Committee backs bill to clean up dedicated funds; robotics fund capped and Cannon Mountain winter activities separated

The Ways and Means Committee voted 16-0 in executive session to report House Bill 650 ought to pass, moving the bill to the consent calendar after a public hearing.

The bill, presented in public hearing by Dan Maguire, who said he represents the town of Epsom and chairs the Joint Committee on Dedicated Funds, would remove references to funds whose enabling statutes have been repealed, create a separate dedicated account for Cannon Mountain winter operations, and limit accumulation in the Robotics Education dedicated fund to $1 million with any excess lapsing to the general fund.

Maguire told the committee the Joint Committee on Dedicated Funds reviews one‑fifth of the state's dedicated funds each year on a five‑year cycle to check whether fund balances, statutory language or uses need updating. He described the bill as largely administrative cleanup, with two repeals to remove funds that no longer have enabling statutes and two practical changes: a cap on the robotics fund and a separate accounting line for Cannon Mountain winter activities.

Representative Susan Almeid (City of Lebanon) addressed the Cannon Mountain piece, saying the change is mostly accounting but should make maintenance funding pressures more visible for the rest of the park system. On robotics, she said the program was originally intended to seed school robotics teams and that demand has slowed; placing a cap would let unused money lapse back to the general fund but the cap could be changed if needs resurface.

Committee members asked technical questions during the hearing. Representative Eurek pointed out a punctuation/numbering typo on the draft and asked whether the bill was intended as housekeeping; Maguire and others called it “about one step past housekeeping,” noting the robotics cap is a policy decision rather than purely clerical.

In the executive session Representative Almi moved the committee "ought to pass" recommendation for HB 650 (FN); Representative Elberger seconded. The clerk recorded 16 votes in favor, 0 opposed. The chair indicated the fiscal note did not require separate floor consideration and the bill was placed on the consent calendar.

Reporting requirement and next steps: the committee recorded a majority report and placed HB 650 on the committee's consent calendar for floor consideration.

Votes at a glance

- House Bill 650 (FN): "Ought to pass" recommendation from the Ways and Means Committee. Motion moved by Representative Almi; seconded by Representative Elberger. Roll call recorded 16 yes, 0 no. Bill to be placed on the consent calendar.

Closing note: Committee members described the bill as largely administrative but acknowledged the robotics cap and separate Cannon Mountain accounting reflect modest policy choices the Joint Committee on Dedicated Funds identified during its review.