NH election 2022: Sen. David Watters of Dover challenged by Seamus Casey in District 4

New Hampshire state Sen. David Watters, a Democratic incumbent from Dover, is seeking re-election to a sixth two-year term. He is being challenged by Republican Seamus Casey of Barrington. The district comprises Barrington, Dover, Rollinsford and Somersworth.

Here's a look at responses to questionnaires sent to all candidates:

David Watters

Hometown: Dover

The U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade and placed the power to regulate abortion with the states. What should state lawmakers do regarding abortion laws?

The New Hampshire legislature should pass legislation to codify the reproductive rights under Roe. It should also ensure that medical professionals and others who assist women from other states who receive abortion services, including medication, shall not be subject to law enforcement actions by other states.

The state's residents and businesses face many economic challenges, including high prices for electricity and fuel, a labor shortage, a lack of affordable housing and rising prices due to inflation. How would you address these challenges?

New Hampshire should move quickly to give power to people to take charge of their energy costs. This can be cone by lifting limits on net metering so people, businesses, and municipalities can take advantage right now of lower-cost solar energy. The state can move much more quickly on building an electric vehicle charging network on state roads, and offer incentives for this installation for individuals, multifamily housing, businesses, and municipalities. The state should immediately increase the funding for energy efficiency for residential structures, since this will reduce energy costs immediately. I have introduced or passed bills in each of these areas, but there has been resistance from Republican legislators and from the Governor on moving forward on these initiatives, while states around us have made much more progress. We could also make the Public Utilities Commission require utilities to have longer term contracts to avoid price spikes and to phase in any increases. Longer term, we should move aggressively on cheap, renewable, offshore wind resources, as I have advocated as the state leader on offshore wind development. We can increase funding for the Career and Technical Education system and increase apprentice programs and partnerships with union training programs. We can increase permanent funding for affordable housing and reduce regulations on developers. We can cut property taxes and reduce inflation by increasing municipal aid and school funding.

What else do you want voters to know about you or your policy positions before the election on Nov. 8?

I will continue my leadership in the NH Senate by promoting economic development to support our families, through jobs, especially in the new energy economy, strong public education, affordable housing development, lower property taxes, and reduced energy costs. Having taught at the University of New Hampshire for 39 years, and having worked closely with out CTEs, it is clear public education produces economic success as well as strengthens our democracy and civic life. We need to keep our schools safe from gun violence, support red flag legislation, and close background check loopholes. As a leader on the environmental and renewable energy, I will continue work on solid waste reduction and funding for PFAS mitigation and elimination from packaging and other sources. New Hampshire must be an opportunity state where all are welcome in our communities and have the freedom to live their lives. This means I will always fight for women's reproductive rights. I strongly support LGBTQ+ equality. Welcoming communities means opportunity for our more recent arrivals, such as the vibrant Indonesian community in Somersworth and Dover. I will introduce legislation to support our police, fire, and other first responders through tuition-free education programs and student debt reduction. I will also continue work to fight the opioid crisis and support harm reduction. My bipartisan record proves we can overcome divisiveness and work together in Concord for the public good.

Editor's note: Seacoast Media Group made a good-faith effort to distribute our candidate questionnaire to all candidates. We will add any missing candidate questionnaires when they are received. If any candidates have questions or need information on how to be included, please email news@seacoastonline.com or news@fosters.com with "candidate questionnaire" in the subject line.

This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: NH election 2022: Sen. David Watters vs. Seamus Casey in District 4