MPP - New Hampshire Medical Marijuana Veto Upheld

SB 409 Passes House Votes to Override Gov. Lynch, Senate Falls Short

CONCORD -- Today, the New Hampshire Legislature narrowly failed to overturn Gov. John Lynch’s veto of a proposed medical marijuana bill. SB 409, which would have allowed people with certain qualifying medical conditions to grow and possess limited amounts of marijuana with doctors’ recommendations, was approved by the House and Senate earlier this month. That was the first time a Republican-led legislature sent a governor an effective medical marijuana bill. Gov. Lynch vetoed the bill last Thursday, citing law enforcement concerns that advocates had previously amended the bill to address.

            The veto came as no surprise. Lynch vetoed similar legislation in 2009, after which the House voted by more than two-thirds to override the veto, but support in the Senate fell two votes short of the necessary two-thirds. Although a total of 16 senators voted for the bill this year, the Senate did not reach the necessary votes to override the veto today. The vote was 13-10, and 16 votes were needed. Despite strong public support, Democratic Senators Lou D'Allesandro and Sylvia Larsen reversed their “yes” votes on the bill and voted to uphold the veto of Gov. Lynch, who is also a Democrat. In addition, the seat of another previous “yes” vote, Sen. Andy Sanborn, was vacated so he could run for Senate in another district.

            Matt Simon, a legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project, said, “Gov. Lynch has chosen to bury his head in the sand on this issue, and once again he was able to get enough lawmakers to join him and deprive the people of New Hampshire of much-needed relief. We will continue working with lawmakers to allow seriously ill patients to use marijuana free from the fear of arrest. We are hopeful that the new governor will be more reasonable.”

            The Marijuana Policy Project, the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States, is responsible for most state-level marijuana policy reforms passed since 2000. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

MPP - Lynch Vetoes Medical Marijuana Bill

Patients Hopes Rest with House and Senate

CONCORD -- Today Governor John Lynch followed through on his threat to veto SB 409, New Hampshire’s medical marijuana bill.  The bill will now return to the House and Senate for a final vote that will decide the bill’s fate.

            Veto override votes are planned for June 27 in both the House and Senate.

            The veto came as no surprise. Lynch vetoed similar legislation in 2009, after which the House voted by more than two-thirds to override the veto, but support in the Senate fell two votes short of the necessary two-thirds.

            Senator Jim Forsythe (R-Strafford), prime sponsor of SB 409, vowed he would continue urging his colleagues to vote in favor so seriously ill patients can finally be protected from arrest if their doctors recommend medical marijuana.

            “This is a limited, responsible bill, and it’s designed to protect some of our state’s most desperately ill citizens,” Forsythe said. “SB 409 has gained momentum and support throughout the legislative process, and the result of our hard work is a bill the House and Senate should be proud to pass into law.”.

            Tuftonboro resident Ted Wright, whose wife Cindy has been battling breast cancer more than 18 years, urged the House and Senate to do the right thing and protect patients. “Despite the governor’s unfortunate veto, there’s no reason patients like Cindy should have to wait another day for medical marijuana to be a legal option,” Wright explained.

            Matt Simon, a legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project, agreed, saying, “Governor Lynch has chosen to bury his head in the sand on this issue, but ultimately it will be legislators who decide the fate of patients, and they know their constituents will be watching.”

            The Marijuana Policy Project, the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States, is responsible for most state-level marijuana policy reforms passed since 2000. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

Josiah Bartlett Center - Gov. Lynch Corrects his Mistake

Second Veto Message Corrects Mistakes in First

Josiah Bartlett Center President Charlie Arlinghaus issued the following statement thanking Governor John Lynch for correcting his mistake on school choice:

"I want to thank Governor John Lynch for correcting his mistake on the School Choice Scholarship Act. While we disagree with the Governor's veto, we are confident that the Legislature can now consider the School Choice Scholarship Act on its merits, and on what is actually in the bill."

The Legislature convenes on Wednesday to consider vetoes of SB 372 and HB 1607.

AFPNH - What Will Governor Lynch Veto?

