[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6292320,"mediaKeyId","2526578-620fd1caa6f05afa8cb4a150e6058b90","parentId",2526578,"title","ACLU warns HB289 would condition New Hampshire voting rights on parents' tax claims, citing constitutional and enforcement concerns","audioSeconds",464,"startMs",1212000,"endMs",1676000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2526578-620fd1caa6f05afa8cb4a150e6058b90&start=1212&end=1676","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2526578-620fd1caa6f05afa8cb4a150e6058b90/thumbnail_1212000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6292320/New-Hampshire/ACLU-warns-HB289-would-condition-New-Hampshire-voting-rights-on-parents-tax-claims-citing-constitutional-and-enforcement-concerns","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6292320-767045f5dfcacf18ca4099157ae12b12/orig.mp4?Expires=1771142816&Signature=XnWyO3nb~SWTuZZXmjuoUsiJAWGECx~9CB1fmxlF~gyAttUw0SfOOnSxpqGSQtr6-0xWkcQ7EaWVCoubtIsthFqlwOF3pfXMy1Cvum1FYLyGEm5gi3hVmAEttkbfP6azkE-HHgLrs9crSf4bdRMtpW-jVo5Xt0SQBFcRtmTHDS18vBXQw5Hl~igyNpQfpnDQohACZJTomHpyhmHicH8OrEr4hTDsq1MBOMh1b9pKeht7KyqR3iCDrYRJHntdp7Wd-dMTDKB8qym2JI7sfNFEw2f0m658CcRdKpTMK5MKE4AUk6mCYoG1AkRfD6ZLl1AJQyb2DEMXOKptFcfGMgnbhg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","NH House of Representatives Committee Streaming","date","2025-03-07T00:00:00Z","article","The House Election Law Subcommittee on Friday heard testimony on House Bill 289, a relist on domicile qualifications that would bar a person from claiming domicile in New Hampshire if they are claimed as a tax dependent by parents who live outside the state. Henry Clementowich, deputy legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire, told the panel he believes the provision raises constitutional and practical problems.

Clementowich said the bill would \"condition someone else's right to vote on the actions of another, which is their parents,\" and called that an unconstitutional condition because other domicile tests are within a person's control. He also warned that tax returns are confidential and that a young voter \"would be at a loss\" to know whether a parent had claimed them as a dependent.

The issue matters because domicile is central to the right to vote in New Hampshire: residents must establish domicile to register and to vote. Clementowich said tying domicile to a parent's tax filing would give parents a de facto veto over a dependent's ability to vote in the state and would be difficult or impossible to enforce because moderators and state officials generally cannot access another person's tax returns.

Michael O'Brien, a lobbyist with Pretty Strategies representing America Votes, told the committee the University of New Hampshire residency and in-state tuition rules illustrate how dependence is treated differently in administrative contexts. O'Brien read UNH's standard that a student \"is considered to be that of their parent unless the student is emancipated\" and noted UNH determines residency at the time of admission for a degree. He said those tuition rules have a longer establishment period than typical voting laws.

Representative Burnham asked follow-up questions but did not press for immediate action. The subcommittee chair reiterated that no formal actions would be taken without a quorum; earlier in the meeting the chair said HB608 had been listed in error and would not be reviewed by the subcommittee. The panel did not vote on HB289 Friday.

Supporters of HB289 have argued the bill would clarify how domicile and tax dependency interact. Opponents, including Clementowich and O'Brien in their testimony, urged caution: Clementowich recommended against a statutory test that depends on another person's (a parent's) private tax choices, and O'Brien highlighted that university tuition definitions do not map neatly onto voting-domicile standards.

The subcommittee said it will continue to gather information and indicated the full Election Law Committee could take up bills that the subcommittee does not act on. No formal vote on HB289 was recorded at the working session.

