Committee Summary for House Judiciary (03/25/2026)

Bill/Time	Type	Title	Sponsor
SB414 00:02:38.232 - 8:00:54 AM	Public Hearing	relative to enforcement of marital property settlements.	Altschiller, Debra(D)[CT]2025
SB519 00:32:04.597 - 8:30:20 AM	Public Hearing	relative to the use of unmanned aerial systems.	Reardon, Tara(D)[F]2025
SB619 01:20:00.000 - 9:18:16 AM	Public Hearing	establishing procedures for expedited court hearings and disposition of confiscated animals.	Abbas, Daryl(R)[B-]2025
SB552 01:40:18.432 - 9:38:34 AM	Public Hearing	permitting classification of individuals based on biological sex under certain limited circumstances.	Avard, Kevin(R)[B]2025

SB414: Senator Deborah Altschuler, Senate District 24 (Exeter, Greenland, Hampton, Hampton Falls, North Hampton, Rye, Stratham) Support00:02:38.232 - 8:00:54 AM; Senator Altschuler testified about the deficiencies in the judicial system regarding enforcement of divorce decrees. She described cases where women, after obtaining divorces with orders for alimony, child support, health insurance, and other payments, faced non-compliance by ex-spouses without effective remedies. She highlighted the prolonged process of filing contempt motions, waiting months for hearings, accumulating debt, and still lacking enforcement, such as wage garnishment or liens. She shared a specific example of Susan Schwartz, who incurred $120,000 in debt, faced appeals delaying access to assets, and recently sold her home due to unpaid obligations totaling nearly a quarter million dollars. Altschuler emphasized that SB 414 requires the court to fashion an immediate remedy for contempt if practicable, addressing the injustice of punishing the aggrieved party. She noted the bill passed the Senate Judiciary Committee 5-0 and the floor on a voice vote.
SB519: Senator Tara Reardon, Senate District 15 (Concord, Bow, Hopkinton) Support00:32:04.597 - 8:30:20 AM; Senator Reardon introduced SB 519-FN, an amended bill addressing privacy threats from drones, or unmanned aerial systems, which can capture imagery, audio, and data over private property without consent. She explained the bill fills a gap in existing law, as the FAA regulates airspace safety but not privacy, leaving states to protect individual rights. The bill requires written consent to fly drones over private property for surveillance unless exceptions apply, such as law enforcement, utilities inspecting infrastructure, broadband carriers, railroads, property appraisals, environmental assessments, insurance claims, or news gathering under existing laws. She noted influences from statutes in Florida, California, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, and Indiana, and accommodations for business uses after input from industries. Reardon distinguished surveillance (targeted privacy invasion) from legitimate inspections and emphasized protections like blurring images of people in certain records. She expressed willingness to fine-tune the bill.
SB519: Christopher Ball, Department of Safety, State Police Information Only01:02:04.597 - 9:00:20 AM; Christopher Ball, lead drone pilot for the State Police, testified on public safety implications of the bill. He acknowledged the bill's intent to protect privacy but raised concerns about its impact on law enforcement and emergency uses of drones, such as search and rescue, crime scene documentation, and tactical operations. He highlighted issues with the definition of reasonable expectation of privacy, noting it could be subjective due to factors like foliage or temporary structures, making enforcement difficult. He pointed out challenges with requiring written consent in fast-paced scenarios and exemptions that may not cover all cases, like searching for missing persons without specific identity or operations by non-law enforcement public safety entities like Fish and Game or emergency management. He also noted potential enforcement challenges due to numerous exceptions.
SB519: Trisha Lambert, Administrator, Bureau of Aeronautics, NH Department of Transportation Information Only01:17:04.597 - 9:15:20 AM; Trisha Lambert provided testimony on the regulatory role of the Bureau of Aeronautics under RSA 422, which governs aviation including drones as aircraft. She explained that the FAA regulates airspace, pilots, and aircraft, and that states cannot restrict airspace without FAA approval. She emphasized that the bill's enforcement concerns relate primarily to physical intrusions over private property rather than use of gathered information, which falls outside their jurisdiction.
SB619: Representative Dennis Mannion, Rockingham 25, Salem Support01:20:00.000 - 9:18:16 AM; Representative Mannion introduced SB 619 on behalf of Senator Abbas, explaining that the bill establishes procedures for expedited court hearings and disposition of confiscated animals in cruelty cases. It adds sections to RSA 644:8 to address animal safety, well-being, and health during legal proceedings.
