Wednesday’s landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling giving states the green light to enforce bans on sex change procedures for minors dropped just in time for New Hampshire lawmakers backing identical bans in the Granite State.
And Republican legislators managed to add language allowing New Hampshire to collect basic public health data on abortions performed in the state, a practice followed by 46 other states.
On Tuesday, a committee of conference met to resolve differences between House and Senate versions of legislation banning both cosmetic breast surgery for minors — AKA “top” surgery (HB 712) — and chemical treatment/puberty blockers for minors changing their sexual identity (HB 377).
Both bills will be up for one final vote in both the House and the Senate next week where GOP majorities in both chambers are expected to advance them to Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s desk. Both bills handily passed each chamber despite overwhelming opposition from Democrats.
A key sticking point between the House and Senate versions of HB 377 involved the enactment date. While House lawmakers pushed for an enactment date to be implemented on the day of the bill’s signing, Senate members argued for enforcement to be delayed until Jan. 1, 2026.
The amended language states in part that “nothing shall prohibit a health care provider from continuing the direction or administration of medication or treatment that began prior to Jan. 2026” and “such continued treatment shall not be considered a violation of this chapter.”
It was a tough sell for House GOP members serving on the committee but they relented in the end.
“I don’t love that we’re going with ‘grandfathering’ instead of ‘weaning,’ but I think we all have a common interest in making sure we’re protecting children,” state Rep. Jim Kofalt (R-Wilton) said. “One of our concerns about the Senate approach is there could essentially be a sort of rush to the gates between now and January 2026.”
State Sen. Denise Ricciardi (R-Bedford) disagreed.
“People who are in this situation, they can’t just run out and look at an effective date – they have to go through a lot of care and counseling,” she said. “It isn’t just that there’d be a mad rush and they’d be put on medication — it doesn’t work like that, with all due respect.
“So we have to take into consideration that we all believe in parental rights and these decisions are being made by parents who love their children.”
Meanwhile, GOP lawmakers managed to successfully add legislation ordering the state to collect abortion statistics to HB 712 (the bill banning “top” surgery). If signed into law by first-year GOP Gov. Kelly Ayotte, New Hampshire would join 46 states, in addition to the District of Columbia, in requiring abortion providers to submit regular and confidential reports.
Ayotte has yet to publicly signal whether she will sign off on the proposals. Earlier this month, Ayotte signed into law “Parental Bill of Rights” legislation that requires public schools to disclose any and all information requested by parents regarding their children.
Results of a University of New Hampshire poll released in April found that Granite Staters support a ban on sex-change treatments for minors 51 to 38 percent.
And if Ayotte’s support for the bans is dependent upon legal precedent, she got her answer Wednesday when the SCOTUS ruled 6-3 that Tennessee’s law banning the practice does not violate the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection clause.
Carrie Severino, president of the conservative pro-liberty Judicial Crisis Network, responded to the Supreme Court’s decision in a statement, noting that voters in Tennessee and elsewhere “may choose to protect minors from life-altering gender transition treatments.”
“The constitutional checks and balances worked in this case as Tennessee defended its rights over federal power grabs and the Court refused to engage in judicial second-guessing of democratic decision-making,” Severino added. “Thank goodness the old days of judicial self-aggrandizement that defined the Roe v. Wade era are behind us.”
For state Rep. Lisa Mazur (R-Goffstown) — the lead sponsor of both bills — the ruling “sends a clear message.”
“States have the constitutional authority to regulate these medical interventions for minors,” Mazur said in a statement provided to NHJournal. “For New Hampshire, this means our legislation, if signed by the governor, rests on solid legal ground, and legal challenges from opposition groups are unlikely to succeed.
“With the courts now affirming states’ rights on this issue, the conversation will continue in the legislative and public spheres. New Hampshire has taken a firm stand to safeguard children — and now that stand is backed by the highest court in the nation.”
A spokesman for Ayotte did not immediately respond to NHJournal’s request for comment.
Despite polls showing Granite Staters support the GOP-backed legislation, Democrats are doubling down on their embrace of sex change treatments for minor children. The New Hampshire Democratic Party released a statement Wednesday urging constituents to contact their lawmakers to voice their opposition.
“In New Hampshire, Republican lawmakers are pushing two anti-equality laws that target trans kids,” the statement read. “Call your legislator and tell them to vote against HB 377 and HB 712 next week.”
