendation. The committee then considered House Bill 2082, which creates a Childhood Cancer and Rare Childhood Disease Research Commission and expands the research fund to include appropriations, gifts, donations, and federal grants. An amendment shifted grant-awarding authority to the DHS director, required the commission to set criteria and review applications, and added public meeting requirements; it also tied funding to at least $5 million in available resources and removed the return-on-investment reporting requirement. Supporters said the bill would strengthen pediatric cancer research and leverage an underused funding source, though members raised concerns about oversight. The bill was amended and then passed 7-0. House Bill 2176 and House Bill 2195 both dealt with DHS licensing and complaint-investigation procedures for health care institutions and nursing care institutions. HB 2176 allows DHS to deny licenses or ownership changes based on serious prior licensing problems or safety risks, and it sets notice, investigation, and deficiency-statement rules; speakers from public health and hospital groups supported it as improving transparency and preventing bad actors from cycling through ownership. HB 2195 limits DHS access to certain personnel records, requires deficiency statements within 10 business days, and bars investigations of incidents older than 12 months; an amendment delayed implementation to July 1, 2027 and added corrective-plan and off-site review provisions. Both bills passed 7-0 as amended. The committee also approved House Bill 2202, which appropriates $300,000 annually for a dementia care tele-mentoring program to train providers statewide, especially in rural and underserved areas. The Alzheimer’s Association and a patient with younger-onset Alzheimer’s testified that the program would improve early diagnosis and care, though one senator opposed state funding on the view that medical schools should teach the material. HB 2202 passed 6-1. Finally, House Bill 2307, addressing placement for dangerous, incompetent, non-restorable defendants when secure state hospital beds are unavailable, drew the most debate. An amendment replaced out-of-state placement with a temporary, limited-use solution involving up to three beds at the Arizona State Hospital forensic campus, created a study committee, and shifted some non-psychiatric costs to counties; counties and hospital stakeholders opposed the county-cost language, while sponsors and DHS said the measure was an emergency stopgap. The amended bill passed 4-3. The committee then passed House Bill 2584 4-3, which prohibits public funds from being used for genetic sequencing equipment from foreign adversary countries or entities; supporters framed it as a national security measure, and opponents voted no. The committee then adjourned.

Transcript Highlights:

• and expand reporting and record keeping items, including financial account tracking and remaining sentence
• and expand reporting and record keeping items, including financial account tracking and remaining sentence
• tracking, Including financial, account tracking, and<00:14:15.920> remaining<00:14:16.440> sentence
• and remaining sentence length reporting. and remaining sentence length reporting.

Keywords: Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency - Room 210, 3 March, 2026; 2:30 P.M., 925, all

Summary: The committee first took up House Bill 1596, which Senator Johnson explained as a companion to another crypto-kiosk bill. He said the measure was being used to open the code and remove new kiosk language temporarily while lawmakers work on a regulatory framework for crypto kiosks, which are being used in scams involving callers posing as law enforcement and directing victims to deposit cash into kiosks. Members discussed the lack of reporting and registration data, the estimated number of kiosks in the state, and whether regulation might require identification and registration of the devices. The committee adopted the motion for title sufficient, do pass as amended, and reported the bill out. The committee then considered House Bill 859, which would eliminate the in-person absentee voting envelope while keeping the 45-day in-person absentee voting period and existing excuse requirements. Senator England said voters would still complete an affidavit and cast the ballot directly into an OMR machine, and he noted that circuit clerks preferred this version. The committee asked a few clarifying questions and then passed the bill, reporting it out. Next was House Bill 925, the CLEAR Act, which Senator McMahan described as a revised PEER-related bill that had been worked on with the governor’s office after a prior veto. He outlined provisions creating a PEER review program for agency rules, Medicaid transportation evaluations, a State Board of Health Professions, changes to the corporation work initiative program, and PEER subpoena and enforcement language. An amendment was adopted to delete the subpoena-related sections that had raised constitutional concerns and to retain the reverse repealer. After questions about the advisory role of the new board, the committee passed the bill as amended. The committee also heard House Bill 1171, a strike-all that Senator Sparks said would mirror a Senate bill on grant transparency. The measure would require clearer grant objectives, objective eligibility criteria, disclosure of conflicts and board relationships, reporting by grantees and subgrantees, and signed documentation under penalty of perjury with CPA review. Members asked about enforcement, and Senator Sparks said improper reporting could lead to loss of funds, audits, and possible criminal consequences. The committee adopted the strike-all and reported the bill out. Finally, the committee considered House Bill 1393, which would create an energy development fund at the Mississippi Development Authority for long-term infrastructure planning tied to large industrial energy users. Members asked whether the fund would cover water resources as well as electricity; the sponsor said it was intended for energy infrastructure, not water, and was aimed at large industrial projects such as steel mills. The committee adopted the strike-all and moved to report the bill out.

