Transcript Highlights:

• So, I'll move House File 3732 to bring that before the committee.
• I would move both uh the House File 3732 and then the DE1 amendment and seek to have a vote on the DE1
• I would move both the House File 3732 and then the DE1 amendment and seek to have a vote on the DE1 amendment

Keywords: 919, house, all

Summary: The committee took up House File 3732, with the author moving both the bill and two separate amendments. The DE1 amendment would create a healthcare workforce grant program to let the Department of Employment and Economic Development identify and fund healthcare workforce shortage areas, while the A1 amendment would establish an Office of Community Investment to provide strategic grant management and help align grants with legislative priorities. Both amendments were adopted, and the bill was laid over for later consideration. The bill author explained that the healthcare workforce proposal is meant to address shortages that market forces alone have not solved, citing examples such as CNA training and rural oncologist recruitment. The Office of Community Investment was described as a way to improve grant oversight, set clearer goals, and strengthen collaboration between agencies and the legislature, drawing on the model of the Office of Justice Programs. Testimony from the Mong American Partnership strongly supported the healthcare workforce grant program, describing successful CNA and phlebotomy pathways, but also noting long waitlists and the need for flexible funding. Members discussed the importance of locating training opportunities in greater Minnesota and in communities with workforce gaps, so distance and travel barriers do not limit access. Several legislators said the proposal would help create good-paying jobs, strengthen healthcare access, and support overworked healthcare workers. The bill’s sponsors also emphasized that codifying grant programs can speed up future funding decisions and improve accountability, and they said the measures would return for further consideration in a few days.

Transcript Highlights:

• Will the House please come to order? Members, kindly take their seats.
• After conferring with House leadership, there will be no public caucuses today.
• Representatives Kornheiser and Conlin and staff will be here again in the well of the House to answer
• Representatives Kornheiser and Conlin and staff will be here again in the well of the House to answer
• In addition to the House Bill 955.

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The House briefly convened and then postponed action on Senate Bill 218, an act relating to reducing chloride contamination of state waters, for one legislative day because an amendment issue needed more time. The Speaker explained that House leadership had agreed there would be no public caucuses that day, and that the bill would be taken up later. Members were also informed of a caucus of the whole to hear the Ways and Means amendment on House Bill 955, the education transformation bill. The Speaker announced office hours in the House well the next morning from 8:15 to 9:00, with Representatives Kornheiser and Conlin and staff available to answer questions. During announcements, a member from Rockingham asked the body to wish the member from Lincoln a happy birthday, which was met with applause. The House then adjourned by motion until Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at 1:00 p.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• This will be going to the Finance Committee should it pass the House.
• should<00:38:37.599> it<00:38:37.839> pass<00:38:38.320> the<00:38:38.560> House
• <00:38:39.440> The<00:38:39.680> finance should it pass the House.
• The finance should it pass the House.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The Education Funding Committee met in executive session and reviewed several previously heard bills, but focused its discussion on SB 586 and SB 580. The chair explained that SB 586 would require school districts and school administrative units to publish audit reports after the fiscal year, and that an amendment, 1472H, had been prepared to replace the relevant audit/reporting section. The amendment would add SAUs to the reporting entities, expand the contents of audits to include items such as employee lists, pay, benefits, and pension liabilities, and change the timing so audits are submitted nine months after the fiscal year end, followed by a three-month Department of Education review and then a further correction period before any grant funding could be withheld. The amendment would also require the reports to be posted in searchable electronic form on the web. Committee members discussed whether the bill’s “non-compliance” language referred only to incomplete submissions or also to audit findings, and several members raised concerns about whether the Department of Education had the staff and authority to take on this role, whether the existing DOE25 process would be displaced, and whether the bill should instead remain with the Department of Revenue Administration. One member noted that the fiscal note anticipated the need for additional auditors and significant staffing costs. The committee also reviewed SB 580, described as a school cooperative purchasing program bill that also contains policy provisions for charter school trustees, school board members, and receivership-related language tied to Claremont. The chair said the committee had previously heard comments from Charlie Arlinghouse on the cooperative purchasing portion and would use a side-by-side comparison prepared by staff when it reached that bill. Other bills on the docket were briefly described but not taken up that day: SB 491, which has committee-requested amendments and a separate non-germane amendment related to curriculum frameworks and academic standards; SB 513, an owner’s project manager bill held as a possible vehicle for future non-germane language; and SB 531, concerning a cosmetology program in Coös County and a possible task force. The chair said the committee would not address 491, 513, or 531 that day and would return to 580 and 586.

