NH Union Leader – February 19, 2025
By KEVIN LANDRIGAN, Union Leader Staff
House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, on Tuesday proposed a complete rewrite of his original parental rights legislation (HB 10), hopeful it would remove “flaws” and lead to passage of the priority bill for Gov. Kelly Ayotte. But some education and medical professionals said they still opposed the new version, warning it would put children who live in “vulnerable” homes at greater risk of physical or emotional abuse. “I have had so many parents from across the state come to me and tell me that they are the ones who are responsible for the upbringing of their children,” Packard said in opening two hours of testimony.
“The schools are there to teach them. The parents are the ones who are responsible for their health, for their upbringing, putting a roof over their heads and feeding them. The schools are not the responsible party when it comes to raising the child.” Packard credited Rep. Debra DeSimone, R-Atkinson, with leading a working group that rewrote the bill. “The original bills had flaws; those flaws have been taken care of,” Packard said. A key concession Packard made was to strike a criminal penalty for an educator who violated parental rights.
Deborah Howes, president of the American Federation of Teachers, called the legislation a “great improvement.” But the union head remained in opposition over concerns that she said it could give an individual parent control over what all children could experience in the classroom. The bill states that parents “have a fundamental liberty interest to raise and care for their minor children.” This includes the right to have access to, be notified of and provided with “all information” regarding those rights.
For three years, Packard has championed the cause that’s come within a few votes of passing the closely divided House. GOP leaders are now confident it will pass that body that picked up about 20 more House Republicans in the last election Nov. 5. What sparked the bill was a case in Manchester when the city school board cited its policy in refusing to provide the mother information about her child’s stated desire to use different pronouns. The state Supreme Court affirmed parental rights but in denying the woman’s case it decided it was not an “unqualified right” in New Hampshire.
Executive Councilor Karen Liot Hill, D-Lebanon, said much of the language in the bill would be difficult to enforce and could become a barrier for children to get help. “I think there is good intention here but there are unintended consequences,” Liot Hill said. Zoe Hill of Lebanon, Liot Hill’s daughter, agreed. “This will take away safe spaces for children outside the home,” Hill said. “When children don’t have people to talk to about their mental health and anything they are facing this can lead to deterioration of their health and even an end to their own lives.”
Linds Jakows of Dover, a co-founder of 603 Equality, said gay or transgender students could be at particular risk of harm should the legislation pass. “While this bill does not single out LGBTQ+ students directly, I ask the committee to examine how the language will impact LGBTQ+ students who are not ready to come out to their parents, and who may face direct consequences at home,” Jakows wrote in her testimony. Betsy Harrington, a former therapist and one-time state child protection worker from Deering, said too many educators resist a parent’s attempts to limit their children’s exposure to controversial material. “I’m the parent you are talking about and please consider the thoughts about how I might raise my kids,” Harrington said.
Cathy Stratton, chief executive officer of the New Hampshire Medical Society, said a parental consent mandate for all health care services in the bill was too sweeping and failed to respect the relationship a clinician has with a minor patient. “Such a law would delay treatment and cause some minors to cancel their plans, and this could discourage vulnerable individuals from seeking care, resulting in life-threatening consequences,” Stratton warned.
A health care provider violating this section of the bill could be subject to disciplinary action and prosecuted for a Class A misdemeanor that carries up to a one-year sentence in county jail.
As of late Tuesday, 163 had signed up online supporting Packard’s bill while 1,020 had registered opposition to it. The House Children and Family Law Committee has scheduled an executive session March 4 to make a final recommendation on it.