Transcript Highlights:

• It also revises sentence classifications for those convicted of a sexual crime, adding stronger penalties
• The amendment clarifies that the mandatory minimum prison sentences apply to those who are 18 years of
• Representative Gottlieb: I have a significant problem with the minimum mandatory sentences, and I've
• This makes it more likely that the offender will earn a longer sentence when animal abuse in the presence
• and fighting animals from a level Representative Chaney: One to a level 5, increasing the minimum sentence

Transcript Highlights:

• Then after you plead down to a lower charge, then your sentencing, at least 25 to 30% of those are downward
• Then after you plead down to a lower charge, then your sentencing, at least 25 to 30% of those are downward
• Then after you plead down to a lower charge, then your sentencing, at least 25 to 30% of those are downward
• Then after you plead down to a lower charge, then your sentencing, at least 25 to 30% of those are downward
• Then after you plead down to a lower charge, then your sentencing, at least 25 to 30% of those are downward

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee Chair Kristen Robbins opened by criticizing the governor’s fraud package as too focused on new spending and staffing, and not enough on culture change, accountability, eligibility rules, and an enterprise-wide IT/data strategy. She said the committee had heard a good overview from multiple commissioners, but she remained concerned that piecemeal technology investments and added staff would not address the root causes of fraud. Robbins also said she would introduce a bill based on issues raised in committee, including requiring grants management staff to complete Office of Grants Management training and certification. A major action announced was the launch of a new whistleblower portal at mnfraud.com, which legislators said will let people submit basic fraud allegations, after which staff will follow up and forward matters to the Office of the Legislative Auditor, BCA, law enforcement, or the attorney general as appropriate. Members noted that the Office of the Legislative Auditor already has a separate reporting portal, and there was a question about why the new site does not allow anonymous reporting; Robbins said contact information is needed so staff can follow up. She also said the portal is intended to centralize and triage reports from agency workers, service recipients, and providers. Republican members said the governor’s proposal still misses key pieces. Vice Chair Anderson argued the package mostly adds staff to agencies that failed to catch or act on fraud, and said Minnesota needs a statewide independent inspector general with authority outside agencies and a stronger whistleblower system. Representative Marion Rarick said the proposed criminal penalty increases are too small compared with federal penalties and criticized the package for adding only one forensic auditor at the BCA while DHS receives many more positions. She also argued that agency managers should face sanctions when fraud occurs under their watch and said the state needs a culture where employees can be rewarded for good work but also held accountable for failures. Members discussed several other ideas, including creating new crimes for kickbacks and theft of public funds, requiring fraud fiscal notes, improving data sharing and eligibility verification, and using better IT so systems can talk to each other. There was also discussion of whether government services should rely less on nonprofits and private contractors; one member said fraud often follows a particular business model rather than the sector itself, while another suggested capping salaries of top nonprofit executives receiving government funds. The committee also noted that the governor’s fraud package is being presented as a package but will likely move as separate provisions through different omnibus bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• The committee sub that was adopted that you have before you simply made one sentence change, working
• The committee sub that was adopted that you have before you simply made one sentence change, working
• <00:05:11.759> made<00:05:12.520> uh<00:05:12.720> one<00:05:13.400> sentence
• before you simply made uh one sentence before you simply made uh one sentence change<00:05:14.919

Keywords: Meeting Start: 00:00 Roll Call: 00:06 SB24 Discussion: 01:08 SB24 Vote: 13:22 SB18 Discussion: 14:40 SB18 Vote: 21:54, 958, all

