The information contained in this article is not intended as legal advice and may no longer be accurate due to changes in the law. Consult NHMA's legal services or your municipal attorney.
Two months into the 2025-26 legislative session, the NHMA Advocacy Team is following close to 400 bills that could impact municipal government, for better or for worse.
As the text of these bills became available throughout January, we reviewed each proposal and determined whether to support, oppose, or remain neutral on a bill based on our member-approved 2025-2026 Legislative Policies and Principles. While these bills run the gamut from ambulance billing to sanctuary cities, many proposals fall under common themes:
State aid to municipalities: Lawmakers are in the initial stages of crafting the state budget, which won’t be finalized until June. It’s no secret that the state’s financial future is far less rosy than in recent years due to the tapering of federal stimulus money and declining state revenue collections, coupled with the elimination of the Interest and Dividends Tax. Add a pending state Supreme Court decision on education funding and the ever-ballooning price tag for the YDC settlement fund and the picture gets even darker.
And, as we know from history, when money gets tight, state budget writers may look to reduce aid to cities and towns to plug holes elsewhere in the budget. Protecting the recent, hard-won gains in state aid to municipalities is a top NHMA priority this year.
When government at any level builds its next budget, it needs to know where future revenue is coming from. Most NHMA member towns vote on their budgets in March and some level of state aid is factored into their revenue projections, so any cuts to existing aid will be made up from the pockets of local property taxpayers.
Zoning Mandates: There are dozens of bills dealing with local zoning and land use in response to the housing shortage, including several that would erode local control over (which NHMA opposes) or create incentive programs that municipalities may choose to take advantage of (which NHMA generally supports). Individual topics include legislation to mandate and expand accessory dwelling units (ADUs), reorganizing building code and zoning statutes, and mandating residential building in commercial zones by right. These bills aim to address housing shortages and promote development, but many of them also raise concerns about local control and the potential strain on municipal services and infrastructure.
Property taxes: There are bills dealing with budget caps, overriding tax caps, land use by religious institutions, and modifying or expanding property tax exemptions, including multiple bills dealing with increase or expanded exemptions for veterans and the elderly.
Right-to-know: There are 17 bills introduced on this topic, including requiring the sending of records, repealing last year’s per digital page fee, and requiring collective bargaining negotiations to be done in public.
Public safety retirement: Pension reform for first responders was a campaign priority for Gov. Kelly Ayotte and there are several bills related to the New Hampshire Retirement System (NHRS) including one that seeks to revert pension benefits for police and fire personnel hired before July 1, 2011, to pre-2011 levels. Other bills include proposals to provide cost-of living increases to some retirees, establish new retirement plans for state employees, and restore some level of state contributions toward municipal employer retirement contributions.
Anti-lobbying bill: There is yet another bill seeking to prohibit NHMA and many other organizations from taking positions on legislation, which could effectively cut municipalities and other public entities out of the legislative process, while private industry will continue to lobby and influence legislation without consequences. Stopping this bill is another key priority.
Stay Informed
Every Friday during the legislative session, NHMA emails out a weekly Legislative Bulletin, which provides updates, previews, and reviews of key actions taking place in legislature. Members who haven’t already subscribed to the Bulletin can do so through the member portal. Other can be added to the mailing list by emailing governmentaffairs@nhmunicipal.org.
How to Make Your Voice Heard
The adage goes that “life is all about showing up.” The same can be said for legislative advocacy. If a bill is of importance to your municipality, it’s always best to make your case – for or against – in person. Every Friday, NHMA includes a Bill Hearings Schedule for the upcoming week in our weekly Legislative Bulletin. However, if you can’t make it to Concord, you can use the Legislature’s online portal to put your position on the hearing record.
The House has an online testimony submission system that allows you to indicate your position on the bill with an option to attach testimony. If you want to email all the members of a House committee, you will have to copy their email addresses individually from the committee page.
The Senate has a remote sign-in sheet where you can indicate whether you are supportive of a bill, opposed, or neutral. Written testimony can be submitted via the “Email Entire Committee” link found on the Senate committee page.
Finally, if you want to contact your local legislators, there are Contact a Senator and Contact a Representative links on the General Court website.