Legislative Update: First Term Summary, Part 2 - September 20, 2024 Windham Independent

Legislative Update: First Term Summary, Part 2

A previous letter covered the state budget and the bills I was a prime sponsor for - this one will review the bills I cosponsored.

I want to first highlight HB1385 (establishing the veteran licensing acceleration program). This was a team effort by a group of Republican legislators looking for ways to make it easier for veterans to return to civilian life by recognizing their military training and job experience when they apply for one of the many licenses the state still requires to allow people to work in certain fields.

The other critical bill is HB1569 (eliminating voter identification exceptions) that Governor Sununu just signed. Improving election integrity was one of my main goals this term, and while most credit for this bill goes to Bob Lynn (the prime sponsor), I have cosponsored and testified in support of the 2023 HB460 bill which became HB1569 in 2024, and would have gladly cosponsored HB1659 if asked. 

Here is a list of my other bills, grouped by outcome:

Signed into law:

HB238 (the role of quality control and the developmental disability service system)

HB243 (requiring the tabulation of votes in elections to be done in public)

HB244 (relative to the delivery of absentee ballots)

HB287 (removing fentanyl and xylazine testing equipment from the definition of drug paraphernalia in the controlled drug act)

HB397 (prohibition of the possession of hypodermic needles by minors)

HB421 (providing menstrual hygiene products at no cost to prison inmates)

HB593 (establishing a committee to study the process for forfeiture of items used in connection with drug offenses)

HB1564 (relative to the child support guidelines)

Bills listed below failed to pass in different ways:

Interim Study (a very soft way to kill a bill by studying it, usually with no path to passing it):

HB277/1067 (a patient's right to sterilization treatment).

HB1276 (repealing the prohibition on the possession or sale of blackjacks, slung shots, and metallic knuckles except by or to minors)

HB1530 (requiring fish and game officers to wear body cameras)

Died on the Table (No vote to pass or kill it, debate postponed until the term ended):

HB316 (meetings of supervisors of the checklist)

HB647 (causes of action for individual rights)

HB1640 (qualified immunity standards)

Inexpedient to Legislate (the legislature voted to kill the bill):

HB387 (permitting election ballots to be viewed pursuant to a right to know request)

HB415 (making ballots cast in elections public documents.)

HB521 (department of education payment for placement for an episode of treatment)

Indefinitely Postponed(the legislature voted to kill the bill and ban it from being reintroduced in the second year of the term - the harshest way to kill a bill):

HB1377 (relative to granting workers free choice to join or refrain from joining labor unions.)

While not all the bills I supported became law, I am proud of working on them. Sometimes, we fight for a bill that will not pass so we can make progress towards passing it another session.

I am looking forward to hearing from you at (617) 755 2590 (text or call) or by email at dpmwindham@gmail.com (please text or call me after you send an email to tell me to look for it so I don’t miss it). 

Daniel Popovici-Muller

Clerk, Finance II House Committee,

2025-2026 Republican State Representative Candidate

P. S. In regards to the indefinitely postponed HB1377 - right to work legislation will be reintroduced next year, and I will keep working to pass it. The legislature can kill a bill for a term, but nobody can prevent it from coming back term after term until it finally becomes law.