Catholic Citizenship News

HB 1633 Update

Alert:

Defend the Common Good – Help to Stop Legalization of Marijuana (HB 1633)

HB 1633 is a bill to legalize marijuana. The Diocese of Manchester opposes this bill because, in our view, legalizing marijuana would be harmful to the common good of New Hampshire. The principle of the common good is a cornerstone of Catholic Social Teaching and of the state and federal constitutions as well.

What Can You Do?

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a public hearing on the bill on Thursday, April 25 at 1:45 PM in State House Room 100. The full Senate will vote on the bill sometime in the following weeks.

Please do the following, as soon as possible:

1. Sign in electronically to register your opposition to the bill by going to this link:
   
   The New Hampshire State Senate
   
   Please do this before midnight on April 24. Electronic sign-in closes at midnight on April 25.
   
   
2. Call or email your state senator and ask them to vote against HB 1633. To find out who your senator is, visit:
   
   The New Hampshire State Senate
   
   
3. If you are able to do so, attend the hearing to show your opposition to the bill. If you are at the hearing, you can even consider testifying against the bill.

HB 1283 Update

Alert: Help stop state-sanctioned suicide!

Hearing scheduled on HB 1283

The Senate Health and Human Services Committee has scheduled a hearing on HB 1283 for Wednesday, April 24, at 10 AM in State House Room 103. Please do the following right away:

1. Sign in electronically to register your opposition to the bill by going to this link:
   
   The New Hampshire State Senate
   
   Note that this is a new hearing, so if you signed in when the bill was in the House you should do it again now that the bill is in the Senate.
   
   Please do this by midnight on April 23. Electronic sign-in closes at midnight on April 24.
   
   
2. Call your state senator and ask them to vote against HB 1283. To find out who your senator is, go here:
   
   The New Hampshire State Senate
   
   
3. If you are able to do so, come to the hearing to show your opposition to the bill. If you are at the hearing, you can even consider testifying against the bill.

DOWNLOAD the flyer on how to stop state-approved assisted suicide.

Thank you for your help in putting a stop to this dangerous proposal.

HB 1283 History

In its session of March 28, the House refused to reconsider its vote to pass HB 1283. Thus, the House vote to pass HB 1283 by a margin of 179-176 remains in place and the bill goes over to the Senate. We will provide further updates on next steps in the coming days. In the meantime, thank you to all who reached out to House members over the last few weeks.

On Thursday, March 21, the New Hampshire House voted 179-176 to pass HB 1283, the bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide. Thank you to all who have helped in the effort to show how passing HB 1283 would be harmful to the common good. Obviously, this was an exceedingly close vote, and a shift in only two votes would have killed the bill.

The House Judiciary Committee voted on March 6 to recommend that the New Hampshire House of Representatives ought to pass HB 1283 (Assisted Suicide) by a vote of 13 to 7. 

In order to help defeat this bill, the Diocese is working alongside the NH Coalition for Suicide Prevention, a diverse group that includes health care providers, veterans, and people with disabilities and their advocates. The Church teaches that suicide is always a tragedy and that a caring community should respond with hospice and palliative care to better meet the needs of those facing the end of life.

Thank you to all who signed in to oppose HB 1283, or contacted a legislator, or came to the HB 1283 House Judiciary Committee hearing on February 7. The final tally of the remote sign-in portal: 658 in support, 1125 opposed!

You can view the hearing here: House Judiciary (02/07/2024) - YouTube

What can you do now?

Please call your House members, and respectfully share your opposition to HB 1283. Ask them to stand up for people with disabilities, veterans, young people, and our seniors.

The New Hampshire House of Representatives -  Contact Information

Stay tuned to this webpage for further information.

Testimony Against HB 1633

January 17, 2024 – The Diocese of Manchester submitted written and oral testimony to register opposition to HB 1633, which would legalize marijuana.  

Testimony Against CACR 24

January 4, 2024 – The Diocese of Manchester submitted written and oral testimony against CACR 24, a proposed New Hampshire State Constitutional Amendment that would make abortion a constitutional right.