04/12/2026
Merrimack Republican Reivew: Issue #10
Most committees were busy hearing Senate bills during Holy Week. I am still trying to catch up on them. This week is another busy one, with House committees hearing Senate bills and the Senate hearing House bills. With the House hearings being at 1 Granite Place, and the Senate having their hearings at the State House, it can be challenging for bill sponsors to try to be in two places at once. The Senate has been gracious to introduce our bills for us if we can’t leave our committees to get to the State House to do it ourselves. Bill summaries continue in the comments:
Monday 4-13-26
Education Policy committee : public hearing on SB-429-FN, with a non-germane amendment. Here is a summary:
This bill requires trauma kits to be placed in public schools and certain state buildings and creates a dedicated state fund to pay for them, supported by a $25,000 appropriation and any donations the state receives. It also directs state agencies to determine how many trauma kits each school needs and where they should be placed. The amendment adds a change to the parental bill of rights by requiring parents to give written consent before a school or government agency records a student, except in specific situations such as safety monitoring, required assessments, public events, normal classroom instruction, or approved student journalism or media activities. The trauma kit portions take effect July 1, 2026, while the parental rights change takes effect immediately upon passage.
Finance
SB 481-FN-A: The bill puts the state’s administrative services department in charge of the Sununu Youth Services Center property and directs them to find a buyer. The property must be sold for at least market value, with preference for a buyer who will benefit Manchester’s and the state’s tax base. Proceeds from the sale go to the state’s General Fund if the sale closes by June 30, 2027, and to the YDC Settlement Fund if it closes after that. The department can request funds to maintain the property until it is sold. Previous laws about the property are repealed.
SB 600-FN: This bill simply requires the governor to give lawmakers an easy-to-understand budget update every three months. It helps everyone keep track of how much money the state is bringing in, how much is being spent, and whether we’re on track financially.
SB 603-FN will keep SNAP food assistance fully funded if federal money is cut. The state can shift funds within the health department—with oversight—to cover any shortfall.
Any transfer of $100,000 or more would still need approval from the Fiscal Committee and the Governor and Council.
SB 663 FN A creates a working group within the Department of Health and Human Services to study how New Hampshire sets Medicaid reimbursement rates for nursing homes.
The group includes legislators, DHHS, counties, nursing home and hospital associations, and a CPA.
They must review issues such as access to care, workforce needs, capital costs, and rate fairness.
DHHS must report any recommended changes to laws or rules by December 31, 2026.
The Senate amendment removes the $5 million appropriation that was in the original bill.
Science, Technology and Energy
Exec Session to vote on the bills heard last week. Some are about Net Metering. SB 590 is one that I testified against. It takes the Community Power savings and spends it on projects. If there is extra money I think it should go back to the ratepayers instead of spent on projects. What if there isn’t enough money to complete the project? Who is left paying the costs?
Tuesday, 4-14-26
Commerce and Criminal Justice Education Funding and Transportation will vote on the Senate Bills that have had public hearings
Environment and Agriculture public hearings:
SB 442, as amended by the Senate, updates state law to rename “health certificates” for pets as “official certificates of transfer” without changing any shelter or transfer requirements.
SB 445: revises how the Department of Environmental Services issues enforcement actions and how those actions are appealed. It removes DES’s requirement to hold its own hearings before issuing fines or permit decisions and directs appeals to the appropriate DES councils or boards. The bill also provides a 30 day delay before most decisions take effect, standardizes appeal routes across statutes, and repeals outdated hearing procedure provisions.
SB 535 creates clear definitions for “residential breeder” and “imported animal” in New Hampshire law. It says a residential breeder is someone who breeds dogs or cats in their own home—not in a separate facility—and may transfer up to 50 animals each year. Residential breeders cannot transfer imported animals. The bill also updates the definition of imported animals and removes old references to “commercial kennels,” replacing them with the modern term “pet vendor.”
SB 593 allows solid waste management districts to receive state reimbursement for waste disposal surcharges—just like individual towns already can.
Labor
SB 655 lets either the leasing company or the client company provide workers’ comp for leased employees—with reporting and penalty rules if the client company chooses coverage—and exempts unionized minor league baseball players from state minimum wage requirements.
SB 88 FN requires the State of New Hampshire to stay neutral about unions when awarding construction related contracts and grants. State agencies cannot require contractors to be union or non union, cannot favor or discriminate based on union status, and cannot include those kinds of terms in bids or RFPs. Contractors may still choose to enter union agreements on their own. The bill does not affect municipalities and has no fiscal impact.
SB 416 removes New Hampshire’s own rules about tip pooling and replaces them with the federal rules. Under the bill, whatever the federal Fair Labor Standards Act says about who can share in tip pools is what New Hampshire will follow, if the bill is signed into law.
Transportation
SB 499 adds a new trauma care representative to the Traffic Safety Commission and requires the commission to analyze and report annually on the causes of traffic collisions beginning in 2026.
