State House Dome: Advocates hope legal pot bill doesn't go up in smoke

Apr. 15—YOU OFTEN CAN tell what legislative leaders think of a bill by how they schedule it.

As has been apparent, the Senate GOP leadership is solidly in opposition to the House-passed bipartisan bill to legalize and tax marijuana (HB 639).

On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony on five other House-passed pot bills of far lower priority before they start hearing from the public on this one.

Odds are this cannabis legalization campaign will end in the Senate as it has the past two decades — in the dumpster.

There is some suspense, however, and more than one might have thought at this point in the legislative session.

Senate President Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro, Majority Leader Sharon Carson, R-Londonderry, and Majority Whip Regina Birdsell, R-Hampstead, all have come out squarely against this one.

Manchester's two Democratic senators, Democratic Leader Donna Soucy and Lou D'Allesandro, also have been reliable opponents.

So to get to 13, the pro-pot crowd needs at least five Senate Republicans, a tall order.

Sen. Keith Murphy, R-Manchester, was the first and only Republican thus far to endorse it.

There are three new GOP state senators who as House members supported the concept — Sens. Darryl Abbas of Salem, Howard Pearl of Loudon and Tim Lang of Sanbornton.

Even if all three fell in line — which isn't certain — the campaign would still be one vote shy.

In 2022, Abbas wrote his own bill for the state to manage and control all the sale of cannabis at state liquor stores. It passed the House overwhelmingly, only to die in the Senate.

The 2023 edition also contains a new tax, 12.5% on the cultivation and manufacture of cannabis, which could cause Pearl, Lang and others Republicans to oppose it.

The cannabis crowd is bringing on reinforcements to its large team of coalition groups and lobbyists.

Former Republican state Sens. John Reagan of Deerfield and Harold French of Hopkinton have registered to lobby for East Coast Cannabis, a Maine dispensary with locations in Eliot and Lebanon.

Reagan did not seek re-election last fall, and Pearl won the District 17 seat.

French ran and lost a bid for Executive Council, and his spot was taken by Sen. Dan Innis.

At least the Senate did the movement one favor, scheduling this hearing for April 20, the international day to celebrate consumption of cannabis.

Sununu: No ESG investing

Gov. Chris Sununu joined many prominent Republicans entering into the debate over Biden administration regulations that encourage financial companies to use environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria in making investments.

Sununu maintained in his executive order these liberal benchmarks can yield lower returns than investments without any philosophical bent.

He told reporters there was no evidence that the State Treasury Department or the New Hampshire Retirement System have used this methodology.

"Right now I feel very confident our system is doing the right thing and not prioritizing the ESG in any way," Sununu said.

Impax Asset Management, led by former Democratic Party Chairman Joe Keefe, issued a strong statement in support of President Joe Biden's approach.

"We firmly believe retirement plan investors in the US should be given the freedom to use a wide range of investment options to help them meet their goals. Investment choices and decisions should be left to qualified financial professionals and fiduciaries — not be determined or limited by politicians," the firm said in a statement.

On Saturday, Sununu continued his presidential exploratory tour, hitting a resort where donors met privately in Nashville the day after he addressed the National Rifle Association event in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Landfill siting effort set aside in Senate

The Senate became the burial ground for legislation to stiffen requirements over the siting of new landfills.

The House had again passed legislation (HB 56) requiring any site plan to prove that no contamination could leach into a waterway for at least five years.

Casella Waste Systems' proposal for a landfill in Dalton near Forest Lake sparked this movement.

Last spring the application was withdrawn, but environmentalists and activists remain convinced it will return.

The House and Senate came together on a bill last year that Sununu vetoed over concerns it could increase property taxes.

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Kevin Avard, R-Nashua, said the Senate's priority is legislation (SB 61) now pending in the House that directs the Department of Environmental Services to hire a consultant and to complete rules on surface water setbacks for landfills.

The Senate tabled the House-passed bill without a recorded vote.

Moving chairs at AFP

Big moves are happening at the New Hampshire chapter of Americans for Prosperity, with one of its key figures getting kicked upstairs.

Deputy Director Ross Connolly will manage the nine states in the Northeast that don't have brick-and-mortar AFP chapters, like New Hampshire and 35 other states.

These include all other New England states, as well as New York, New Jersey and Maryland.

Connolly will perform the new role from the AFP's headquarters in Manchester.

Sarah Scott will move into Connolly's slot as AFP-NH's No. 2, while Chris Maidment, director of grass roots, goes into Scott's field and supervisory role.

Iowa Democrats scramble

Secretary of State David Scanlan flexed New Hampshire primary muscle following word that the Iowa Democratic Party is seriously considering holding the first caucus in 2024 that would permit "mail-in" voting.

