Kevin Landrigan

GOV. KELLY AYOTTE used to be attorney general, but she took a pass when asked to weigh in on whether the current AG might have come down too hard on Supreme Court Associate Justice Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi

Developers, planners, engineers and lawyers told Executive Councilor John Stephen, R-Manchester, that they would welcome changes in state laws and regulations to speed up the process of getting permits for residential and commercial projects from state and local agencies.

Following the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump and the Martin Luther King Jr. Civil Rights Day holiday, state lawmakers return to the State House Tuesday for testimony on more than 180 bills that include the high-profile topics of anti-sanctuary city policies, the legalization of marijuana, a ban on cellphone use in public schools and two abortion issues.

Developers, planners, engineers and lawyers told Executive Councilor John Stephen, R-Manchester, that they would welcome changes in state laws and regulations to speed up the process of getting permits for residential and commercial projects from state and local agencies.

Captains in state government, private business, education and politics make up the 15-person Commission on Government Efficiency (COGE) that Gov. Kelly Ayotte announced Tuesday.

Animal rights advocates tangled with leaders of the state's veterinarian lobby over bipartisan legislation ( HB 201 ) to have New Hampshire become the fifth state to ban the declawing of cats.

The likely long and winding road the New Hampshire Legislature will take in 2025 to consider changes to education aid began Tuesday with a leading Democrat calling on colleagues to boost state aid to public schools by nearly half a billion dollars.

Seeking to head off a state budget deficit in the current year, Gov. Kelly Ayotte ordered a freeze on non-essential hiring throughout state government.

House and Senate committees took the first testimony of legislation dealing with abortion in the 2025 session, one to create a criminal penalty for transporting a minor to get the procedure without parental consent and the other to mandate the general reporting of abortion statistics.

Making New Hampshire the first state in the Northeast to adopt right-to-work legislation would be a magnet to attract new business, supporters say.