As the summer comes to a close and students return to school the Legislature also returned to its business this past week. On the docket were several bills that Governor Lynch chose to veto. The issues range in subject matter, however two were of particular concern to me and presented distractions from the advancement of ideas and policies that will bolster our economy and create jobs.Senate Bill 88 is a piece of legislation that has stirred a great deal of controversy. This legislation is not about an individual’s right to bear arms but is rather legislation regarding an individual’s conduct. The bill expands a person’s ability to use deadly force in the interest of self-defense even if there is an adequate opportunity to avoid such action. No one, including myself, would argue that people do not have a right to defend themselves from harm. This new language would extensively broaden the opportunity to use deadly force without any responsibility to retreat even when it is convenient to do so and puts individuals and public safety at risk for imminent harm.
Current law already allows for the use of deadly force in self-defense in your own home and is also justified in other situations unless an individual “knows” that he/she can escape with “complete safety”. No individual has ever been criminally prosecuted in New Hampshire for defending themselves under such situations.
The law enforcement community in New Hampshire has lined up uniformly in opposition to SB 88. Due to the concerns of our state’s police chiefs, troopers, sheriffs and county attorneys and my concern for the safety of our citizens, I sided with the Governor and voted to support the veto of SB 88. However, a majority in the Senate disagreed and voted to override the veto – a measure that I feel compromises our public safety. New Hampshire is now the safest state in the nation and I would think that we would want to remain that way.
In a more successful effort, I supported the Governor’s veto of SB 129 commonly referred to at the “Voter ID” bill. The bill would require an individual to obtain a state-issued identification card before they could cast a ballot. If a person did not have such an identification they could be issued a provisional ballot with the understanding that they would need to return within three days with the appropriate ID or their vote would not count. This legislation was severely flawed. We run the best elections in the country in NH and there is no history of voter fraud. In fact, the town clerks association – comprised of the very individuals that carry out our elections – opposed the bill.
If the intent of this legislation was based on a fear of future unsubstantiated voter fraud and had passed into law, it would have placed additional burdens on voters, with the potential for voter discrimination and the real threat of limiting an individual’s right to vote. Fortunately, this time more of my Senate colleagues listened and the veto was sustained.
While these pieces of legislation ultimately received different outcomes, the intentions are similarly mis-directed. Both are proposed solutions to problems that simply do not exist and both are part of a larger ideological national agenda that aren’t necessary in New Hampshire. Perhaps more importantly, both offer a distraction from what should be our primary focus – rebuilding our economy and creating good jobs for our citizens.
I have worked throughout my tenure in the Legislature on what I consider to be the building blocks of a vibrant workforce with sustainable job growth. Providing New Hampshire residents with greater opportunities for education and job training so that they are prepared for a 21st century economy are the key. That is why I supported the legislation that established “NH Works”, a program cultivating a public-private collaboration to provide greater job training to those employees requiring additional skills to maintain employment as well as those who have lost their job. I also chair the Governor’s Advanced Manufacturing Advisory Council which brings public and private sector resources to the table to examine the issue of developing an educated and trained workforce available to our state’s manufacturing sector.
These are examples where government and business can work together to ensure a brighter economic future for NH. That is a focus that transcends political party designation. And while there are many other issues that we are confronted with ever year in Concord, few reach the level of broad importance that comes with offering our citizens a better education and the prospect to obtain a good job.
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