HB 1802-FN-A
relative to training, testing, and certification of local land use board members and making an appropriations therefor.
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 | 2/5/2026 |
| LSR number | 2300 |
| Local government impact | no |
| Committee code | H18 |
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
Aylward, Deborah(R) Merr 5, Fracht, David(D) Graf 16, Ulery, Jordan(R) Hills 13
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 Municipal and County Government
- January 20, 2026Public Hearing: 01/20/2026 11:20 am GP 154
- January 20, 2026Executive Session: 01/20/2026 11:20 am GP 154
- January 29, 2026Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate 01/20/2026 (Vote 18-0; CC)
- February 5, 2026Inexpedient to Legislate: MA VV 02/05/2026
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 bill would mandate annual training, testing, and certification for all elected and appointed planning board and zoning board of adjustment members; require the creation of a statewide system to track and publicly post member qualifications through the Office of Planning and Development (OPD); and vest enforcement responsibilities with OPD. Under current New Hampshire law, training and testing for planning board members are optional. Members of the committee agree with the bill’s sponsors that land use law is complex and that training for planning and zoning board members is beneficial. However, the committee has significant concerns about the bill’s approach. State-mandated training represents a top-down model that fails to account for the unique needs, circumstances, and locally adopted rules of individual communities. The bill also lacks any meaningful mechanism to ensure that new or existing members actually become certified. No penalties are imposed for failure to complete certification, other than exclusion from the list of certified members read aloud by the chair at the beginning of each public meeting. Given the ongoing difficulty in recruiting and retaining volunteers to serve on these boards, publicly distinguishing between “certified” and “non-certified” members may further discourage participation. While OPD could potentially develop a platform for training and certification, it lacks any enforcement authority over local land use board members to require participation or compliance. Additionally, the fiscal note raises serious concerns about feasibility. OPD estimates that a one-time appropriation of $25,000—intended to support ongoing training development, technology and infrastructure upgrades, administrative staffing, marketing, and research—falls well short of the $100,000 to $500,000 necessary to adequately fund such a program. For these reasons, the committee voted unanimously to recommend the bill Inexpedient to Legislate. Vote 18-0.
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 20, 2026 at 11:20Municipal and County Government public hearing recording 6:02:02–6:06:13, about 4 min (estimated)
- January 20, 2026 at 11:20Municipal and County Government executive session recording (start time not identified)
- February 5, 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]