Transcript Highlights:

• Welcome to House Transportation.
• House Bill 499. House Bill 499. Thank<03:22:33.520> you.
• House Bill 499. House Bill 499.
• close the executive session on House close the executive session on House Bill Bill Bill 500.
• researcher in the house. researcher in the house.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: House Transportation opened public hearings on three Senate bills and discussed a fourth scheduling issue. On SB 499, which would change Traffic Safety Commission reporting requirements, the sponsor’s representative said the bill would require annual aggregated data on the causes of traffic collisions in New Hampshire and recommendations to address them. Members asked about the added Trauma Medical Review Committee seat, and a representative explained that it is a longstanding state board of emergency and trauma professionals; the bill had already been amended and passed unanimously earlier in the process. On SB 500, concerning restroom access for certain commercial motor vehicle operators, the sponsor and trucking-industry supporters said the measure arose from concerns raised by female truck drivers and was intended to require larger commercial facilities with available public or employee restrooms to allow truck drivers to use them when there are no public safety concerns. Supporters from the New Hampshire Motor Transport Association said driver shortages make it important to recruit and retain women, and that lack of bathroom access is a significant barrier. Committee members asked about the scope of the problem and whether the issue affected male and female drivers differently. The committee then heard SB 559, which would reduce the minimum allowable speed limit on locally controlled roads. Supporters, including bicyclists and the Bike-Walk Alliance, testified that lower speeds improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers, citing personal crash experiences and national guidance supporting lower urban speed limits where warranted by traffic or engineering studies. They emphasized the bill would not mandate lower limits statewide but would give towns local discretion. Members questioned whether the group would support 15 mph limits and how congestion and travel-time concerns were weighed. A Department of Transportation official testified neutrally, saying the agency had no formal position but had concerns about public perception and possible spillover to unnumbered state roads. The chair also noted an earlier scheduling problem that prevented immediate executive action on a bill until later in the day.

Keywords: 965, house, all

Keywords: 965, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• House Rule 35A. 35A. 35A.
• to the State House to the State House uh<00:11:39.200> Chandler<00:11:39.560> Pocat,
• After uh speaking with uh all House After uh speaking with uh all House leadership,<00:16:05.560
• Care, which recommends that the House Care, which recommends that the House propose<00:16:52.640
• pending question is, shall the House pending question is, shall the House concur<00:26:24.920>

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The House opened with a devotional for Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Memorial Day, delivered by Rabbi Grace Odell. Her remarks focused on remembrance of the Holocaust, warning against dehumanization, and urging lawmakers to act from love rather than fear. Members then observed a moment of silence and heard announcements recognizing visitors, including students from Orwell Village School and guests from the Vermont Holocaust Memorial. The chamber took up several procedural and legislative items. House Bill 574, relating to epinephrine use and maintenance at child care facilities, was moved from the House Committee on Human Services to the Committee on Education and approved by voice vote. The House also announced caucus and committee schedules, including meetings of the Rural Caucus and Older Vermonters Caucus. Later, the body reordered its calendar and prepared to recess after completing action on the day’s bills. On Senate Bill 163, concerning the role of advanced practice registered nurses in hospital care, the House Health Care Committee recommended amendment, explaining that the bill updates the Patient Bill of Rights to reflect current hospital practice, especially in rural hospitals, by recognizing APRNs and physician assistants as possible attending providers. The committee reported a 10-0-0 vote in support, and the House agreed to propose the Senate amendment and ordered third reading. The House also concurred in the Senate proposal of amendment to House Bill 508, which revises Burlington’s charter so the city council can adjust ward and district boundaries when needed to correct unconstitutional population divisions without requiring a charter change; the Government Operations and Military Affairs Committee reported a 9-0-1 favorable straw poll. After these actions, the House recessed briefly while the committee continued hearing amendments.

Transcript Highlights:

• Good morning, members, and welcome to the caucus of the whole on House Bill 955.
• While we did receive the bill earlier this month from House Education, most of the language in our amendment
• amendment rather than a strike all so that you can see specifically where we added to the work of the House
• Ways and Means or House Education.
• And then, um, the House appendices.

