NH Business: Over 1,300 Bills in the NH Legislature – Overview of Housing, Energy, Data Privacy, Environment, and Telecommunications Bills
Fred Kocher speaks with Michael Skelton, president and CEO of the New Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, to discuss legislation that could affect many of us, not just businesses.
Updated: February 4, 2024 10:01 AM EST
work. I'm Fred Kocher. He has over 1,300 bills in the New Hampshire Legislature. Everything from housing to data privacy to gray squirrel production. We won't talk about that. But joining us as we weigh bills that could impact businesses is Mike Skelton, president and CEO of the New Hampshire Chamber of Commerce. welcome. Michael, nice to have you in the studio. He's always happy to be here. As you know, the lack of affordable housing is a concern for everyone. As something that needs a solution. And now we have a bill to make that happen. Actually several bills. Now let's move on to business profits taxes and housing tax credits purchased by employers to offset business tax liability. This credit is used to convert old factories, warehouses, and other underutilized buildings into housing. What are you saying? Well, we think this is a really good idea and we support it. This is one of many housing bills to be considered this session. As you point out, New Hampshire is facing a housing crisis. And it's impacting our workforce and our ability to grow our economy. Therefore, such measures are part of all the above strategies. We need to build more apartments, more condos, and more single-family homes. It helps our economic growth. And you said there's going to be a ton of housing bills this session, that's definitely true. Yeah. This is one of dozens of bills aimed at increasing housing supply. And no one person can solve the problem alone. So you really need multiple solutions like this. Now, this is the bill that you say would limit the expansion of wireless communications in New Hampshire. Housing Bill 1487 requires communications antennas to be located at least 1640 feet from residential areas. To protect schools, parks, playgrounds, etc. from the health effects of radio frequencies. Hmm, what about that? Is there a problem here? I don't think there is a problem here. As you know, this falls into the category of what is considered unnecessary regulation that could impact our business environment. As you know, our job at the CIA as a statewide chamber is to make sure our state's business environment is healthy, prosperous, and a business-leading state. One of the most important things we can do in this regard is to ensure that there are no burden regulations. And I think there is a well-intentioned effort in this to keep us safe. However, there is no documented evidence that there are any risks associated with this type of issue. And this will further complicate and complicate what we need to do to ensure our infrastructure systems support economic growth. Now, data, data privacy, something we're all concerned about these days. And here are two bills. Um, confidentiality of medical records, all medical information held by a healthcare provider is also the property of the patient and can be accessed by both you and the patient. Protection of personal information related to driver's licenses. Now, Michael, these are the two bills you're supporting. We value your privacy. Yeah. That's where data privacy comes into play. Details Matter I think we all agree that the privacy of consumer data should be protected. But what Congress does on this matter is critical to ensuring that the companies that rely on access to this information can provide the services that consumers want. Therefore, you should proceed with caution when proceeding with these things. And there is usually room for compromise and the ability to make sure that the intent of Congress is consistent with what we need to do to allow commerce to continue. Now, you said your bill says energy projects in New Hampshire are delayed in this particular committee? Well, then, by reducing the members of the evaluation committee cited in the evaluation from 9 to 5: 3 from the Utilities Commission, 1 from the Department of Energy, and the Public Utility Commission, the Do you mean attracting investment for this purpose? what's happening? This is a long-standing effort to consider how we permit and cite New Hampshire's energy infrastructure, and one of the most important things we can do to lower energy costs is is to facilitate construction. It sounds simple, but it's actually quite complex. The Site Evaluation Committee is an important institution that we have here. We need to improve our ability to assess this infrastructure more effectively, more timely, and more quickly, and move construction forward more quickly. I think there were delays and decisions in this initiative. Absolutely and very quickly, and I actually declared that, regarding the circumstances that restrict the use of polyfluoroalkyl alkyls. This is a PFAS substance. Substances are a group of synthetic chemicals used in certain consumer products such as packaging and fabrics. Yeah. I know this is an important issue and one that many people are interested in. It's been in the news recently here in New Hampshire and in many other states. These substances are used in dozens or even hundreds of products, so again, you need to be very careful about what you do about this. Almost everything we use on a daily basis. And we have to strike the right balance between protecting consumers and making sure we're actually applying science-based regulations to protect individuals. I'm not aware of it, but the Department of Environmental Services is investigating them in many areas of New Hampshire. absolutely. Thank you, Michael Skelton, President and CEO of the New Hampshire Chamber of Commerce. Thank you, Fred. If you missed any of this briefing about potential bills in the state Legislature or bills already in the process.
NH Business: Over 1,300 Bills in the NH Legislature – Overview of Housing, Energy, Data Privacy, Environment, and Telecommunications Bills
Fred Kocher speaks with Michael Skelton, president and CEO of the New Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, to discuss legislation that could affect many of us, not just businesses.
Updated: February 4, 2024 10:01 AM EST
There are more than 1,300 bills introduced in the New Hampshire Legislature, ranging from housing to data privacy and more. We continue to face a housing crisis here in the Granite State, impacting our workforce and our ability to grow our economy. One of dozens of bills, the housing bill SB 364, was enacted as one of his strategies to build more apartments, condos and single-family homes. All also to help economic growth. There is more than one bill that will help solve the housing crisis. Achieving this requires multiple solutions. Fred Kocher speaks with Michael Skelton, president and CEO of operations and operations, about this sector of New Hampshire's operations. The NH Industry Association considers legislative proposals that could impact many of us, not just businesses.
There are more than 1,300 bills introduced in the New Hampshire Legislature, ranging from housing to data privacy and more.
We continue to face a housing crisis here in the Granite State, impacting our workforce and our ability to grow our economy.
The housing bill, SB 364, is one of dozens of bills enacted as one strategy to build more apartments, condos, and single-family homes. All also to help economic growth.
There is no single bill that will help solve the housing crisis; multiple solutions are needed to achieve this.
Fred Kocher speaks with Michael Skelton, president and CEO of the New Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, about this area of business in New Hampshire and the possibilities that will impact not just businesses, but many of us. Let me explain about a bill.
