Victim-blaming comments by influential N.H. state lawmaker elicit bipartisan condemnation.
Boston Globe, 2/3/2025 Republican Representative Kenneth L. Weyler, chair of the New Hampshire House Finance Committee, is facing bipartisan backlash for comments suggesting that victims of abuse at state-run youth detention facilities were responsible for their own mistreatment. Weyler argued against large settlements, questioning the character and intentions of victims, and implying that financial compensation would be misused. His remarks have been widely condemned by Democratic and Republican lawmakers, with calls for his recusal from settlement-related matters and removal from his committee role.
Their 15-week abortion bill has been withdrawn, but N.H. lawmakers are still weighing other proposals.
Boston Globe, 2/7/2025 The sponsors of a bill to restrict abortion in New Hampshire from 24 weeks to 15 weeks withdrew their proposal due to an unspecified "flaw," but the state's Republican-controlled House still debated motions related to the bill. While Governor Kelly A. Ayotte has vowed to veto stricter abortion restrictions, other pending bills seek to influence reproductive health policy, including measures requiring public schools to show anti-abortion videos and restricting materials from abortion providers in sex education
Several climate bills stall out in the New Hampshire House
NHPR, 2/6/2025 The Republican-controlled New Hampshire House rejected multiple climate related proposals, including the creation of a climate change division within the state’s environmental services department and a study on the financial impact of climate change. Democrats, led by Rep. Kat McGhee, argued these measures were necessary for informed decision-making, but Republicans dismissed them as unnecessary government expansion and questioned established climate science