HB 1628
requiring schools to provide excused absences for certain religious instruction, defining released time courses, and permitting schools to adopt policies and provide credit for released time courses.
Official record at gencourt.state.nh.us ↗Open this bill in the searchable view → · Follow this bill by RSS
On the record
Quoted from the General Court bill status page, not worked out from the docket.
| Status | HOUSE |
|---|---|
| In the House | INEXPEDIENT TO LEGISLATE |
| Introduced | 1/7/2026 |
| Floor date | 2/12/2026 |
| LSR number | 2949 |
| Local government impact | no |
| Committee code | H62 |
Where it stands
House: INEXPEDIENT TO LEGISLATE
Every floor vote on this bill was a voice or division vote, so there is no record of how individual legislators voted.
A bill goes on the consent calendar when the committee vote was unanimous or nearly so, and any members who dissented did not object to placing it there. It then passes without floor debate. Ten members may file a petition to pull a bill off the consent calendar and have it debated and voted on separately.
Sponsors
MacDonald, Wayne(R) Rock 16
Prime sponsor in bold. From the General Court sponsor file.
What happened
Every action recorded in the official docket, in order. Each line ends with the journal or calendar that recorded it; where we have the document, that citation links to it.
- January 7, 2026Introduced 01/07/2026 and referred to Education Policy and Administration
- January 12, 2026Public Hearing: 01/12/2026 10:30 am GP 232
- January 12, 2026Executive Session: 01/12/2026 10:30 am GP 232
- February 4, 2026Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate 01/29/2026 (Vote 16-0; CC)
- February 12, 2026Inexpedient to Legislate: MA VV 02/12/2026
Votes
Roll call tallies and individual votes from the General Court roll call files. Presiding, excused and absent are shown separately: one member presides over each House roll call and does not vote except to break a tie.
Inexpedient to Legislate
Decided on a voice vote. Only the outcome was recorded — there is no count of how any member voted.
Committee reports
Reproduced from the House Calendar in the committee’s own words.
Committee — INEXPEDIENT TO LEGISLATE
This is another mandate on public education. There are several concerns with this bill such as time away from public education, how to determine the amount of credit to be awarded for these courses, and how much credit can be awarded. The committee received no testimony indicating that this was an issue in the state. Most religious organizations provide education outside of school hours and there is no specific need for release time or this legislation. Vote 16-0.
Hearings and recordings
Recordings are the General Court’s own, on YouTube. Start times are estimates unless stated otherwise, and the player opens early.
- January 12, 2026 at 10:30Education Policy and Administration public hearing recording 0:56:18–1:42:51, about 47 min (estimated)
- January 12, 2026 at 10:30Education Policy and Administration executive session recording (start time not identified)
- February 12, 2026House floor debate recording (start time not identified)
Page generated 2026-09-03 from data published by the New Hampshire General Court. Granite Record is an independent project, not affiliated with the General Court. The official record always takes precedence. Corrections: [email protected]