Also on today’s menu:
Lawmakers Update Election Laws
Bill Would Require Accessible Voting Systems
As the NH House of Representatives took up the first of about 200 bills that were left over from the 2023 session on January 3, members approved House Bill 602 on a 226-145 vote, establishing a two-step application process for the siting of new solid waste landfills. It calls for a preliminary assessment of a proposed site to ensure it complies with Department of Environmental Services’ criteria before the applicant may proceed with the full application process. The bill is intended to avoid wasting time on improper proposals, saving both the state’s and the developer’s time and money.
Representative Kelley Potenza (R-Rochester) said the process is similar to that of other states around the country, but Representative Kevin Verville (R-Deerfield) said the legislature should not be adopting new legislation until the DES updates its rules and regulations. Verville complained that all of the bills concerning landfills arose from complaints about a single proposed site in Dalton that has a new application in progress.
Last year, Representative Timothy Egan (D-Sugar Hill) — one of several North Country legislators who opposed the landfill proposed for property near Forest Lake State Park in Dalton — said, “[B]uilding a landfill in a neighborhood isn’t just a North Country problem, it’s going to be everybody’s problem.”
Discussion: Verville is forgetting that executive branch agencies are there to carry out policies established by the legislative branch, not to set policies that the legislature then acts upon. Mike Wimsatt, the director of the DES’ Waste Management Bureau, has worked behind the scenes with Casella Waste Management, the company proposing the Dalton landfill, to see that the project moves forward, and he has managed to scuttle many legislative initiatives to address solid waste concerns with claims that “although the DES takes no position on the bill,” there are unresolved questions that need further study. HB 602 was one of them. The Waste Management Bureau also approved an expansion of Casella’s landfill in Bethlehem, despite a history of violations and the largest leachate spill in the state’s history. The NH Supreme Court recently ruled that the DES acted lawfully in approving the expansion permit. Perhaps lawmakers are beginning to see through Wimsatt’s game and will be taking environmental concerns more seriously. Of course, he still may prevail when the bill crosses over to the Senate.
Lawmakers Update Election Laws
House Bill 436, which would provide for online registration, party changes, and corrections to voting checklists, received House approval, despite some lawmakers’ concerns about privacy.
Arguing that candidates for state office do not have enough time between the state primary and the general election to get their messages before the voters, which gives incumbents an advantage, the House approved changing the primary date from September to the third Tuesday in August. The legislature last year voted to move the primary to June, but Governor Chris Sununu vetoed the bill and lawmakers failed to override his veto.
While those bills passed, the House killed two bills that would have allowed ranked-choice voting. One bill would have allowed cities and towns to use ranked-choice voting even if one candidate does not have a majority of the votes, while the other bill would established ranked-choice voting for all state and federal elections.
Discussion: Online registration for voters makes a lot of sense, now that we have the technology to make it possible. The current system, requiring voters to register with checklist supervisors on specific dates, makes it difficult for many people to get on the voting list, and fraud may occur if they have more than one residence and register in multiple municipalities (even though prohibited by law). It also makes it difficult to keep track of people who move from one community to another. However, privacy is a real concern. Even the best-protected system may get compromised by hackers unless it is a closed system, which would defeat the goal of making it accessible to all voters. New Hampshire is known to take shortcuts or award contracts to the lowest bidder or friends of state officials, rather than to seek the most qualified contractors, and has ignored vulnerabilities that have been pointed out to them (EZ Pass, automobile manufacturers’ harvesting of personal data).
As to state primaries, candidates should be working for name recognition prior to the primary, not trying to do so between the primary and general election. However, it is true that incumbents have a big advantage over challengers, so perhaps an earlier primary is a good idea.
As for ranked-choice voting — I believe it’s the way to go. Not only does it elevate the chances of less-financed candidates, it helps to break the two-party hold over the country. The growing number of Independents who are disenchanted by both the Democrat and the Republican parties cannot overcome the advantages those parties hold under the current system.
Bill Would Require Accessible Voting Systems
House Bill 1264, sponsored by Democrat Mark Paige of Concord for the upcoming legislative session, would require that cities and towns provide accessible voting systems for people with disabilities, and that they afford those individuals the same level of privacy as non-disabled voters have. The provisions would apply whether the municipal ballot is partisan or non-partisan.
The bill states, “Every city and every town which has adopted an official ballot system as provided in RSA 669:12 or RSA 669:13 shall ensure that each polling place has at least one accessible voting system that enables all individuals with disabilities to vote without the need for assistance and with the same degree of privacy that is accorded to non disabled electors voting at the same polling place…. The accessible voting system used in a city or town shall have the capacity to print a paper ballot marked with the votes chosen by the voter and shall be readily available for use during voting hours.”
Citing the Americans with Disabilities Act which already requires “appropriate auxiliary aids and services” for the disabled, the text of the bill states, “Accessible voting systems are generally not made available at polling locations for local elections. As a result, with very few exceptions, individuals with disabilities are not universally afforded equal opportunities to vote privately and independently as individuals without disabilities in local elections, in violation of the ADA.”
According to the New Hampshire Municipal Association, municipalities are likely to choose the same system used in state and federal elections to guarantee security, limit their liability, and ensure the availability of vendors capable of programming and servicing the devices. The state’s costs are about $1,750 for the equipment, but not all polling locations will need the equipment, according to the NHMA.
Discussion: As the bill correctly notes, voting is one of the fundamental rights of citizenship, and it is important to ensure that all eligible voters have equal access and opportunity to participate in all elections. Cities and towns not already offering that access should correct it, even if it means spending the money for the equipment.
Compelling Commentary
By The Way now offers guest commentary, kicking off the series with a column by former state senator Wayne King.