It’s that time of year again when people are decorating for the holidays, preparing to visit friends and family and looking forward to a new year.   It is also the time when Legislative Service Requests (LSRs) start to be released in the form of bills for the coming year.  We are writing to let you know about the bad as well as the good ones.

We’ll begin the list with HB 1096, introduced by Rep. David Meuse along with a who’s who of anti-gun legislators.  HB 1096 is an open carry ban — plain and simple.  These eight legislators want to fine anyone who openly carries a gun at or near a polling place $500 for a first offense and send a gun carrier to jail for a subsequent offense. GOA position = OPPOSE

Rep. Meuse isn’t stopping his anti-gun assault with just one bill, he has also introduced HB 1151 which bans  open carry at a long list of other places. Such as funeral processions, marches, picket lines and demonstrations.  HB 1151 subjects first offense violators to a $100 fine and subesequent offenders can be sent to jail.  GOA position = OPPOSE

Perennial anti-gun activist, Rep. Katherine Rogers has once again introduced a ban on selling, giving or loaning a gun to a friend or family member. While the text has not yet been released, we know from past attempts that LSR 2022-2017 will be terrible.  GOA position = OPPOSE

Those were the bad, now for the good.  Longtime pro-gun champion, Rep. John Burt is trying once again to extend the almost five year old Constitutional Carry law to snowmobiles and ATVs. Even though the text of LSR 2022-2350 is not yet posted on the General Court’s website, we have seen a copy and it is a strong pro-gun bill.  Rep. Burt is joined by the following pro-gun State Reps. Gary Hopper, Chris True, Gregory Hill, Norman Silber, Walter Stapleton, Hershel Nunez, Beth Folsom, Jim Kofalt, Niki Kelsey, along with Senators Bob Giuda, Harold French and Kevin Avard.  GOA position = SUPPORT

Rep. Burt and twelve co-sponsors have also introduced HB 1178.  You might recall that in 2020, the House amended SB 154 into a useful bill that would have prevented New Hampshire law enforcement from enforcing ANY anti-gun federal law, rule or executive order.  Unfortunately, the Committee of Conference made it into an anti-gun bill and we urged the House to reject the conference version.  HB 1178 is a good bill and will, if enacted into law, prevent state and local resources from being used to enforce federal gun control.    Click here to read the alert we sent after the Committee of Conference destroyed SB 154.  We hope that in 2022 we can get HB 1178, as introduced, enacted into law.  GOA position = SUPPORT  HB 1178

Rep. Jim Spillane has introduced HB 1091.  This important legislation will rein in the abusive, civil liberties violators at the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department.  HB 1091 treats conservation officers like every other police officer in New Hampshire by requiring a showing of probable cause to search peoples cars or boats.  It also does away with some of the exceptions to the warrant requirement.   Anyone who has watched Northwoods Law and has a mere passing familiarity with the Fourth and Fifth Amendments understands that action is needed to protect peoples’ civil rights from abusive Conservation Officers.  GOA position = SUPPORT HB 1091

We also want to remind you that GOA’s strength comes from you, the grassroots gun owner.  In the coming weeks and months we will ask you to take action on these bills.  Please respond to our call so that we can prevent New Hampshire from turning into New York.