Committee Summary for House Criminal Justice and Public Safety (03/20/2026)

Bill/Time	Type	Title	Sponsor
SB467 00:04:01.015 - 8:59:28 AM	Public Hearing	relative to the penalty for certain fentanyl-related offenses and establishing a mandatory minimum sentence for the crime of distribution of a controlled drug with death resulting.	Gannon, Bill(R)[B-]2025
HB620 2026-1229 01:42:49.574 - 10:38:16 AM	Executive Session	relative to the exercise of the freedom of religion.	Popovici-Muller, Daniel(R)[A-]2025
SB622 01:48:58.928 - 10:44:25 AM	Executive Session	relative to the offense of identity fraud.	Innis, Daniel(R)[B]2025
HB521 01:53:00.000 - 10:48:27 AM	Executive Session	authorizing online voter registration.	Paige, Mark(D)[D-]2025
HB649 01:57:00.000 - 10:52:27 AM	Executive Session	(Second New Title) relative to the maintenance obligations of motor vehicle operators.	Granger, Michael(R)[A+]2025
HB620 2026-1229 02:01:00.000 - 10:56:27 AM	General Working Session	relative to the exercise of the freedom of religion.	Popovici-Muller, Daniel(R)[A-]2025

SB467: Senator Bill Gannon, Sponsor Support00:04:01.015 - 8:59:28 AM; Senator Gannon introduces SB 467, explaining changes to quantities for mandatory minimum sentences: 50 grams for up to 7 years and 25 grams for 3.5 years, aimed at targeting drug dealers rather than small users. He emphasizes the bill's focus on deterrence, rehabilitation, and punishment to address fentanyl deaths, drawing from personal stories of affected families and consultations with experts like Senator Roachford. The bill includes provisions for first-time offenders to receive lighter sentences through cooperation and rehabilitation, balancing enforcement with compassion.
SB467: Lieutenant Derek Cataldo, Manchester Police Department, on behalf of New Hampshire Association of Chiefs of Police Support00:12:00.000 - 9:07:27 AM; Lieutenant Cataldo supports the bill for combating street-level drug trafficking by out-of-state organizations selling fentanyl in small quantities for profit. He highlights how aggregation of sales allows prosecution of dispatch-style operations, making New Hampshire inhospitable for dealers. The bill targets distributors, not users, with safety valves like exceptions for first-time offenders and cooperation, providing the strongest fentanyl enforcement in New England.
SB467: Representative Roy Support00:19:01.015 - 9:14:28 AM; Representative Roy emphasizes the rehabilitative aspects of the bill, noting that completing programs reduces recidivism and saves costs. He discusses collaboration with Representative Scherr on mental health courts, arguing that justice and compassion, including incarceration and treatment, must balance. The bill incorporates restoration possibilities alongside mandatory sentencing, encouraging an Ought to Pass vote.
SB467: Anina Hansen, Peterborough Oppose00:25:00.000 - 9:20:27 AM; Anina Hansen, in recovery from alcoholism, opposes mandatory minimums based on her partner Phil's story. Phil, a repeat offender, received leniency from a judge, leading to his successful recovery, founding recovery centers, sober houses, and serving in the House. Mandatory minimums would have prevented this, sacrificing potential advocates. While supporting consequences for fentanyl, she argues judges should retain discretion for those ready to change.
SB467: Sean Gorgas, Prosecutor, Hillsborough County Attorney's Office Support00:28:00.000 - 9:23:27 AM; As lead of the drug prosecution unit, Gorgas supports the bill, noting it targets significant sellers (20-50 grams), not addicts, as proving intent to sell requires evidence beyond weight. Current sentences are often higher, but minimums ensure consistency without catching users. Prosecutors retain discretion to charge lesser amounts for cooperation. The bill addresses death-resulting cases, sending a message against selling lethal fentanyl, and aggregation helps prosecute larger operations.
SB467: Jeffrey Odlin, Attorney, President of New Hampshire Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Amherst Oppose00:34:01.015 - 9:29:28 AM; Odlin opposes mandatory minimums for distorting constitutional rights, pressuring defendants to plead guilty to avoid harsh sentences, eroding jury trials. Using a hypothetical of a passenger unaware of drugs, he illustrates how minimums shift power to prosecutors, removing judicial discretion. Judges provide balanced sentencing considering individual factors; minimums create one-size-fits-all justice, harming the adversarial system and fairness.
