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NH Legislative and Rulemaking Action Center
New Hampshire Legislation
The Disabilities Rights Center is tracking these bills introduced in the 2009 NH Legislative session. Get involved in legislative advocacy and help protect services and rights for people with disabilities. Click on the bill to find out more:
Summary: This bill establishes a commission to study health care services in correctional facilities, requires the superintendent of a county correctional facility to perform a medical evaluation of a prisoner prior to discontinuing or modifying such prisoner’s prescription medication, and permits certain medical, mental health, and social services practitioners to have access at reasonable times to prisoners in a county correctional facility.
Current Status: HB 214 has passed the House and the Senate in different forms. The next step in the process will be the House’s decision to either accept the Senate’s version or to request a conference committee of the House and Senate to resolve the differences between the versions.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: This bill would require that judges review the basis for every admission to the New Hampshire Hospital of a person under guardianship when that admission is conducted by a guardian of their ward without prior approval by a court. Under current law judicial review of such admissions only occurs when it is requested by the ward who has been admitted.
Current Status: A public hearing was held on the bill on February 19, with significant opposition to the bill from registers of probate, the Office of Public Guardian, and a representative of the chief judge of the probate court. Most objections to the bill are based on the resources required by the reforms in the bill. The bill has been retained by the committee for further study.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: HB 250 would have required that before an area agency, mental health center, state facility, nursing home or any institutional or community based service provider hired a direct support staff they would have to check not only whether the prospective employee is on the adult registry of abusers, but also the DYCF child abuse registry. Both registries are maintained by the NH. Dept of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Right now they only have to check the adult registry. Therefore any person who worked in the child care, schools, etc who is on the child registry could move into adult or elderly direct care and no one could find out if they are on the child registry and had abused or neglected children.
Similarly the bill would have required persons or organizations who now have to check the DCYF child abuse registry to check the adult registry, again as a way to prevent persons who abused adults with disabilities or vulnerable seniors from getting a direct support job with children e.g. in child care, group homes, schools, etc.
There would have been no cost to the service provider requesting the check and he/she would only have to make one request. Internally, DHHS would merely run the person’s name against both registries, instead of one.
Current Status: The bill was tabled in the Senate and NOT passed because of financial considerations raised by the bureau of elderly and adult services.
See Legislature's website for more on this bill.
Summary: In this bill, the terms “perpetrator” and “volunteer” are defined. The bill also includes additional protections for incapacitated adults. Guardians and agents acting under powers of attorney will be added to the registry if there is a founded report of abuse, neglect or exploitation made against the guardian or agent. It also allows current employers will be permitted to check the names of current employees against the registry.
Current Status: The bill has passed both the Senate and the House and is on route to Governor Lynch for signature.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: This bill establishes the developmental services quality council to provide leadership for consistent, systemic review and improvement of the quality of the developmental disability and acquired brain disorder services provided within New Hampshire’s developmental services system.
Current Status: 4-8-2009: The bill passed the full Senate and now goes to the Governor for signature.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: HB530 establishes a state system for ensuring that the state building code’s access requirements for public buildings are followed. It provides for certification and enforcement of violations by the Disabilities Rights Center and/or individuals with disabilities.
Current Status: This bill was amended on the Senate floor (third amendment to the legislation) on May 14. The bill’s purpose has not changed substantially; HB 530 as passed requires that all new construction, additions, or alterations to public buildings be certified as meeting access standards. As amended the bill requires that contractors provide certification of compliance with access standards upon their submission of plans for new construction, additions, or alterations. The bill will now go back to the House. There may be a committee of conference set up on this bill as the NH Municipal Association, which represents NH’s cites and towns has expressed strong opposition to this policy.
Next Steps: The bill returns to the House
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: This bill requires insurance for hearing evaluations, hearing aids, and the dispensing and fitting of hearing aids.
Current Status: HB 561 has been retained in committee.
What you can do: Stay tuned for further updates.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: This bill requires insurance coverage for diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders.
Current Status: At the public hearing on March 9, the bill received support from the School Administrator’s association, and, as expected, opposition from the insurance industry. A subcommittee has been appointed and is expected to entertain proposals for modification of the bill.
2-20 update: The Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee voted to retain this bill in Committee.
Website from the advocates who helped file the "Connor's Law" legislation
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
Summary: This bill requires police officers and police officer candidates to complete certain mental health training and requires the police standards and training council to develop and implement an advanced training curriculum for specialized crisis intervention teams.
Current Status: On March 24, the bill was voted inexpedient to legislate by the full House of Representatives.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
SB 120 is designed to update and reform the use of involuntary treatment in New Hampshire by changing three aspects of Chapter 135-C:
1) The frequency of judicial review of persons who are subject to long-term court-ordered mental health treatment. Current law permits as much as five years between court reviews. The legislation would require an annual review in most cases, with a shorter review for persons who are involuntarily committed for the first time.
2) The scope of permitted community treatment conditions for persons the New Hampshire Hospital releases subject to conditional discharges. The bill would restrict the conditions to those which are necessary for the safety of the person and the community. Current law does not expressly limit the conditions which can be imposed on a person being discharged.
3) The permissible reasons for the return to the New Hampshire Hospital of persons under involuntary treatment orders. Under the legislation, such re-hospitalizations would be limited to those circumstances where it is necessary for the safety of the person or the community. Current law permits the readmission of a person to the New Hampshire Hospital for the violation of a condition of a discharge, such as missing a single appointment, without any showing that the person’s condition requires hospitalization.
Current Status: SB 120 was re-referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. This action will permit the Committee to give the bill further consideration, and will require action by the full Senate on the bill early in the 2010 session.
What you can do: Stay tuned for future developments.
See the Docket on the Legislature's website
New Hampshire has an ADA coordinator for the legislature, Joyce Phinney, 271-3162, Joyce.phinney@leg.state.nh.us. If you have business with the legislature and need an accommodation, call Joyce to make your request
Another way to find information and current status of any bill is to go to the NH Legislature website and use one of the search functions to search for the legislation you are interested in.
Also see the NHCares website for more information about NH budgeting and legislation
Family Voices, "speaking on behalf of children and youth with special health care needs", has a Legislative Action Center for federal legislation and policy.
Updated July 11, 2008: Photos from Special Education bill signing
New Hampshire Administrative Rules Updates
He-M 510, Family Centered Early Supports and Services
DHHS website: Proposed administrative rules for public comment : Here's where to go to find proposed changes to rules governing the NH Department of Health and Human Services
NH Office of Legislative Services: website for Administrative Rules: find text of existing rules, rulemaking register, information about JLCAR, and more.
page last updated: 6/4/09