Video & Transcript Research : '1189'
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NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Legislative Administration (02/25/2026)
Legislative Administration
NH
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs (02/25/2026)
Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Public Works and Highways (02/24/2026)
Public Works and Highways
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New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs (02/24/2026)
Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Environment and Agriculture (02/24/2026)
Environment and Agriculture
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Education Policy and Administration (02/24/2026)
Education Policy and Administration
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Children and Family Law (02/24/2026)
Children and Family Law
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NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
Fiscal Committee (02/20/2026)
Summary:
The Fiscal Committee met on February 20, 2026, first approving the minutes and then adopting the consent calendar as amended, with item 26045 removed for separate consideration. The committee then heard item 26045 from the Department of Health and Human Services on the Real Health Transformation Grant for Go North. HHS explained that the first-year award is $204 million, with most funds passed through to Go North and only limited administrative and audit costs retained by HHS. Members asked about staffing, procurement, the program’s spending plan, and whether future grant amounts would be fixed. HHS said Go North will administer the grants, staffing is expected to be about 20 positions, procurements will be competitive, and future awards will depend on federal review of performance and spending. The commissioner said the money is intended to create transformative changes that must be sustainable after the grant period. The committee then approved the item.
The committee next took up regular calendar item 26041 from HHS and adopted it without discussion. It also approved two adjusted items on tab 11, FIS26028 and FIS26029. Item 26027 from the Department of Transportation was adopted as well. Item 26034 from the Department of Corrections was withdrawn, and members noted that any request for new overtime money would be closely scrutinized, especially given the tight budget and the need to explain how existing salary funds were being used. Committee staff said they would follow up with Corrections on vacancy rates, available funds, and other class lines and provide answers to the committee.
The committee then received audit presentations on the state’s college savings plans, including the Unique College Investing Plan and the Fidelity Advisor 529 Plan. Auditors reported clean opinions, no material weaknesses, no audit adjustments, and no unadjusted items requiring reporting. The State Treasurer said the plans are performing well, now total more than $32 billion in assets under management, and are expected to generate about $20 million in revenue this year, with the proceeds supporting scholarship programs for low-income students. The committee placed the audits on file and released them in the usual manner. In other business, members set the next Fiscal Committee meeting for Friday, March 20, 2026, at 11:00 a.m., and then adjourned.
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
Health and Human Services Oversight Committee (02/20/2026)
Summary:
The meeting opened without a quorum, so approval of the prior draft minutes was deferred until later. The committee then heard a DHS update from Commissioner Lori Weaver and COO David Weers, who described the recent flood at the Brown building and the relocation of nearly 400 DHS staff while operations are restored. They also outlined New Hampshire Care Connections, a privacy- and consent-focused closed-loop referral platform intended to improve referrals among providers, reduce duplication, and support continuity of care, with an Upper Valley implementation partnered with Dartmouth Health and an Epic integration already underway.
Members asked whether the system would merge medical records or simply track referrals. DHS said it is not intended to store or transmit full medical records, but to integrate with providers’ electronic health record systems so referrals can be sent, received, and tracked, with consent controls limiting what information can be shared. Officials said the project will be tested over the coming months, with metrics, governance, and advisory committee oversight, and that it is tied to broader rural health transformation efforts and statewide implementation after the regional pilot.
The committee also received the annual report from the Child Care Advisory Council. Maryanne Barter and Jessica Carver said the council worked with licensing to streamline the child care licensing rules, reducing the handbook by about 30%, and is now helping develop an informal dispute resolution process, revising the Granite Steps for Quality system, and creating a clearer handbook for providers handling state scholarship audits. They reported ongoing concern about child care closures and workforce shortages, said there is currently no wait list for child care assistance, and discussed questions about federal CCDF immunization requirements, which DHS said it would follow up on with federal technical assistance partners. After quorum was established, the committee moved to approve the minutes from the prior meeting.
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
JLCAR Administrative Rules (02/20/2026)
Summary:
The committee convened after briefly waiting for a quorum, approved the minutes and consent agenda, and then moved through several agency rule items. The Department of Transportation’s outdoor advertising rule filing was approved after staff noted the department had addressed substantive comments, though the rules had been expired since 2021 and the agency said it had been operating under statute. Members asked about a denied digital sign proposal, and DOT said that decision was based on statute rather than the rule. The Department of Safety’s administrative license suspension item was postponed with a waiver so the agency could submit conditional approval materials and resolve issues between its forms and rules. The Board of Architects item was conditionally approved, with the condition that the board later approve updated incorporation-by-reference materials at its April 3 meeting or the matter would return as a preliminary objection.