SB467: Jake Barry, Senior Vice President, New Futures Oppose00:45:00.000 - 9:40:27 AM; Barry opposes the bill, citing decades of data showing mandatory minimums fail to reduce overdoses or crimes but increase incarceration costs and barriers to treatment. New Hampshire's overdose rates are declining due to treatment-focused systems. The bill risks capturing users supporting their habits, undermining progress; instead, invest in proven treatment rather than incarceration.
SB467: John Burns, Executive Director, SOS Recovery Community Organization, Stratford County Oppose00:49:01.015 - 9:44:28 AM; Burns, with lived experience in addiction and homelessness, opposes mandatory minimums, citing research showing no deterrence, increased mass incarceration, and disproportionate impacts on people of color. Claims of deterring fentanyl sales lack data. The bill's exceptions require meeting all conditions, including becoming informants, which endangers recovery by coercing buys and sales, dehumanizing individuals instead of addressing root causes through treatment.
SB467: Policy Associate, ACLU of New Hampshire Oppose01:04:01.015 - 9:59:28 AM; The speaker opposes SB 467, noting it has been repeatedly filed and rejected over the past decade despite progress in addressing the opioid crisis through investments in Narcan access, treatment via the Doorways program, nonprofit rapid response teams, and harm reduction, which have halved opioid deaths. Mandatory minimums fail to deter, punish effectively, or rehabilitate, instead shifting power to prosecutors, distorting plea bargaining, reducing court transparency, and hindering individualized justice and recovery by interrupting treatment and destabilizing lives. The bill won't address racial disparities in arrests, as people of color are arrested at higher rates, and it risks ensnaring users, low-level dealers, and exploited individuals rather than just high-level traffickers. Fiscally, it increases costly incarceration amid budget cuts, diverting funds from effective community solutions.
SB467: Carl Olson, Hillsborough County Attorney's Office, Manchester Support01:14:00.000 - 10:09:27 AM; Carl Olson, a colleague of Sean Carcoss in the Early Case Resolution Unit handling most simple possessions and low-level nonviolent crimes in Hillsborough North, supports the bill as per his boss John Coughlin. He counters claims of unfettered prosecutorial discretion by noting the bill allows judges to make findings exempting mandatory minimums based on factors, regardless of prosecutorial objections. He explains conspiracy as a separate crime requiring agreement and overt acts, and praises the aggregate provision for addressing multiple sales within a 90-day window without proving complex agreements, targeting ongoing sellers. He disagrees that weight alone proves intent at these levels, as heavy users buy in bulk (e.g., 10-gram 'fingers'), requiring proof of the extra intent element, and shares experience prosecuting possessions of larger amounts as simple possession when evidence shows heavy addiction.
SB467: Program Assessor, Riverbend (as citizen) Oppose01:19:01.015 - 10:14:28 AM; The speaker questions the bill's value despite new carve-outs for addicts and specialty courts, citing decades of research showing mandatory minimums ineffective and coercive, as defendants must meet all law enforcement and prosecutor expectations to avoid them, which doesn't aid long-term recovery or specialty court success requiring behavioral change, not incarceration. Jail time worsens criminality or addiction upon release, increasing recidivism and public safety risks, as people eventually return to communities. As a citizen from a middle-class family in social services, she worries about fiscal costs increasing prison populations amid understaffing and budget cuts, preferring support for law enforcement and alternative paths to reduce fentanyl without burdening taxpayers struggling with living expenses. She criticizes Hillsborough County's support for the bill while withdrawing from major drug courts, undermining claims of caring about addiction treatment for safer communities.
HB620 2026-1229: Chairman Roy Support01:42:49.574 - 10:38:16 AM; Chairman Roy opens the executive session, moves amendment 2026-1229 to change the suspension for refusing a breathalyzer or blood test from one year to nine months as a compromise to address unacceptable refusal rates in New Hampshire and strengthen enforcement.
HB620 2026-1229: Committee Member (unnamed) Support01:43:30.000 - 10:38:57 AM; The member reluctantly supports the nine-month suspension, preferring a full year matching failed test penalties but accepting it as a stepping stone.
HB620 2026-1229: Representative (unnamed) Support01:44:00.000 - 10:39:27 AM; The representative shares a change of mind based on law enforcement communications, believing penalties impact driver behavior in this area, and thanks Lieutenant Storm for insights, supporting the amendment to address the egregious refusal problem.
HB620 2026-1229: Committee Member (unnamed) Support01:44:30.000 - 10:39:57 AM; The member seconds the previous remarks, dedicates the bill to Lieutenant Storm currently deployed, and urges public awareness campaigns to reduce refusals.