SB619: Patricia Morris, Governor's Commission on the Humane Treatment of Animals; Animal Law Practitioner, Barnstead Support01:22:00.000 - 9:20:16 AM; Patricia Morris testified in support of SB 619, representing the Governor's Commission which unanimously endorsed the amended bill. With 20 years practicing animal law and experience in cruelty cases, she explained the bill clarifies the 14-day 'rocket docket' hearing post-confiscation, allowing courts to address arraignment, custody, veterinary care, and bonds. She highlighted the high costs of animal care during proceedings (e.g., $150,000 in one case) borne by towns if defendants are not convicted, and the need for clear court authority to prevent delays when defendants fail to appear. During questioning, she agreed to concerns about due process and forfeiture without culpability determination, suggesting the bond/forfeiture provision be stricken or made fully permissive, as it violates constitutional protections under Part 1, Articles 12, 15, and 18. She clarified the hearing focuses on seizure legality, with burden on the state, and noted animals may be seized without immediate arrest in cases of abandonment or absence. The bill does not address ultimate cost responsibility, which falls on seizing agencies if no conviction, though humane organizations often assist.
SB552: Senator Aber Support01:40:18.432 - 9:38:34 AM; Senator Aber testified in support of SB 552, emphasizing the need for clarity on bathroom and locker room policies based on biological sex to protect young girls, particularly in contexts like fourth and fifth grade facilities. He expressed concerns about safety, mental illness, and potential evil intent, regardless of gender identity, and highlighted risks from Title IX regulations and federal funding. He acknowledged single-stall bathrooms as a partial solution but noted expense and inapplicability for all facilities. During extensive questioning, he defended the bill's intent to allow institutions to adopt biological sex policies, addressed enforcement challenges by comparing to existing laws like speeding, rejected moral equivalence to historical racial segregation in sports, affirmed biological sex as definitive at birth and unchangeable, and stressed constituent concerns including from Democrats. He clarified the bill covers sports and prisons but not specific medical interventions, and urged the committee to address ongoing issues despite repeated similar bills.
SB552: Catherine Prudhomme O'Brien, Derry Support02:12:00.000 - 10:10:16 AM; Representative O'Brien discusses the historical reasons for separate facilities for men and women in bathrooms, jails, and sports, questioning if ancestors were wrong or bigoted for creating them. She shares a personal adverse childhood experience at age 15 when placed in foster care in Massachusetts, where the group home was initially all-female, but the state encouraged adding boys, leading to concerns about safety due to sexual abuse risks, a common reason for girls entering foster care. She fled when boys were to be added and notes current troubles at the Statehouse, advocating for maintaining male and female facilities.
SB552: Cyril Orrs, Merrimack 13 (Chichester, Pittsfield) Support02:15:00.000 - 10:13:16 AM; Representative Orrs shares that many female representatives have approached him for help after encountering perverts in Statehouse restrooms. He argues that closing state mental hospitals has led to such individuals roaming free, emphasizing that women are raped by men, not vice versa. He believes the governor would support the bill if it affected his daughters and criticizes gender transitions as circus-like, suggesting extreme measures like castration for those wanting to be women. He notes the issue is visible in certain Statehouse sections.
SB552: Ian Hewitt, Cornerstone Support02:20:00.000 - 10:18:16 AM; Attorney Hewitt supports SB 552 as the most legally sound biological sex separation bill among several introduced this year. He has reviewed case law nationwide and notes that opponents now make more moderate arguments in court, indicating a shifting consensus. Regarding enforcement, he explains the bill clarifies that certain conduct is not prohibited under the law against discrimination, removing liability for institutions mandating biological sex facilities without adding new enforcement mechanisms through the Commission on Human Rights.
SB552: Taylor Main, ACLU of New Hampshire Oppose02:25:18.432 - 10:23:34 AM; Taylor Main, a community organizer with the ACLU, opposes SB 552, stating it harms New Hampshire families, especially parents of trans kids, teachers, and coaches who are exhausted by repeated discriminatory bills. She notes five similar bills this session leading to 12 hearings, insulting Granite Staters who must repeatedly advocate for dignity. Despite fewer in-person testimonies due to exhaustion, nearly 300 opposed online versus 20 in support. She urges the committee to end the fear-mongering and allow community members to thrive without such legislation.