Iowa's 2020 vote count was a debacle and ended with the state losing its spot in the first tier of states allowed to hold contests under the Democratic National Committee calendar.

Iowa officials continued to explore whether and how the state could defy the national party.

Hoping to court the DNC at the same time by improving access, Iowa Democrats are thinking about letting voters mail in presidential preference cards weeks ahead of the caucus.

Scanlan informed an inquiring New Hampshire Republican State Chairman Chris Ager that such a step would trigger New Hampshire's law and require the state to move ahead of Iowa by at least seven days.

Iowa Republicans recently proposed a bill in that state to require in-person participation only at caucus events.

"When you do mail-in, it's a primary," said Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, the Iowa Republican who sponsored it.

"New Hampshire is obligated by law to jump us if we do this."

Opposition to eviction bill

A House-passed bill that garnered strong bipartisan support died in a similar fashion the state Senate last week.

State Rep. Robert Lynn, R-Windham, wrote the legislation to allow landlords to evict within 30 days of the termination of a lease.

Senate Majority Leader Carson said that because landlords were unable to evict residents during the pandemic, this is a fairness issue.

Senate Democratic Leader Soucy said given the lack of rental housing in the state, it would be "almost impossible" for tenants to find an alternative apartment within 30 days.

Sen. Denise Ricciardi, R-Bedford, agreed with opponents that this was the worst time to adopt such a change.

"Timing is everything when we are making these revisions and 30 days is simply not long enough for the average Granite Stater," Ricciardi said.

The Senate killed the measure on a voice vote.

Family court study coming

House Children and Family Law Committee Chairman Mark Pearson, R-Hampstead, appealed to and convinced House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, to set up a study into the family division of the state's circuit court system.

Packard named Pearson to chair the panel, with Rep. Marjorie Smith, D-Durham, to serve as vice chairman.

This special committee will investigate "allegations of irregularities" in the system, including the failure to enforce statutes, unreasonable delays, denial of due process and other issues.

The 10-person committee will hear from those within the judicial branch and many stakeholders in the family court process.

Pearson said this work could help resolve misconceptions about how family court operates and lead to constructive reforms.

AG staffer tapped for judge

Sununu nominated Associate Attorney General Anne Edwards Parker of Milford to a vacancy on the New Hampshire Superior Court bench.

Edwards has served in the AG's office since 1996 in a variety of roles, most recently as general counsel.

She was lead attorney on school funding, property tax issues and community-based mental health services, and some of her first work was on the landmark Claremont school funding lawsuit.

Most in the media know Edwards as the state's lead on election law matters.

She helped organize the state's forensic audit of Windham ballots from the 2020 election.

"I truly enjoy my job at the Attorney General's office and would not leave except for another position where I can serve the people of New Hampshire," Edwards wrote in her application.

"Serving as a superior court judge is such an opportunity."

Warmington on wages

Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington, D-Concord, urged the Sununu administration to move as quickly as it can to increase wages paid to social workers at the New Hampshire Hospital.

A letter to the council from 18 social workers said morale has suffered among the workforce, and the vacancy rate has risen.

Warmington said social workers at the Department of Corrections previously received a significant pay increase to help with recruitment and retention in that agency.

Acting Health and Human Services Commissioner Lori Weaver said she has been working on the issue and wants to resolve it by changing the salary scale for the position through the Division of Personnel, a time-consuming process.

Weaver told the council this is the best long-term way to address the matter. Sununu agreed.

"I can't give you a hard timeline on it," Weaver said when asked by Warmington when this would be done.

Sununu said, "We don't anticipate it being a lengthy process."

Another full term for IT commissioner Goulet

The council granted Information Technology Commissioner Denis Goulet of Manchester another full term, through May 2027.

The move makes him one of the longest-serving state IT execs in the country.

"Usually someone in this position has a development that causes them to move on, but so far I haven't, I guess," Goulet said.

Sununu said the state has been lucky to hold on to Goulet, who is needed while the state faces many technology challenges in coming years.

"You make everything work just right," Sununu told him.

Youth center bill signed

At week's end, Sununu signed legislation (HB 49) creating a full budget to build a treatment facility to replace the Sununu Youth Services Center in Manchester.

Sen. Becky Whitley, D-Hopkinton, said the legislation was a great example of bipartisan work that yielded a good result.

Rep. Jess Edwards, R-Auburn, led the effort to get it through the House, ending a few years of stalemate on the approach.

Kevin Landrigan is State House Bureau Chief for the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News. Contact him at klandrigan@unionleader.com.