News from Concord: Punishing Towns for Gun Safety
Public Safety at Risk
Insanity continues to reign in the NH House. HB307 denied towns the right to ban the firing of a gun in Town Hall, at the Fire Station, even in a Police Station! Aforementioned Freedom Caucus members led passage of this bill last spring. The slightly less trigger-happy Senate Judiciary Committee rereferred the bill. This fall, they recommended amending bans of “use” of guns on town property to bans of “possession”, which is already in statute. A town that attempts to pass such a ban, despite, would be subject to a $10,000 fine and the governor could remove any responsible town official from office, no matter what town voters’ opinion on the subject might be.
Race to the Bottom
NH had one of the lowest rates of infection and death in the nation until the last election. Due to the governor’s capitulation to Liberty Alliance members’ opposition to vaccines and to mask mandates, the state now has among the highest rates in the nation.
7.5% better than nothing?
Towns have been fighting to get back the state’s 35% contribution to teacher and municipal pensions since Republicans removed it in 2011. HB1417 would finally return a small portion, 7.5% of the pensions. This $27 million in 2023 would not make up for the $140 million loss in education stability grants to property-poor towns in 2022, but would help pay for the large employer rate increase last summer.
