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Merrimack legislative delegate reports House action on PFAS and election bills; town hears CCA enrollment reminder
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Summary
A member of Merrimack's legislative delegation updated the council on recent House votes (including PFAS protections for agricultural soils and a bill allowing party affiliation on local ballots) and the town manager briefed the council on Community Choice Aggregation enrollment and estimated small per-kWh savings.
Nancy, representing the town's legislative delegation at the March 12 meeting, briefed the council on several bills that passed the New Hampshire House earlier that day but still must go to the Senate.
She said HB1272, which would allow a candidate's party affiliation to appear on town and school district ballots if the municipality first adopts enabling language, passed the House and will move to the Senate. "The town or school district must first adopt a provision that allows a candidate to choose whether to show their party affiliation on the ballot," Nancy said.
On election administration, Nancy said HB1306 (standardized absentee ballot reporting for moderators) passed the House; she described it as a consolidation of reporting into a single form. She also said HB1076 (authorizing or rescinding use of electronic ballot counting devices) passed and would shift authority to the legislative body in some cases.
Nancy described HB1275 ' legislation addressing PFAS contamination ' as a first step to protect agricultural soils, setting maximum concentrations for PFAS in biosolids and sludge and requiring testing and indemnity provisions for farmers with legacy contamination. "It provides indemnity for farmers for legacy PFAS on their land," she said, and cautioned that these measures still must clear the Senate.
She noted HB1704, which would have permitted certain public employees to bargain individually rather than through a collective agreement, was indefinitely postponed in the House.
Separately, in the town-manager report the manager said community choice aggregation outreach has been active and reminded residents that opt-out postcards for the CCA must be returned by March 23 to avoid automatic enrollment; residents who are auto-enrolled will still have an opportunity to opt out after the first billing cycle. The manager said the program shows a small expected savings "of about 1.15 to 1.6 cents per kilowatt-hour, depending on meter read date," and urged residents with questions to use the provided contact numbers.
The council took no formal votes on these matters at the meeting; updates were informational.