HB620 2026-1229: Representative (unnamed, task force member) Support01:45:00.000 - 10:40:27 AM; Serving on the governor's highway safety task force, the representative agrees New Hampshire's high refusal rate endangers public safety, cites impacts on victims' families, and thanks Lieutenant Storm.
HB620 2026-1229: Representative Moore Support01:45:30.000 - 10:40:57 AM; Representative Moore supports the bill but cautions that increased penalties alone may not change behavior without better communication, noting commitments from AAA and state police to improve messaging beyond reading forms, emphasizing effective outreach.
HB620 2026-1229: Committee Member (unnamed) Support01:46:00.000 - 10:41:27 AM; The member agrees, highlighting the Department of Safety's strong social media presence and videos promoting compliance, anticipating effective use of allocated funds for this bill's information.
HB620 2026-1229: Committee Vote01:46:30.000 - 10:41:57 AM; The committee votes 12-0 to adopt amendment 2026-1229 (ayes: Proulx, Lascelles, DeVoid, Paquette, Sabourin-Duchesne, Harriet-Gathright, Mews, Newman, Murphy, clerk, Miller, Chairman Roy). Chairman Roy then moves Ought to Pass (OTB) on HB 620, seconded by Representative Murphy, with no further discussion. The committee votes 12-0 to OTB (same ayes, Proulx reluctant). No objections; executive session closes.
SB622: Chairman Roy Support01:48:58.928 - 10:44:25 AM; The chairman opens the executive session and moves for ought to pass, explaining that testimony from the sponsor and banks highlighted the need for updated classification of identity fraud, particularly targeting the elderly who lose life savings. He emphasizes that this enables law enforcement to address the crime properly without necessarily increasing penalties.
SB622: Representative (speaking for Ray Newman) Oppose01:50:30.000 - 10:45:57 AM; The representative relates personally as an elderly person and supports voting ITL due to vagueness in the bill, the unclear population-based cutoff, and suggests focusing on local county attorneys prosecuting trespass instead of this legislation.
HB521: Representative Murray Oppose01:53:00.000 - 10:48:27 AM; Representative Murray moves for ITL, stating there is no clear need for the bill, it sets a dangerous precedent by allowing law enforcement on private property without owner notification, and penalizing homeless individuals does not solve homelessness; resources should be used differently.
HB521: Unidentified Representative Oppose01:54:00.000 - 10:49:27 AM; The representative seconds the motion and agrees with the concerns raised.
HB521: Representative from Litchfield Oppose01:54:30.000 - 10:49:57 AM; As a resident and representative from Litchfield (population under 10,000), the representative objects to the 10,000 population cutoff and supports ITL.
HB521: Unidentified Representative Oppose01:55:00.000 - 10:50:27 AM; The representative notes vagueness, the random population cutoff, and suggests work is needed, starting with local county attorneys prosecuting trespass.
HB649: Chairman Roy Support01:57:00.000 - 10:52:27 AM; The chairman moves for ought to pass, citing statistics on fatal accidents caused by texting while driving, noting personal guilt in the past but emphasizing the seriousness when operating a vehicle, and that the bill helps educate the public on the dangers.
HB649: Representative Murphy Support01:59:00.000 - 10:54:27 AM; Representative Murphy seconds the motion and agrees that the chairman covered it well.
HB620 2026-1229: Chairman Roy Information Only02:01:00.000 - 10:56:27 AM; The chairman notes they are holding off on the bill to consider a possible amendment, plans to gather information from courts via a letter, and will discuss with committee members and Representative Scherr in the coming week to develop an amendment. He schedules the next meeting in two weeks, mentions investigating bills in the wrong committee including those related to xylazine that went to AG instead.

Roy, Terry(Chairman)(R)[B]2025	Murray, Alissandra(Clerk)(D)[D-]2025	Rhodes, Jennifer(V Chairman)(R)[B+]2025
Harriott-Gathright, Linda(D)[CT]2025	Proulx, Mark(R)[C+]2025	Lascelles, Richard(R)[B+]2025
Morency, Pete(R)[B]2025	Paquette, Kathleen(R)[B+]2025	Murphy, Nancy(D)[CT]2025
Newman, Ray(D)[F]2025	Meuse, David(D)[F]2025	Devoid, Ricky(R)[A-]2025
Scherr, Buzz(D)[D-]2025	Sabourin dit Choinière, Matt(R)[A-]2025