Finance Committee votes not to advance four interim-study bills; child-support bill recommended for further work

The Finance Committee convened Aug. 23 to consider five bills held for interim study and returned mixed recommendations after extended discussion and several roll calls. Four bills — Senate Bill 453, Senate Bill 553, Senate Bill 230 and Senate Bill 239 — were reported as not recommended for further legislation. House Bill 1595, addressing child support guidelines, was reported as recommended for further legislation.

The chair opened the meeting and invited legislative budget analysts to summarize the bills. Melissa Rollins told the committee that the language from SB 453 had been incorporated into other legislation and that the Deputy Secretary of State indicated access to HAVA funds for building an election portal, suggesting the $450,000 appropriation in the original bill “probably is no longer needed.” Representative Huber and others debated whether the legislature also needed to provide explicit permission to change the voter-registration system; a motion to recommend SB 453 for further legislation failed and the committee instead reported it not recommended.

On SB 553, analysts said its principal language had been incorporated into HB 1241, which the governor signed into law Aug. 23, 2024; the enacted version uses aspirational language about placing funds in New Hampshire banks rather than a strict 30% requirement. The committee voted 17-0 to not recommend SB 553 for further legislation.

Kevin Bridal, LBA, summarized HB 1595 — one of two bills on child support adjustments — and said the finance committee had recommended the bill ought to pass with amendment before it was referred for interim study. Representative Hult argued for further work, citing a December 2022 report on child-support guidelines that cost more than $100,000 and saying judges’ discretionary practices had caused turmoil for families. After a contested roll call and some confusion in the clerk’s tally, the committee’s final report recorded HB 1595 as recommended for further legislation.

Senate Bill 230 was handled briefly and recorded as not recommended for further legislation. On Senate Bill 239, which concerns the definition and use of harm-reduction services, LBA staff said the bill’s implementation would require sufficient federal funding and would have no general fund impact if federal funds were available. Representative Stringham moved to advance the bill for further legislation; other members said the bill’s definition of “harm reduction” needed more work and that language differed across states. The committee ultimately voted 9-8 to not recommend SB 239 for further legislation.

Votes were sometimes close and there were moments of procedural confusion during roll calls; the chair asked members who made the winning motions to provide written reports for the record. The committee adjourned after brief closing remarks.