Now that 250 LSRs have been published by the NH government site, we can see the titles of many of the bills that will be considered by the legislature in the 2021 session. Here are a few of the bills that jumped off the screen to me. Judging by the titles and the sponsors, they appear to be bad for New Hampshire. Some titles and sponsors are very similar or identical to bills proposed in the last session.
The following bills are the biggest threats to your freedom. We must make sure to stop them from passing.
Proposed by Representative Kris Schultz, a Democrat from Concord, LSR-0001 proposes an increase in the minimum wage. The title does not say how large of an increase in the government-mandated minimum wage she is proposing. Last year, Schultz proposed a bill increasing the legally allowable minimum wage to $15 per hour, which would have been an increase more than 100% (more than doubling the minimum wage) in New Hampshire. The bill was amended, passed, and then vetoed by Sununu.
Schultz is a socialist who supports raising taxes, creating entirely new taxes, and regulating and banning things.
We have written multiple articles on this minimum wage bill and on wage controls in general. Suffice it to say that politicians can not and shold not control the economy and wages.
Also proposed last year was the income tax bill. LSR-0034 appears to be the same bill as HB712 last year and HB628 the year before. This bill creates a ‘family medical leave insurance’ program. The problem? It’s funded by a payroll/income tax. We have written over 10 articles explaining how horrible this bill is. This bill is being proposed by seven socialist Democrats, most of which have proposed this same bill in the past.
LSR-0041 would legally force ‘food service establishments to establish food allergy awareness procedures’. These four Representatives proposed this same bill last year. It did not pass. We can safely assume that this is the identical bill. This bill mandates that all food establishments:
“(a) Include on all menus and menu boards a notice to customers of the customer’s obligation to inform the server of his or her food allergies.
(b) Have a person in charge during all hours of operation trained and certified as a food protection manager by a program approved by the department which includes training regarding food allergens. Such person shall ensure that employees are properly informed of food safety issues, including awareness of food allergies, as it is related to the employees’ assigned duties.”
Any bill that forces private businesses to spend their own money to change their online and physical menus is anti-freeom and communist in nature. For that reason alone, this bill must be defeated.
Proposed by one Democratic Representative, LSR-0130 would prohibit “discrimination based on hairstyles relative to a person’s ethnicity.” As we often point out, ‘discrimination’ is a good thing. It means that we are free to make choices. Governments often cannot legally discriminate, because they have inherent monopolies by force. Private businesses and individuals can and do make choices (which is the same thing as discriminating) all of the time. Making it a crime to ‘discriminate’ against people based on their hairstyle creates yet another legally protected class, opening up another massive black hole of potential court cases involving alleged discrimination any time a plaintiff claims that they were discriminated against because of their ethnic hairstyle. Again, if you believe in a free market and oppose socialism, you must oppose this bill.
Another bill that appears to be identical to a bill that was vetoed last year is LSR-0143. The bill seeks to create a red flag program for anyone who has ever mistreated any elderly person in any way. This article explains just how broad this bill is in its reach. Assuming it’s the same bill, or even similar to last year’s HB1660, it must be defeated swiftly.
Proposed by the hardcore progressive Representative, Katherine Rodgers, LSR-0249 would seemingly allow voters to vote by absentee ballot, possibly without any justification for why they cannot vote in person. If you trust voting by mail despite the mountains of evidence that it is not secure and despite the fact that many countries have banned it, you might like this bill.
Proposed by the radically anti-gun Katherine Rodgers, LSR-0251 would impose a waiting period between the purchase of a firearm (which includes an FBI background check) and the taking possession of the firearm. How long would the waiting period be? Last year, Rodgers proposed HB1101, which would have imposed a waiting period of three business days before a person could obtain their legally purchased firearm. This bill may be more aggressive or more moderate. Regardless, it must be defeated.
Rodgers also proposed LSR-0253, which would require background checks for all commercial firearm sales. As we pointed out when she proposed this same bill last year, this is litreally already the law. All commercial firearm sales already require background checks. This bill is meaningless.
Seemingly another copy from a previous bill is LSR-0203, which proposes to eliminate the tiny work requirement for Medicaid in New Hampshire. Currently, able-bodied, young, healthy individuals in New Hampshire are required to work or volunteer for 25 hours per week. Democrats proposed HB690 last year to eliminate this requirement – essentially admitting that they simply endorse socialist wealth redistribution from workers to parasites who refuse to work. If you like working on behalf of able-bodied but lazy members of society, you’ll love this bill!
While Republicans now control all chambers of the legislature, we must still remain vigilant if we are going to stop all anti-freedom bills from passing. Follow the bills, speak to your friends, neighbors and legislators about them, and hold politicians accountable.
This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Liberty Block or any of its members. We welcome all forms of serious feedback and debate.
