News
State opens registration for 20-site ‘Booster Blitz’
Granite Staters struggling to schedule a booster shot can sign up Wednesday morning for one of the 10,000 boosters the state will make available Dec. 11 during its statewide “Booster Blitz.” Individuals will be allowed to make appointments for up to five people at vaccines.nh.gov and choose among 20 sites located from the North Country […]
State’s supply of free, at-home COVID tests exhausted in less than 24 hours
This story was updated Nov. 30, 2021, at 1 p.m. to include comments from the state Department of Health and Human Services and again at 5:30 p.m. after the state corrected the number of tests available. Last week, Gov. Chris Sununu enthusiastically announced residents would soon have access to 1 million at-home rapid COVID-19 tests […]
Utilities commission’s energy efficiency decision draws lawsuit, contractor complaints
Clean Energy New Hampshire announced on Monday that it would file a lawsuit over the Public Utilities Commission’s recent decision to cut funding for the state’s energy efficiency programs. The nonprofit is suing in conjunction with energy efficiency contractors who are impacted by the decision. The organization will file suit in New Hampshire Superior Court, […]
Religious exemption requests related to COVID vaccine a growing challenge for employers
Prior to the pandemic, nearly all the religious exemption requests clients brought attorney James Reidy sought a work schedule accommodation for religious holidays and practices. Reidy represents employers, and those with vaccine mandates are coming to him with a new question these days: Given that an employee need only attest that their “sincerely held” religious […]
Federal vaccine mandate for health care workers in 10 states blocked by judge
WASHINGTON – Enforcement of the Biden administration’s vaccine mandate for millions of health care workers was blocked in 10 states on Monday, after a ruling by a federal judge in Missouri. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Schelp affects the states involved in the lawsuit, which includes New Hampshire. The others are Missouri, Iowa, […]
Lawmakers call for Saint-Gobain closure following state’s discovery of continued PFAS pollution
Lawmakers are calling on the Department of Environmental Services to shut down Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics in Merrimack after a September test conducted by the state showed the company is still emitting toxic PFAS chemicals into the air. The Department of Environmental Services found several deficiencies at the facility, most stemming from an unauthorized bypass stack […]
New COVID omicron variant ‘not a cause for panic,’ Biden says
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden sought to reassure Americans on Monday about the latest COVID-19 variant, describing it as “a cause for concern, not a cause for panic.” Biden did not announce any new travel restrictions or other federal actions during his brief remarks from the White House. Instead, he urged Americans to get a […]
Abortion rights advocates sound the alarm about new restrictions, looming threats
In less than a year, the nonprofit Reproductive Freedom Fund of New Hampshire has raised and spent over $50,000 helping more than 160 Granite State women pay for abortions they couldn’t afford. The nonprofit’s founder and other abortion rights advocates are sounding the alarm about two threats that go beyond financial barriers: the January start […]
Amid COVID-19 exposures, State House contact tracing questioned
When Beverly Cotton got the call telling her of a potential COVID-19 exposure at a legislative committee session, it didn’t come from the New Hampshire House. It came from a fellow audience member. Cotton, of Weare, had joined a dozen other lobbyists, advocates, and reporters on Nov. 12 to watch the Friday morning proceedings of […]
The high cost of home heating and what you can do about it
The days are getting shorter, the temperatures are dropping, and energy costs are about to soar. Some electric companies have already announced that their rates are going to rise as much as 60 percent this winter. And the cost for home heating fuels is swelling anywhere from 30 to over 50 percent or more, based […]
School enrollment decline persists despite return to classrooms
Enrollment has dropped slightly in New Hampshire public schools this year, continuing a years-long trend that appears to have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. From the 2020-2021 school year to this fall, the number of students in New Hampshire public schools fell from 160,715 to 159,334, according to numbers released by the Department of […]
How paid leave could get axed from Biden’s social policy bill
Congressional Democrats, including the New Hampshire’s delegation, cheered on the floor of the U.S. House after approving President Joe Biden’s massive social spending and climate bill. But a major struggle lies ahead in the coming month in the U.S. Senate, where Democrats cannot lose any votes within their party if they are to send the […]