Bill > SB419

This bill expands the New Hampshire Housing Champion Designation program by adding a new qualification that recognizes municipalities that adopt land use regulations promoting child care centers near commercial areas. Specifically, this would include allowing child care centers to operate by right on commercially zoned land, provided they meet existing state health and human services requirements. The bill also includes two significant appropriations: $5 million to the Housing Champion Designation and Grant Program Fund and $10 million to the Housing Finance Authority's Affordable Housing Fund, both for the biennium ending June 30, 2027. These appropriations are non-lapsing, meaning any unused funds will not be returned to the general fund at the end of the fiscal period. The bill's context is grounded in New Hampshire's housing challenges, including being the twelfth most expensive state for rental housing, where workers would need to earn $27 per hour to afford a one-bedroom apartment, and facing an extremely low 0.6% vacancy rate. The bill aims to address these issues by incentivizing local zoning changes that support both affordable housing and child care accessibility, and by providing direct financial support to housing initiatives. The bill is set to take effect on July 1, 2026.

Budget and Finance

https://gc.nh.gov/bill_Status/billinfo.aspx?id=1448&inflect=2