NH lawmakers convene for ‘Veto Day’ this week – these are the 15 Sununu vetoes they could override

House Bill 1622, which was vetoed by Gov. Chris Sununu, focused on an assortment of administrative issues.

House Bill 1622, which was vetoed by Gov. Chris Sununu, focused on an assortment of administrative issues. ANNMARIE TIMMINS

By CHARLOTTE MATHERLY

Monitor staff

Published: 10-07-2024 11:09 AM

This week, New Hampshire lawmakers get their yearly opportunity to double down on policies that made it through the Legislature but met defeat on the governor’s desk.

The state’s House of Representatives and Senate will convene on Thursday to consider overriding more than a dozen vetoes made by Gov. Chris Sununu this year. In his final session, the outgoing governor declined to sign 15 bills into law, spanning cannabis regulation, issues impacting transgender people, environmental impact, criminal trials and more.

Hardly any vetoes get overridden – between 2010 and 2020, the Legislature overrode only 16 out of 118 vetoed bills, according to Ballotpedia. To override a veto, each legislative body has to agree to do so with a two-thirds majority in a roll-call vote. If they fail to meet that threshold, the veto stays in place and the bill won’t become law.

Here’s what’s on the docket.

Historical markers: HB 194 would require the Division of Historical Resources to get approval from the Legislature before amending or permanently removing any historic markers. In a statement explaining the veto, Sununu said he worried that would give the legislative branch undue say over an executive branch decision, creating a “problematic precedent.” This bill had passed the House in a 194-179 roll call vote.

Separation by sex: HB 396, which passed the House 194-182 and the Senate 14-10, would amend the state’s current Law Against Discrimination to be able to separate people by biological sex in some circumstances: bathrooms, locker rooms, sports and athletics, and places of involuntary commitment, like prisons and mental-health hospitals. In his veto, Sununu said the law attempted to solve problems he doesn’t see happening in New Hampshire and “invites unnecessary discord.” He did sign another bill, HB 1205, that separates sports by biological sex; that action resulted in discourse and several lawsuits.

New trial petitions: SB 507 would amend existing law, which currently limits petitions for new trials to within three years of the original, to allow certain exceptions. For felony and class A misdemeanor convictions, the bill would remove that limit if significant new evidence, forensic testing or science comes to light. Sununu supported the intention but said having new evidence be an exception on its own is too broad and would invite an “unending procession of frivolous petitions and appeals.”

Mask mandates: HB 1093, which narrowly passed the House 187-184, would ban school boards and other public education agencies from instituting mandatory mask policies. Sununu, who vetoed a similar bill in 2022, emphasized the importance of local authority and said the state shouldn’t encroach on local lawmakers’ responsibilities.

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Municipal renovations: HB 1187 would prohibit municipalities from leasing equipment for structure improvements. Sununu said this wouldn’t be practical because towns have “ever-evolving needs” and often need to make building and facility improvements more often than they can secure bonds to do so.

Environmental council: SB 543 would create a new environmental adaptation, resilience and innovation council to plan for and protect against climate change and its effects on the Granite State. Sununu said the bill does little to continue New Hampshire’s existing efforts in this area and called it “overly broad, vague and impotent.” Due to the council’s proposed structure and uncertain funding, Sununu said it’d be a waste of state efforts. If the Legislature wants to expand government efforts for the environment, it should have a clear mission and direction.

Animal chiropractors: HB 1233 would exempt animal chiropractors who’ve completed nationally recognized programs from meeting the state’s requirements for a veterinary license. Sununu lauded the effort to loosen rigid requirements and increase access to the profession, but he said the bill was too vague and could potentially allow unqualified people to treat animals.

Fertilizer contamination: HB 1293 deals with water contamination by plant fertilizers containing phosphorus and would effectively ban some uses of it. Sununu said the bill had a “well-sought intention” but questioned its practicality, saying what’s effectively a blanket ban instead of one for areas near bodies of water was too broad and would make it too easy for someone to unintentionally violate the law. He said future versions of the bill should have more practical enforcement methods.

Cannabis growers: HB 1581 would’ve allowed the state to authorize medical marijuana producers to build more growing facilities and to let them use outdoor greenhouses while following existing state regulations, and local zoning laws. Sununu argued that the bill wasn’t specific enough on safety, security or location requirements.

PFAS: HB 1415 seeks to hold facilities accountable for use of perfluoralkyls, or PFAS, which are hazardous chemicals. Sununu signed a separate bill, HB 1649, that prohibits certain products with PFAS under a different standard. HB 1415 would set the standard at not over 100 parts per trillion for PFAS regulation, while HB 1649 set it at 10,000 parts per trillion. Sununu said he vetoed this one due to the discrepancy with the bill he already signed.

Administrative process:HB 274 would have state agencies notify policy committees in the Legislature and other stakeholders whenever they propose administrative rulemaking changes. In some cases, if the joint committee and a court find that a rule is invalid, agencies could be required to foot the legal bills. Sununu said notices of new rules are already public and argued that this bill would add unnecessary, time-consuming bureaucracy and unknown costs for the state.

Manufactured homes: SB 318 would convert the manufactured housing installations standards board into an advisory board, among changes to a few other boards. When he vetoed the bill, Sununu said industry leaders warned it’d have a negative impact on housing. A regulatory change could also present disruptions for people installing, owning and buying manufactured homes.

Public input reports: HB 1622 would amend the administrative rulemaking process in several ways, including a requirement for officials to list public comments received about rule changes. They’d also have to detail how that input was used, and if it wasn’t, provide an explanation as to why. Agencies that enforced expired rules would also have to pay a fine. Sununu said while public input is important, the bill creates a substantial burden on state employees that isn’t worth the “minimal” public benefit.

Driver licenses for noncitizens: SB 501 would allow the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue driver licenses to non-U.S. citizens who live in New Hampshire on a conditional or temporary basis. Sununu said the bill would disrupt a system that works and create confusion because it doesn’t legally define that conditional or temporary residence. He said with the U.S.’s “ever-evolving crisis of illegal immigration,” a bill like this one should be well-defined.

Public health regulations: SB 63 would seek to redefine the instances where local health officials can make regulations. Sununu said the bill was too confusing and would cause uncertainty in those cases.

 

Charlotte Matherly is the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor and Monadnock Ledger-Transcript in partnership with Report for America. Follow her on X at @charmatherly, or send her an email at cmatherly@cmonitor.com.