Keywords: 926, house, all

Summary: The caucus of the whole received an update from Representative Kornheiser on House Bill 955, focusing on the Ways and Means amendment and how it aligns with Act 73 and the House Education Committee’s broader education transformation work. She said the amendment was assembled from separate pieces developed earlier in the session and covers three main areas: planned property tax updates, steps needed for the future education finance system and foundation formula, and policy changes to support collaborative education service agencies and district mergers. She emphasized that the bill is aimed at the future state of the system, with many provisions tied to later effective dates and pending reports. Kornheiser described the property tax provisions as further defining the new non-homestead/second-home classification so the Tax Department can continue form development and data collection before rates are set, and she said the bill also advances regional assessment districts and a more regular reappraisal cycle. On education finance, she said the amendment adds school construction and school debt provisions, reserve guidance, pre-K funding study language, special education funding protections, and transportation-related follow-up work so those pieces can fit the foundation formula. She also framed the bill as reducing cost drivers in the system, citing health care savings, reference-based pricing, mental health coordination, special education scale, deferred maintenance, and larger-scale school organization. During questions, members asked about merger support funding, transportation timelines, private equity ownership of school transportation, tuition restrictions for approved independent and public schools, and the timing and finality of the second-home tax definitions. Staff explained that merger support would be reimbursed through AOE for committee expenses and would not count against excess spending thresholds, that transportation and other grant categories will be addressed in future reports and decisions, and that the transportation study does not explicitly name private equity but could encompass staffing and cost issues. They also confirmed that the tuition-related provisions apply to approved independent, in-state public, and out-of-state public schools receiving tuition, but only when the foundation formula takes effect. No votes were taken during the caucus; the update was informational, with the bill noted as having been referred to Appropriations and expected to come up for action later in the week.

Transcript Highlights:

• to busers or house house people, house to busers or house house people, house to house<02:34:
• house staff, they're a different wage. house staff, they're a different wage.
• stand up for our back of house workers. stand up for our back of house workers.
• I'm talking about front of the house. I'm talking about front of the house.
• It's front of the house<02:58:27.600> typically. house typically. house typically.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The committee opened its labor hearing on SB 655 and outlined the day’s schedule, including a later working session on SB 416 and an executive session planned for 2:30 p.m. Senator Dan Innis introduced SB 655, describing it as a technical bill affecting employee leasing companies/professional employer organizations (PEOs), workers’ compensation coverage, and a Senate-added minimum wage exemption for minor league baseball players covered by a collective bargaining agreement. He said the PEO change would let either the PEO or the client business hold workers’ comp coverage, while still requiring coverage, and argued it would align New Hampshire with most other states and reduce barriers for small businesses and multi-state employers. He also said the baseball provision would clarify wage treatment for minor league players and support the Manchester team. Justin Warell of Insperity testified in support of the PEO portion, explaining that PEOs provide HR, payroll, benefits administration, and workers’ compensation administration through a co-employment model. He said the bill would preserve mandatory coverage while allowing flexibility for the client or PEO to maintain the policy, which could help clients who already have preferred coverage or who face cost or administrative issues in multiple states. He noted that most clients would still remain under the PEO’s policy and said Insperity would submit written comments. Committee members asked about how the arrangement would work, whether the client or PEO would pay, and whether the bill would affect liability insurance packaging; Warell said the employer still bears the cost and that the bill mainly gives larger clients an option. One member asked him to remain available for possible follow-up after hearing from the labor department. Stephen Gonzalez of Major League Baseball testified in support of the minor league baseball exemption. He said MLB and the MLB Players Association negotiated a collective bargaining agreement that already provides players with salary, housing, meals, per diems, health and retirement benefits, disability continuation, tuition assistance, and signing bonuses. He argued that treating players as hourly workers creates impractical time-tracking problems because players do work-related activities on their own time, and said the bill would recognize them as salaried workers and avoid litigation over what counts as hours worked. Committee members questioned why the exemption was needed if players are already salaried and whether MLB could simply amend its CBA; Gonzalez said the bill would help prevent wage-and-hour lawsuits and noted that similar exemptions have been enacted in other states. No vote was taken during the hearing, and the chair indicated the bill would be considered for executive action later that afternoon.

Transcript Highlights:

• Welcome to House Transportation.
• House Bill 499. House Bill 499. Thank<03:22:33.520> you.
• House Bill 499. House Bill 499.
• To uphold the House position. Which this is clearly a healthy House position.
• the best committee in the house. the best committee in the house.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This will be going to the finance committee should it pass the House.
• the governmental agency that's responsible for this audit, not the department. should it pass the House
• The finance should it pass the House.
• It came out of this committee 18-0, went through the House as well, and now it's sitting over in the
• ><02:22:41.600> went<02:22:41.840> through<02:22:42.080> the<02:22:42.319> house