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and first took up Senate Bill 24, a measure aimed at combating property and casualty insurance fraud. Senator Girdler and witnesses from the Insurance Institute of Kentucky and the National Insurance Crime Bureau said the bill would expand the definition of a fraudulent insurance act to cover statements that misrepresent the scope of property damage or repair costs, with the goal of addressing inflated storm-damage claims and out-of-state bad actors. Members discussed whether existing prosecutors were already handling these cases, the role of Commonwealth’s attorneys versus the Attorney General, and the need to keep the bill narrowly tailored to criminal intent rather than negligence or ordinary disputes over value. The committee substitute was adopted, the bill received favorable expression, and a title amendment was also adopted. The committee then heard Senate Bill 18, which would address a shortage of insurance options for automobile dealers by allowing nonadmitted carriers to provide garage liability coverage in Kentucky. Testimony from an insurance agent and a legislative agent for Big I Kentucky described a shrinking market in which some small dealers cannot find coverage at all, risking closure. Members asked about the meaning of garage liability, consumer protections, solvency concerns, and whether more competition could lower prices; witnesses said surplus lines carriers already operate in Kentucky, agents play an important vetting role, and errors-and-omissions coverage would apply to the agent. The bill was supported as a way to preserve dealer businesses and expand coverage options, and it passed the committee with favorable expression after roll call.

Transcript Highlights:

• move to a presentation on gun violence in schools and safety responses by Nicole Hawkley, the chief executive
• had helped with math just weeks before was charged with murder and has since been convicted and sentenced
• advanced algebra class the year before was charged with murder and has since been convicted and sentenced
• had helped with math just weeks before was charged with murder and has since been convicted and sentenced
• advanced algebra class the year before was charged with murder and has since been convicted and sentenced

Bills: HF3409, HF3487, HF3401

Keywords: immigration status, undocumented students, immigrant rights, K-12 education, public school enrollment, Plyler v. Doe, school district, charter school, cooperative unit, law enforcement access, ICE, immigration enforcement, civil lawsuit, private right of action, injunctive relief, mandamus, student records, directory information, parental engagement, equal access to education

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:28:48.840> Director,<00:28:49.560> Vermont<00:28:49.920> Traditions Executive
• The director of animal welfare, the executive director of the Vermont Veterinary Medical Association,
• It breaks up run-on sentences<01:10:28.680> and<01:10:28.800> standardize<01:10:29.600>
• capitalization sentences and standardize capitalization sentences and standardize capitalization
• Legislative Council, Executive Director Legislative Council, Executive Director from<02:22:17.280>

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The House opened with a devotional reading for St. Patrick’s Day, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and the reading of a resignation letter from Representative Hooper of Burlington. The letter said the House environment had changed significantly and that he was resigning before the next cycle, while thanking colleagues and urging bold leadership to address major problems facing Vermonters. Members then received first readings and referrals for a large slate of bills. House bills introduced included measures on tax administration, hunting license fees, emergency management, oath and affirmation language in statutes, judiciary procedures, a Vermont homelessness response continuum, paperwork reduction, public utility subjects, municipal regulation of agriculture, miscellaneous agricultural subjects, and municipal permitting of ground-mounted solar arrays. Senate bills referred to House committees included vocational rehabilitation, home improvement and land improvement fraud, advanced metering infrastructure devices, water quality, and fair employment practices. Several other bills on the notice calendar were also referred to Ways and Means or Appropriations because they affected state revenue or carried appropriations. The House adopted two concurrent resolutions on the consent calendar: HCR 214, honoring Irish-American patriots and their role in American independence, and HCR 220, welcoming the USS Vermont’s namesake visit and designating April 18, 2026 as USS Vermont Day. Members also offered announcements recognizing guests from the USS Vermont and related veterans’ groups, remembering former Representative Ken Harvey, and noting upcoming events such as March Madness pools, the Legislative Cabaret, a Rural Caucus meeting, and a NAMI Walks team. On the floor calendar, H. 723 on posting of land was taken up, amended as recommended by the Committee on Environment, and ordered to third reading on a 10-0-1 committee vote. The House then began second reading of H. 757 on manufactured homes and limited equity cooperatives; committee members described manufactured housing as a key affordable housing option in Vermont and said the bill would clarify how these homes are purchased, titled, taxed, and financed, while reducing costs and improving consistency for homeowners, lenders, and municipalities.