SB552: Hazel Cain Oppose02:28:00.000 - 10:26:16 AM; Hazel Cain opposes SB 552, asserting that trans women are women, varying like other women in skin, eyes, and anatomy, including some with XY chromosomes and penises. She argues discomfort with seeing a woman with a penis is akin to past racial segregation biases, where dark-skinned people were deemed dangerous and segregated from facilities. Trans women defy statistical norms of aggression by taking medications to reduce libido and alter bodies, so they should not be prohibited. Society must accept discomfort in a free society rather than let biases deny rights.
SB552: Tanya Gregor Oppose02:31:00.000 - 10:29:16 AM; Tanya Gregor, a trans woman early in transition, clarifies that gender dysphoria is not a mental illness per the DSM and that NYC does perform gender reassignment surgeries. She states she avoids ladies' rooms to not make others uncomfortable but notes many trans women pass as women and belong there, not in men's rooms. The bill legislates against non-issues. She raises concerns about trans women in men's prisons, where they are six times more likely to be sexually assaulted, with over 50% victimized.
SB552: Rebecca Hoskins, Concord Oppose02:35:21.031 - 10:33:37 AM; Rebecca Hoskins, a lifelong New Hampshire resident in Concord, opposes SB 552 for risking harm to all Granite Staters by making spaces less safe. Past vetoes by Governors Sununu and Ayotte cited unenforceability; enforcement could lead to wrongful harassment, as in a Massachusetts case where a cisgender woman was ejected from a bathroom by a male guard based on a snap judgment. The bill's vague biological sex definition erases intersex people and could punish cisgender girls in sports, like the Concord High wrestling champion on a male team.
SB552: David Trumbull, Warner Oppose02:37:50.242 - 10:36:06 AM; David Trumbull from Warner opposes the bill, criticizing it for stereotyping all transgender people as ill or perverted based on isolated bad actors. He affirms transgender people are real and urges getting to know them to alleviate concerns. For bathrooms, he suggests mandating all-gender restrooms as a less restrictive alternative already in the plumbing code. For sports, allow trans girls on testosterone suppressors pre-puberty to compete fairly. The law should educate on respect and dignity, not bigotry.
SB552: Nancy Brennan, Warner Oppose02:40:00.000 - 10:38:16 AM; Nancy Brennan from Warner piggybacks on Trumbull, usually bringing evidence that transgender people are not threats but forgoing it here. She is bothered by repeated mentions of bad actors like Stacy Lawton implying all are dangerous, which is untrue. She advocates for a study committee to talk with transgender people and parents, noting many bill writers haven't. Harm comes mostly from men, as seen in Epstein files, not trans women trying to use bathrooms. A trans friend fears public restrooms after crossing borders.
SB552: Sullivan Bono Oppose02:43:00.000 - 10:41:16 AM; Sullivan Bono questions enforcement of the bill, which would rely on invasive measures or visual profiling, assessing 'feminine enough' or 'masculine enough,' harming trans individuals and cisgender people not conforming to norms. The bill pushes conformity, threatening interrogation for non-conformers, reducing safety for all. It causes more harm through assumptions leading to hostility and assaults; trans women are highly likely to be assaulted. Prioritize dignity, public bathroom access, and avoiding snap judgments on gender.

Lynn, Bob(Chairman)(R)[B]2025	Kuttab, Katelyn(Clerk)(R)[B]2025	Mannion, Dennis(V Chairman)(R)[B+]2025
Smith, Marjorie(D)[F]2025	Bergeron, Dan(D)[F]2025	Horrigan, Timothy(D)[F]2025
Berch, Paul(D)[F]2025	Turer, Eric(D)[F]2025	Scully, Kevin(R)[A-]2025
Tripp, Richard(R)[B]2025	Andrus, Louise(R)[C+]2025	Ball, Lorie(R)[B+]2025
Manos, Zoe(D)[CT]2025	Perez, Kristine(R)[B+]2025	Alexander, Joe(R)[A+]2025
McFarlane, Donald(R)[A]2025	Rombeau, Catherine(D)[CT]2025	Paige, Mark(D)[D-]2025