House Redistricting Committee: Public Hearing Schedule

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Wed Oct 05, 2011 at 15:00:58 PM EDT

All meetings start at 7:00 p.m. I'm posting the full list here along with the chair or vice chair who will be running it. If you can make it, please let us know. We'd love to send you information on back channels to assist with good questions to ask and points to make in your respective area(s).

Thursday, October 13th at 7:00 p.m.
Carroll County - Mountain View Community Nursing Home, Ossipee (Rep. Mirski)
Hillsborough County - Nashua Public Library, Theatre Room, Nashua (Rep. Bates)

Tuesday, October 18th at 7:00 p.m.
Belknap County - Belknap Mill, 25 Beacon Street East, Laconia (Rep. Mirski)
Cheshire County - Keene Public Library Auditorium, Keene (Rep. Bates)

Thursday, October 20th at 7:00 p.m.
Grafton County - UNH Cooperative Extension, 3855 Dartmouth College Highway, N. Haverhill (Rep. Mirski)
Rockingham County - Hilton Auditorium, Rockingham County Nursing Home, Brentwood (Rep. Bates)

Tuesday, October 25th at 7:00 p.m.
Coos County - Lancaster Town Hall, Lancaster (Rep. Mirski)
Strafford County - Strafford County Superior Court, Court Room 1, Dover (Rep. Bates)

Thursday, October 27th at 7:00 p.m.
Sullivan County - Probate Court, 3rd floor, Sullivan County Administrative Building, Newport (Rep. Mirski)
Merrimack County - Merrimack County Administration Building, Basement Conference Room, Concord (Rep. Bates)

Additionally, if you have points or questions to consider (keeping in mind that this is a public forum), post them here or email them to us on the link provided above and we'll help re-circulate. Thanks, all.

House Republican PR Alert: Redistricting

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Fri Sep 30, 2011 at 17:59:00 PM EDT

These poor House Republican leaders just can't seem to get it right.

Last week, the Chair of the Special Committee on Redistricting, Rep. Paul Mirski (R- Enfield), took heat during a committee hearing for the obvious lack of transparency and public input in the redistricting process this year. The criticism so bothered Rep. Mirski that, even though he had recused himself from the committee at that particular point to introduce and lobby for a bill he was introducing, he retook his seat specifically to negate the charges.

Disagreeing with the criticism levied by America Votes NH, Chair Mirski told committee members that the public did not need to be involved in the redistricting process because:

"It's a very complicated problem and quite frankly because it is a mathematical problem it doesn't lend itself to the sort of give and take with the public that may have been the case in the previous redistricting ... We have been holding off on this because we really have no way to utilize the public forum to get those answers. I just want to make that point." - Rep. Mirski, Redistricting Committee, 9.20.11

Never mind that public input sessions are a common and expected practice of past redistricting committees.

Just over a week later, though, Rep. Mirski is changing his tune and has announced a press conference for this coming Tuesday morning to release details on a series of 10 public hearings across the state related to redistricting. (Perhaps our poking around State House archives and the several inquiries to committee members past and present to determine the public input process and timeline for past redistricting committees caught his attention?)

(More below the fold)

New England Right To Work Committee: A Post Office Box and a Lobbyist

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Wed Jun 08, 2011 at 14:43:00 PM EDT

Ever seen the office or webpage for the New England Right To Work Committee, a front group for corporate special interests pushing anti-worker legislation in New Hampshire?

Neither had we. Until now.

Yes, that's right. It's a post office box. In Concord, actually. Is there an office? Not that we've been easily able to find. Or a website? Nil. According to the Secretary of State's lobbyist filings, the NE Right to Work for Less Committee is located at PO Box 4076 in Concord. It employs one lobbyist in the state.

Interestingly, the National Right to Work Committee had another active lobbyist in the state until June 1st, at which time paperwork was withdrawn from the SOS office. Perhaps they realized that New Hampshire is not a state that will give up its rights easily.

We'd share more, but there doesn't appear to be any since the committee is not registered as a non-profit in New Hampshire and as we know from an election complaint currently under investigation by the NH Attorney General's office, being transparent is not something they do well.

Ethics Fail: NH Rep Chairs Hearing for Personal Friend

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Sun May 15, 2011 at 13:09:19 PM EDT

This is an incredible story, but not for the reasons you may be thinking. Because the real story here is not the committee or the hearing itself, but the man who chaired it.

Hours into the committee hearing, and after the receipt of a formal complaint, Chair Paul Ingbretson (R-Pike) finally saw fit to inform his committee that during the period that the petitioner, David Johnson (currently legally barred from having any contact with his daughter, custody of whom is at the heart of his petition) was allowed to have supervised visits with his daughter, the person that Mr. Johnson chose as the third person to be present at those visits -- four hours long, once every week, for a period of one year -- was ... Chairman Paul Ingbretson.

NH (Koch) Tea Party Fail

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Fri Apr 15, 2011 at 19:32:38 PM EDT

The Koch brothers sponsored group and rally planners (funders) Americans for Prosperity sent this to my inbox this week:

Due to the increased interest from the media and the high volume of attendees expected, AFP-New Hampshire has set up an RSVP system to ensure an accurate crowd count can be determined ... This may be the largest Taxpayer Tea Party Rally in New Hampshire history. You don't want to miss it!

In the email and again during the rally today, the AFP staff asked people to send a text to the designated number for an "accurate count" to counter the low numbers they predicted to be reported by the "liberal media". It'll be interesting to see what numbers they decide to report, given the decidedly low energy and the even bigger contrast to that other large rally on the State House lawn a few weeks ago ... pictures anyone?

The "potentially largest Taxpayer Tea Party Rally in NH history", organized by Koch-funded AFP and featuring several GOP Presidential Candidates like TPaw, Santorum, etc.; est. crowd ~300:

Rally for New Hampshire, organized by a loose-knit coalition of organizations and individuals concerned about protecting essential services and workers rights; est. crowd ~5,000:

Lest the ground-shot vs aerial view gives too much credit in the first photo, pay particular attention to the statues. At the Rally for NH, it was midpoint. Today, the #teafail loosely spread to it as a perimeter.

Outside the State House lawn there was a counter-organizing effort by area students. Good story on that here.

House Leadership Shuts the Door on Young Voters

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Thu Feb 24, 2011 at 17:43:51 PM EST

Apparently, ignore them and close the door on their active participation in our state:

Follow the live blog of HB 176.

Rep. Notter to Cancer Patients: Host a Bake Sale

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Fri Feb 04, 2011 at 15:20:10 PM EST

During yesterday's hearing on HB 440 - which seeks to remove New Hampshire from the new health law and bar the NH Insurance Department from enforcing consumer protections - Representative Jeanine Notter of Merrimack told a member of the public that health reform is not needed because she is sure, just sure, that communities will rally around cancer patients and help them cover their costs.

Did you hear that, cancer patients? Representative Notter wants you to hold a bake sale while your fight for life. According to her, this is the American way. So don't worry about trying to get access to health insurance so you can pay your fair share and have real faith in your ability to provide care for you and your family, follow the lead of Girl Scouts and PTA functions. You should be able to raise enough for half a doctor's visit - no medical procedures - and you'll get a brownie to boot!