Transcript Highlights:

• language is superfluous due to the clear definition of the jurisdictional lands contained in the first sentence
• contained in of the jurisdictional lands contained in the<00:15:17.280> first<00:15:17.640> sentence
• <00:15:19.320> In the first sentence of the section.
• In the first sentence of the section.

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The House opened with a moment of silence, then reported favorable on House Bill 954, relating to approval of an amendment to the charter of the town of Stowe, and referred it to Ways and Means. Members then adopted JRS 54, a joint resolution setting weekend adjournment so the two houses would reconvene no later than Tuesday, May 26, 2026. Several announcements followed, including a Memorial Day remembrance, which was journalized, an art project in the card room, and a recognition of Harwood Union High School athletes and one individual champion. The House also heard a farewell and birthday acknowledgment for a departing member from Bennington. The calendar was then announced, with House Bill 932, Senate Bill 325, and Senate Bill 323 slated for consideration. The House suspended rules to take up House Bill 932 immediately and concurred in the Senate proposal of amendment. The bill concerns regulation of forestry under Act 250, and the Stowe member explained the amendment was a narrow technical revision developed with the Land Use Review Board and the Agency of Natural Resources. The House then suspended rules to take up Senate Bill 325, heard a 6-0 committee of conference report on regional planning and Act 250 tier jurisdiction, and adopted the report after brief questioning about noise limits. The House also suspended rules to message its action to the Senate forthwith. Senate Bill 323 was postponed to the afternoon session, and the House recessed until 1:00 p.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• chief author of the red flag laws, gun laws, but he also was authoring bills that were reducing sentencing
• 15:27.440> that<00:15:27.760> were<00:15:28.000> reducing<00:15:28.800> sentencing
• <00:15:29.519> for bills that were reducing sentencing for bills that were reducing sentencing

Keywords: 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the executive counselor for District 2, representing 81 cities and towns.
• <00:17:35.240> councelor executive councelor executive councelor Hill<00:17:37.480> followed
• counselor for district I'm the executive counselor for district 2<00:17:58.159> representing<
• <01:10:48.400> order in in light of that uh executive order in in light of that uh executive
• As my daughter has extensively researched and pointed out, it’s essentially a sentence for abuse and

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The House Judiciary Committee opened a hearing on House Bill 148, which Rep. Jim Kofalt said is the same language as last year’s HB 396, vetoed by the governor. He described the bill as allowing, but not requiring, separation by biological sex in three areas: bathrooms and locker rooms, houses of correction, and certain athletic competitions. Kofalt argued the bill would give local school boards and other policymakers discretion to set practical rules, citing concerns about safety, privacy, and a Milford incident involving a biological male in girls’ locker rooms. Committee members pressed him on the lack of a definition of “biological sex,” and he said he did not think one was necessary because males and females are commonly understood. He also said the bill was meant to address situations where outside groups threaten lawsuits and leave local boards with no latitude. Testimony then split sharply. Supporters, including Executive Counselor Karen Hill and several others, said HB 148 would roll back anti-discrimination protections, contradict New Hampshire’s “Live Free or Die” values, and harm transgender and non-binary people. Opponents described the bill as discriminatory and unnecessary, arguing that existing bathroom and sports policies already work and that the bill would invite harassment, invasive enforcement, and legal conflict. Several speakers, including trans residents and parents of trans children, said they had used public restrooms without incident and warned that enforcement would be impractical or abusive. One supporter argued the bill was needed to protect girls’ privacy and safety and cited school sports disputes and a concern about a sex offender at a game as examples of why sex-segregated rules should be restored. Committee members asked questions about how biological sex would be defined, whether the bill was responding to real incidents in New Hampshire, and how any restrictions would be enforced. Kofalt said he was aware of issues in several school districts and at the State House, but did not have detailed documentation for every case. No vote or final action was taken in the portion of the hearing provided; the chair instead moved through public testimony under a strict two-minute limit and noted that follow-up questions would be limited so the committee could hear multiple bills that day.