Granite State Gatherings   June 13 – Manchester GOP Meeting at NHIOP at 6PM. Click here for more information. June 13 – Rye Republican Town Committee meeting at Rye Public Library at 6:30PM. Click here for more information. June 14 – Nashua Republican City Committee Meeting at Crowne Plaza at 6:30PM. Click here for more information. June 14 – Carroll County GOP Meeting at Whittier House at 7PM. Click here for more information. June 16 – Lyndeborough-Mont Vernon Town Committee Meeting at 9AM. Click here for more information. June 19 – Windham GOP Committee Meeting at Windham Senior Center at 7PM. July 10 - Jackie Cilley at NH Gubernatorial Candidate Speaking Series hosted by Rockingham Park at the Belmont Room at 71 Rockingham Park Blvd in Salem at 7PM.  July 17 - Kevin Smith at NH Gubernatorial Candidate Speaking Series hosted by Rockingham Park at the Belmont Room at 71 Rockingham Park Blvd in Salem at 7PM. July 24 - Maggie Hassan at NH Gubernatorial Candidate Speaking Series hosted by Rockingham Park at the Belmont Room at 71 Rockingham Park Blvd in Salem at 7PM. July 31 - Bill Kennedy at NH Gubernatorial Candidate Speaking Series hosted by Rockingham Park at the Belmont Room at 71 Rockingham Park Blvd in Salem at 7PM. August 7 - Ovide Lamontagne at NH Gubernatorial Candidate Speaking Series hosted by Rockingham Park at the Belmont Room at 71 Rockingham Park Blvd in Salem at 7PM.

First, Governor Lynch has signed into law SB 382, which will allow for proration of property assessments for damaged buildings. While we are pleased with the Governor’s signature on this important piece of legislation; the fate of other bills still hangs in the balance. Governor Lynch MAY veto other pieces of legislation passed the House and Senate including: the compromise version of RGGI; the bill which will prevent our state from joining a Liquid RGGI program; as well as HB 1607 and SB 372, which would establish education tax credits. We will keep you posted on the status of all these bills. Secondly, AFP-NH was proud to join with business leaders and organizations in the communities of Salem and Windham on Saturday to host the Southern NH Gubernatorial Economic Forum. More than eighty people turned out to hear Speaker of the NH House Bill O’Brien and gubernatorial candidates Ovide Lamontagne and Kevin Smith discuss their ideas to improve economic conditions in the southern part of the state. We look forward to hosting many more events like this around NH that give you an opportunity to interact directly with your elected officials and candidates for office. Third, our sister organization, Americans for Prosperity Foundation, is hosting the fifth annual RightOnline Conference this week in Las Vegas. For those of you who are unable attend, we will make videos from the conference available once it is completed. In the meantime, I encourage you to learn more about another Americans for Prosperity Foundation event, the Defending the Dream Summit, which will take place August 2-4 in Washington, D.C. Please CLICK HERE to learn more and CLICK HERE for details on early bird registration prices! Finally, please check out the Granite State Gatherings Section to learn more about other upcoming events. Sincerely, Corey R. Lewandowski State Director Americans for Prosperity New Hampshire P.S. Please CLICK HERE to donate to our efforts.

NHGOP Statement on State Senate Veto Override of Deadly Force Bill

Lawmakers Take First Step in Overriding Governor Lynch’s Veto of SB 88

Concord, NH –Republican State Committee Chairman Wayne MacDonald released the following statement on the successful override vote in the New Hampshire Senate of SB 88.  SB 88 has become known as the “Deadly Force Bill” and was vetoed by Governor John Lynch despite widespread support from the public.  The bill gives law abiding citizens the right to use deadly force to protect themselves in self-defense situations.

“The citizens of New Hampshire should be extremely proud that the State Senate stood up for law abiding citizens and their Second Amendment rights by overriding the Governor’s veto of SB 88 today.   In New Hampshire, self-defense is both a right and a responsibility.  Clearly, Democrat Leadership does not value these principals.  They would rather try to score cheap political points than debate the serious issue of allowing citizens to defend themselves when faced with attacks perpetrated by criminals.”