The Department of Agriculture’s expired rules prompted extended discussion. Staff and committee members questioned why the department was seeking to adopt rules that had been expired for many years and whether the statutes already provided enough authority to operate without them. Agriculture officials said they were working through a broader modernization effort, focusing on statutes that use mandatory language and updating outdated rules to match current practices, federal standards, and current products such as apples, cider, eggs, and other agricultural commodities. They said the rules before the committee were part of that effort and recommended approval, but members remained concerned about whether some rules were unnecessary. The committee ultimately granted a waiver and postponed the agriculture item for one month so staff could review the underlying statutes and determine whether rulemaking is actually required.
Under other business, the committee took up an emergency Department of Safety rule to update DMV forms to reflect statutory fee changes enacted in the 2025 budget. DMV officials said the new fees were already in effect, but the corresponding forms still showed old amounts, causing confusion for customers and elected officials who were fielding complaints. They argued the forms needed immediate updating because the affected forms are widely used, and they said the department had already tried to treat the changes as editorial before being told full rulemaking was required. The department emphasized it was trying to follow the process while avoiding continued use of incorrect fee forms, and asked the committee to allow the emergency rule to proceed.
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Finance Division III (02/20/2026)
Summary:
The work session was limited to House Bill 1750, a supplemental appropriation for the Department of Health and Human Services’ SNAP administration. Before testimony, Representative Terski distributed a written statement from Representative Priest for the record. Department officials Karen Heert and Nathan White then walked the committee through a chart showing SNAP participation, federal benefit dollars, and state administrative costs, emphasizing that the benefits themselves do not flow through the state budget. They explained that the reported administrative cost includes overhead and cost-allocation methods used to maximize federal reimbursement, and that the current participant count is about 75,000 with the trend steady in recent years.
Members questioned whether the reported costs were stable, how much of the administrative expense was directly tied to SNAP, and whether reducing overhead would lower the need for the appropriation. The department said the cost per participant and per dollar distributed would be lower if SNAP were isolated, but that the broader allocation system also supports federal claiming across multiple programs. Officials said SNAP eligibility is redetermined every six months, that the department processes nearly 50 eligibility programs with about 250 field staff, roughly 70 unfunded positions, and a vacancy rate around 25%. They also said most errors in the program are unintentional and can come from either staff or participant mistakes, and that the department reviews errors to identify systemic fixes.
The committee discussed the fiscal impact of the bill and related budget issues. DHHS said the current adjusted authorization for 2026 is about $31 million, but actual spending is expected to be closer to $25–26 million because of vacancies and unfilled positions. Members asked whether the $4.4 million shortfall identified in the fiscal note would come from the rainy day fund; staff said it would not be taken directly from that fund, but would reduce the amount available to flow into it at the end of the biennium. The committee also reviewed Senate Bill 603 FN, which was described as an alternative approach that would require DHHS to transfer funds within its existing budget rather than provide new money; officials said it would simply codify an option the department already has. No vote or final action on House Bill 1750 was taken during the portion of the meeting provided.
NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Finance Division I (02/20/2026)
Summary:
The committee first considered House Bill 241, which would provide information about alternative pain treatments rather than mandate services. Members cited support from the prime sponsor, medical organizations, insurers, and other stakeholders, and noted there was no fiscal impact. The committee voted unanimously, 7-0, to ought to pass the bill.
It then took up House Bill 629, which raises a boat decal fee and dedicates the revenue to the dam maintenance fund. Members described the state’s deteriorating dam infrastructure, noting the large number of dams, the high-hazard sites, and the much larger funding need, while saying the bill would provide only a modest start. They also said boat owners generally did not strongly object to the fee. The committee voted 7-0 to ought to pass.
House Bill 1042, concerning an increase in the unified contingent credit limit for New Hampshire Business Finance Authority projects, drew more divided discussion. Supporters said the higher cap would provide needed flexibility and liquidity for business development and that the state treasurer and BFA had explained the credit structure and low historical loss rate; opponents warned the increase would raise state exposure too much, too soon. After debate, the chair postponed the bill, then later returned with an amendment lowering the proposed limit from 450 million to 400 million, which the committee adopted unanimously. The committee then moved to ought to pass as amended.
Finally, the committee considered House Bill 1411, which would have allowed withholding payments to the federal government in response to federal actions. Members opposing the bill argued that withholding employee-related funds would be unlawful and ineffective, while supporters said it could serve as a statement and suggested interim study instead. The committee rejected the bill on a 4-3 vote and voted to inexpedient to legislate.
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NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House Education Policy and Administration (02/20/2026)
Education Policy and Administration
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NH
New Hampshire 2026 Regular Session
House State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs (02/20/2026)
State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs
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NH