Sen. Kevin Avard

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a legislative committee to examine how New Hampshire laws handle consent and confidentiality for adolescents and young adults seeking healthcare. The committee, composed of five legislators appointed by Senate and House leaders, will review existing rules regarding parental consent, assess current privacy protections for minors, and identify any gaps in medical care coverage. After gathering testimony from relevant experts and organizations, the group must submit its findings and any proposed legal changes to state officials by November 1, 2024.

Maddy summaryThis bill removes the requirement for lucky 7 ticket dispenser devices to print a physical paper ticket. Under the new rules, these machines must still be approved by the state commission, but their specifications will no longer mandate paper output. Instead, the outcome of a wager will be determined solely by the video monitor on the device. This change applies to licensed facilities that currently use these approved dispenser machines.

Maddy summaryThis bill designates a specific stretch of Route 111 in Hudson as the Senator Robert E. Clegg Jr. Memorial Highway to honor the late legislator. It requires the Department of Transportation to install a memorial marker in the right-of-way and allows the department to direct the design and placement of any associated signage. The legislation explicitly states that the costs for creating and maintaining these markers will not be funded by the state.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates the rules for state school building aid to explicitly include chartered public schools alongside traditional school districts. It establishes that these independent schools must own any buildings they construct with state funds and outlines how the aid is disbursed, providing an initial 30 percent of the eligible cost followed by annual payments over 20 years. The legislation also sets a requirement that facilities built with this assistance must be used for K-12 instruction for at least two decades or the school must repay the full grant amount. Additionally, the bill clarifies eligibility criteria, such as excluding office space and temporary structures from funding, and sets a new deadline for submitting construction applications starting in 2025.

Maddy summaryThis bill directs the New Hampshire Department of Energy to report annually by November on how the renewable energy fund is used, including details on net metering capacity and group host registrations. It expands the department's authority to create new incentive and rebate programs for renewable energy projects located in political subdivisions, such as towns and cities, without being subject to the same funding limits as other projects. Additionally, the legislation updates how funds are distributed between residential and nonresidential sectors, requiring a specific portion of money to support low- and moderate-income households and public housing residents. The bill also repeals previous rules regarding small residential renewable generation incentives to align with these new funding priorities.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates the rules for how public agencies charge fees when individuals request government records under the Right-to-Know law. It clarifies that agencies can only charge for copying costs or for employee time spent beyond ten hours, setting a maximum hourly rate of $25 for those additional hours. The legislation also requires agencies to provide clearer explanations when denying requests and mandates that multiple requests made within a 30-day period be treated as a single request to prevent fee stacking. Additionally, it establishes a requirement for agencies to create transparent policies for calculating these costs and allows requesters to file complaints if they believe the estimated fees are unreasonable.

Maddy summarySB 354 requires health insurance companies to apply money from independent charity patient assistance programs toward an enrollee's cost-sharing obligations, such as copayments and deductibles. This rule applies to group accident and health insurance plans that cover prescription drugs, but it excludes drugs that have generic or other covered alternatives available. The law also mandates that insurers receive specific details about assistance payments made on behalf of patients, while exempting high-deductible and catastrophic health plans from these requirements until the enrollee's annual deductible is met. Taking effect on January 1, 2026, the bill aims to streamline how charitable funds interact with insurance billing processes.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a new commission to organize and rewrite New Hampshire's education laws, specifically those found in Chapters 186 through 200-N. The commission will be made up of legislators, education officials, and representatives from various school and teacher organizations, who will meet to review the current laws for duplicates, conflicts, or areas that can be combined. After their review, the group will draft a new set of proposed legislation to be submitted to the legislature by September 2026. To support this work, the bill provides $200,000 in funding to hire legal experts for both the Department of Education and the Office of Legislative Services.

Maddy summaryThis law requires a legislative committee studying New Hampshire's adult parole system to submit a second report by November 1, 2024, in addition to an earlier one due in 2023. The additional report must include findings and any recommendations for new laws and will be sent to state officials including the governor and legislative leaders. The bill also officially repeals the original 2023 law that established the committee and sets the effective date for these changes to January 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows the Cost of Care Fund to pay third parties directly for expenses related to caring for animals involved in cruelty cases. It authorizes arresting officers to apply for grants to cover costs incurred while animals are in pretrial care, between seizure and the final resolution of the case. The Department of Agriculture, Markets, and Food will review these applications within 15 days and limit payments to $500,000 per application. The changes take effect on July 30, 2024.