SB 500: This bill would require businesses that receive or ship goods by commercial truck to let commercial drivers use their restrooms, as long as doing so does not create a clear safety or security risk. It also requires port and rail yard terminal operators to provide enough restrooms for drayage truck drivers and allow them access while on-site. The bill does not require businesses to make any physical changes to their restrooms.
SB 559-FN lets towns and cities in New Hampshire set speed limits as low as 20 mph (instead of the current 25 mph) on certain local roads, based on traffic or engineering studies.
SB 617 updates the rules for tow companies used by State Police — tightening qualifications, clarifying equipment and response time requirements, and giving the director clearer authority to discipline or suspend companies that don’t meet standards.
Wednesday, 4-15-26
Exec Sessions in Commerce, Education Funding, and Health & Human Services
Commerce
SB 455-FN requires New Hampshire Medicaid to cover GLP 1 medications (such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and similar drugs) when a licensed health care provider determines they are medically necessary.
To qualify, a patient must have either:
• A BMI of 30 or higher, or
• A BMI of 27 or higher plus at least one related health condition (such as Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, prediabetes, or metabolic liver disease).
The Department of Health and Human Services must submit the required paperwork to the federal government so Medicaid can start providing this coverage by January 1, 2027.
Personal note: Every time we mandate for insurance to cover something, everyone else has to pay more. That’s why bills like this don’t always pass. I am interested in knowing how the hearing goes and how the committee votes on it.
SB 480-FN stops insurance companies from requiring prior authorization for the first physical or occupational therapy visit in a new episode of care. After that initial visit, insurers must approve at least 8 medically necessary treatment sessions before they can require another review. Insurers can still deny claims that are not medically necessary.
SB 544-FN: The original SB 544-FN would have stopped insurance companies from changing their prescription drug formularies in the middle of the plan year and required them to keep covering any drug until a patient’s renewal date.
The amended SB 544-FN removes that idea entirely.
The new version only updates rules for pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs): longer notice before drugs are removed from a formulary, bigger font for notices, and more record keeping and reporting requirements.
SB 614 FN lets child care, foster care, day care, and behavioral health providers team up to self insure for liability.
They need approval and oversight from the Insurance Commissioner but are not taxed like insurance companies.
SB 665-FN: adds broad regulations on pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and health carriers, increases oversight and penalties, and requires pharmacies to inform consumers that they can ask for the lowest available price for a prescription. It also restricts PBMs from steering patients to PBM owned pharmacies, requires written agreements between PBMs and insurers, increases reporting of rebates and fees, and strengthens rules around formularies, audits, and contract practices. Effective January 1, 2027.
SB 647 lets the New Hampshire Department of Insurance join a cooperative buying group, through an agreement with other governments, to offer a prescription drug discount program. The agreement would need approval from the Governor and Executive Council.
Legislative Administration
SB 570 clarifies what counts as a direct financial conflict for legislators, lets recused members testify with disclosure, and expands which major budget and tax bills they can vote on without recusal.
CACR 12 is a proposed constitutional amendment that would require a two thirds vote in both the New Hampshire House and Senate before any new broad based tax could be created. This includes taxes like income, sales, use, capital gains, or estate taxes. Voters will see this question on the November 2026 ballot, and if two thirds of voters say yes, the supermajority requirement would be added to the state constitution.”
Thursday, April 16, 2026
Commerce
SB 562 creates a state program that gives eligible homeowners up to $9,500 to help strengthen their homes against damage from storms, wind, flooding, and other severe weather. Grants can be used for safety upgrades like roof improvements, structural work, and certain repairs tied to insurance issues. To qualify, homeowners must live in the home, meet income limits, and follow specific contractor and inspection requirements. Money is paid directly to contractors after the work is done, and funding depends on availability. The Insurance Department runs the program.
More on SB 562:
The bill funds the program only with outside money — not state general funds.Under SB 562, the program’s fund can receive:
• Federal grants or federal disaster mitigation funds
• Gifts, grants, donations, or money from any private or public source
The state can accept money whenever federal or other entities make relevant funds available.
No state tax dollars are required in the bill itself.
SB 565-FN: This bill requires the Insurance Commissioner to create and publish a report, every five years starting in 2028, explaining “fortified” building standards and other programs that help reduce property damage from extreme weather. The report must also point consumers to information about areas where insurance costs may increase due to risks like flooding, storms, or high winds. The report must be posted on the Insurance Department’s website and made easily accessible to New Hampshire consumers.
SB 550-FN: requires group health insurance plans in New Hampshire to cover services provided by licensed naturopathic doctors if the plan already covers the same type of service when done by another healthcare provider. Insurers cannot charge higher copays or deductibles for these services. It may cause small, uncertain increases in insurance premiums.
SB 646-FN requires health insurers to cover certain biologically based mental illnesses at the same level as physical health conditions, using New Hampshire Medicaid’s coverage rules and reimbursement rates as the standard. It also strengthens oversight of mental health parity and may affect insurance costs, but the exact fiscal impact is unknown.
SB 498-FN creates a fund paid for by insurance companies to support mental and behavioral health services for kids under 19, paying for programs like in home treatment and care coordination.