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• just um, front of house, back of house, just um, front of house, back of house, just raise<02:37:
• from other uh front of house workers. from other uh front of house workers.
• stand up for our back of house workers. stand up for our back of house workers.
• I'm talking about front of the house. I'm talking about front of the house.
• It's front of the house<02:58:27.600> typically. house typically. house typically.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• So I did go from 5 to 72. Because the previous 72 was...
• there's no 72 hours with gift cards. there's no 72 hours with gift cards.
• House Bill 1491 is a compromise.
• as shown in House Bill 1491. as shown in House Bill 1491.
• <03:32:43.200> It House Bill 1491 is a compromise. It House Bill 1491 is a compromise.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Good morning, everybody, and welcome to House Environment and Agriculture.
• So, in the House, Assistant Commissioner Crapo and Commissioner Scott were there and testified on the
• We added that in when it was in the House in the Senate, excuse me. Thank you.
• amended, will have go through the house amended, will have go through the house and<03:59:38.320
• <04:05:24.880> session Do we have Do we have house session Do we have Do we have house session

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• He Jim Cy, who is the House attorney.
• You can plug them into a regular outlet in your house and put power into your house from this solar system
• and put power into into your your house and put power into into your house<02:05:30.320> from
• <02:12:42.560> down, plug it in and burn the house down, plug it in and burn the house down
• House floor then. House floor then.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <01:13:49.040> right another bill that is in the House right another bill that is in the House
• <01:19:31.280> or movement and in or lack of housing or movement and in or lack of housing
• dispute resolution has dispute resolution<04:02:50.239> protocols.
• And in that resolution protocols.
• <04:34:26.480> Bill it is a revision of what was House Bill it is a revision of what was House

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• <00:06:07.199> Bill<00:06:07.600> Two, House Bill Two, House Bill Two, >> but<00:
• >> I would suggest to the house that you >> I would suggest to the house that you amend<00
• House Bill 2 essentially.
• Means and Finance and and on the House Means and Finance and and on the House side<00:29:07.440>
• <00:31:39.519> So senate was trained in the house. So senate was trained in the house.

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Keywords: 926, house, all

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The committee first approved the minutes from the March 6, 2026 meeting and then received updates from the Legislative Budget Assistant audit staff on several ongoing audits. Christine Young reported that the special education audit was in report-writing stage with 39 of 80 observations completed and a draft expected in the second quarter, the education freedom accounts audit had 27 of 42 observations completed with a draft also expected in the second quarter, and the Doorway program audit had a draft report with 15 observations sent to DHHS on March 30, with responses due April 24 and presentation expected at the May fiscal committee meeting. Members asked about the size of the special education report, and staff estimated it would be over 800 pages and roughly three pounds. The committee then reviewed prior audit responsiveness from the Human Rights Commission. The commission reported that 22 observations had been completed, with remaining issues focused on timely case processing, a formal risk assessment, and a performance measurement system. Officials said staffing shortages were improving, a risk assessment manual had been drafted, a scorecard system was nearly complete, and the commission’s rules were moving through the public hearing process. Members asked about the timeline, and the commission said case processing was averaging 20 to 22 months and that the remaining items were expected to be resolved over time. Police Standards and Training also reported progress on prior audit items. The director corrected one status designation and said the job task analysis for curriculum development was substantially resolved, with findings and recommendations being prepared for the council. He said work on fitness testing was on hold pending legislative action, the performance measurement and strategic planning item remained a priority, and the council was focusing first on updating administrative rules. He also said the corrections advisory committee likely needed a statutory amendment to better reflect members with practical corrections experience. In response to questions, he said the council does not certify county correctional officers but reviews county curriculum annually, and he said the agency would be open to discussing consolidation or a pathway for county officers to become state-certified. The Department of Corrections then updated the committee on parole board-related audit items, saying 11 of 13 DOC-related findings were resolved. The remaining issues involved implementing a structured decision-making process for the parole board and improving data collection for recidivism tracking; the board had applied to the National Institute of Corrections for training, and manual data collection was underway. DOC also said it had created a HIPAA-compliant release form to share substance use disorder treatment information with the parole board. Finally, OPLC reported on the mental health workforce audit, saying six findings were fully resolved and six substantially resolved, with most remaining items tied to rulemaking and application processing. The office expects to complete its backend system migration and improve timeliness metrics by the end of the year, and it recently launched a jurisprudence exam for the mental health board. Under potential audit topics, staff said two items remained suspended because of litigation, and the committee discussed whether to keep DHHS contract management on the list. Representative [name unclear] proposed adding two new education freedom account audit topics: verification of residency and eligibility, and a record of educational attainment while preserving student privacy. Members supported adding them, but staff warned the expanded scope could delay the report and would require coordination with the Department of Education and approval by the Fiscal Committee. The chair said staff would work with the commissioner and LBA to draft the revised scope for further committee action.