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With Medicaid expansion back before lawmakers, supporters point to all that’s at stake
Expanding Medicaid insurance to more low-income Granite Staters was a tough sell before it passed the Legislature nine years ago. Fiscal conservatives urged lawmakers to reject predictions that more access to free or subsidized health insurance would lower medical costs and improve health outcomes. They warned it would instead discourage people from seeking jobs that […]
Lawmaker withdraws right-to-know bill that would have added hourly charge of up to $15
A Newmarket lawmaker has withdrawn a bill that would have added as much as a $15 hourly charge to search for, redact, and provide public records requested under the state’s right-to-know law. Currently the law allows public offices to charge only for copying records. Several groups, from the the ACLU of New Hampshire and the […]
In a new legislative session, everything old is new
This story was updated on Jan. 3 at 9:05 a.m. to correct the party affiliation of Rep. Michael Cahill of Newmarket. It’s a new legislative year and a new Legislature, and once again New Hampshire’s lawmakers have carved out a daunting workload. The House and Senate will take up more than 800 unique bills this […]
Safety hopes federal grant will speed up DNA testing for criminal investigations
This year, the Department of Safety received more than 18,000 items from criminal investigations requiring DNA testing. It’s taking more than 10 months to process DNA testing requests like these because of staff shortages, complexity of cases, and the volume. The department hopes to cut that to 60 days with $99,000 in federal money approved […]
Council votes 3-2 to move ahead with controversial sale of former Laconia State School
In a 3-2 vote, the Executive Council approved a controversial $21.5 million purchase and sale agreement for the former Laconia State School property Wednesday. The buyer, Manchester real estate developer Robynne Alexander, has limited large-scale development experience and a history of being behind on her Manchester property taxes. Alexander has proposed a $500 million mixed-use […]
Governor and Executive Council – not state agency – were to pick buyer for Laconia site
In a September letter, the state told people who had made offers to buy the former Laconia State School site that all proposals would be given to the governor and Executive Council “for their final selection,” according to a copy of the letter provided to the Bulletin Tuesday. The process described in that letter has […]
Laconia development team includes big-name firms – and a business owner who went bankrupt
This story was updated Dec. 20, 2022 at 12:40 p.m. to include the development team’s conversation with Laconia city officials and clarify that team’s spokesman believed the state had provided background on the team to executive councilors. Two weeks after questions about the state’s chosen buyer for the 220-acre former Laconia State School site halted […]
Right-to-know ombudsman could settle disputes when records are denied
Currently, there’s one way to challenge a state agency or municipality that denies a right-to-know request for public documents or access to governmental meetings: take them to court, which can be costly. There may soon be an alternative. Six months after the Legislature created a “right-to-know ombudsman,” Gov. Chris Sununu has nominated attorney Thomas Kehr […]
Right-to-know requests could become costlier under proposed bill
Last year, a Webster couple won a first amendment award for uncovering wrongdoing in their small town that led to the resignation of town treasurer Bruce Johnson. Through multiple right-to-know requests, they revealed that the town had quietly sold Johnson town property valued at $44,000 for just $7,000. After fighting the public records request, the […]
More dispute state’s claims buyer for $21.5 million Laconia deal was properly vetted
When executive councilors questioned the state’s choice of a buyer for the former Laconia State School campus last week, the governor and head of the Department of Administrative Services assured them her professional and financial qualifications had been widely vetted. They said the state’s review committee that chose Robynne Alexander’s $21.5 million offer and massive […]
VA to host town hall in Manchester on PACT Act benefits for toxic exposure
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs processed a record number of benefit claims the day after President Joe Biden signed landmark toxic exposure legislation in August that expanded benefits to veterans and their survivors. Hoping to encourage more to apply for health care benefits, the VA is hosting a town hall at the Manchester VA […]
NH Supreme Court rules in state’s favor on federal unemployment benefits lawsuit
The state did not violate the law when it ended pandemic unemployment benefits ahead of the federal deadline, the state Supreme Court ruled Wednesday. The state was one of at least 15 to be sued after ending federal unemployment benefits in June 2021, two months before the program was to end. The four people who […]