The subcommittee meeting record shows members also discussed logistics and next steps for drafting a report; no next-step deadlines specific to HB289 were set on the record.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Election Law (03/07/2025)","oneSentenceSummary","The House Election Law Subcommittee on Friday heard testimony on House Bill 289, a relist on domicile qualifications that would bar a person from claiming domicile in New Hampshire if they are claimed as a tax dependent by parents who live outside the state.","taxTitle","Election Law, House of Representatives, Committees\t, Legislative, New Hampshire","taxId",17746,"location","New Hampshire","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6292316,"Witnesses tell Election Law subcommittee absentee affidavit changes created chain-of-custody and verification gaps; witness urges statute-level fixes",2223,3430000,5653000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2526578-620fd1caa6f05afa8cb4a150e6058b90&start=3430&end=5653","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2526578-620fd1caa6f05afa8cb4a150e6058b90/thumbnail_3430000.jpg","/articles/6292316/New-Hampshire/Witnesses-tell-Election-Law-subcommittee-absentee-affidavit-changes-created-chain-of-custody-and-verification-gaps-witness-urges-statute-level-fixes","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6292316-836a28593fe0f4b6343f04e8157caf7b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771142816&Signature=alom9GWd2qGq4TlXq5Yl~MBRp3UscFjRJDwmuUkJUgMVQF07xxd-y6J5UYhOFHJWFuhTB~Mzl~hqyvpxdF-SJrP1k1GEljOWUCocI17UunkduonJS95ptJtf7FHE8hPyy-XusH03GTk1XcT6nUBSUWI~hglwIyLYNtRcPCXxSga9a2RFQYIarFRfowurcd4BrU4PXOa47ul46uP96mcicuoUIL0vd-2GU8IEc7uxPLgC07ZP8hZ0KZIhZLFpcQxWSwuvrVEParWdSW-8onfHS9YUaWdnYG7ObSCrAk-qceq58EBu-PTX9VcCJiSREcwJwrwIvhOjMA6yB78dq49kzg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House Election Law Subcommittee spent more than an hour Friday hearing detailed testimony about absentee-affidavit procedures, the state election procedure manual and long-standing statutory definitions that Daniel Richard, a New Hampshire resident and frequent election-law witness, said have produced verification gaps in absentee voting.

Richard told the panel he has litigated election-law issues through the state Supreme Court and said the current practice, which he traced to a 1979 recodification of election statutes, removed requirements that began what he described as a lawful chain of custody for absentee ballots. \"The notary certificate was just the sealing the deal, confirming that the process... We now have a lawful chain of custody, and everyone's being treated the same,\" Richard said in testimony describing earlier practice.

He told members the legislature previously required an eyewitness — a notary public, justice of the peace, selectman, clerk or moderator — to witness a voter mark and insert an absentee ballot into its envelope; that requirement now is absent in statute or has been altered, he said. Richard warned the change makes many absentee ballots effectively \"defective\" for recount and audit purposes, and he argued the disparity between machine-counted jurisdictions and places that use hand counts raises equal-protection concerns.

Richard also criticized the use of the Election Procedure Manual as an operational substitute for statutory law. He said the Manual includes guidance on affidavit envelopes but is not legislation and that the Secretary of State and attorney general \"do not have lawmaking power\" to rewrite statutory execution requirements.

Richard pointed to specific statutory provisions and past amendments in his testimony and noted that the state Supreme Court remanded his equal-protection claim for further proceedings. He also highlighted practical evidence from 2020: absentee voting rose sharply that year and accounted for roughly 32 percent of ballots in New Hampshire (about 260,000 ballots), increasing the scale of any procedural gap, he said.

Representatives on the subcommittee asked practical questions about accommodating voters who are homebound, overseas or in the military. Richard suggested restoring earlier procedures that allowed local officials to authenticate absentee ballots in person — for example, by dispatching an authorized local official to long-term-care facilities or homes — rather than relying on unsigned self-affirmations.

The subcommittee also heard from other witnesses earlier in the session who noted related definitions and enforcement issues. Committee members emphasized they will consider statutory fixes, the scope of any administrative guidance and the interplay with federal law, including the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requirements and federal prohibitions on durational residency requirements for voting.

No formal actions were taken Friday; the subcommittee chair said a report will be prepared and distributed to the full Election Law Committee and that members may pursue legislation or further study based on the record.

","The House Election Law Subcommittee heard testimony that changes to absentee-affidavit requirements and the use of an election procedure manual have removed a notarized start to the absentee-ballot chain of custody, creating verification and recount challenges.","actionData","errors"]

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ACLU warns HB289 would condition New Hampshire voting rights on parents' tax claims, citing constitutional and enforcement concerns

Witnesses tell Election Law subcommittee absentee affidavit changes created chain-of-custody and verification gaps; witness urges statute-level fixes