NH House Testimony

HB1416

House · 2026 sessionRepublicanKilled in House

Studying pregnancy center free speech

AI

Creates a legislative study committee to examine existing legal protections for the free expression of pregnancy resource centers and determine whether additional First Amendment safeguards are needed, reporting findings by November 2026.

(New Title) establishing a committee to study what legal protections currently exist for the freedom of expression of pregnancy resource centers and whether further First Amendment protections are needed.

Public and Mental HealthLegislatureState Government

Status

Killed in the House — Inexpedient to Legislate · March 13, 2026
  1. Introduced
  2. House
  3. Senate
  4. Governor
  5. Law

Division of testimony

1,055 submissions
Support 154Oppose 901Neutral 0

Argument digest · AI-generated

from 195 of 195 written submissions

HB1416 concerns legal protections for pregnancy resource centers (PRCs); testifiers describe it as barring state and local governments from requiring PRCs to provide, refer for, or disclose information about abortion or contraception, and as creating a right for centers to sue over such regulation. Supporters, often PRC staff, volunteers, clients, or pro-life advocates, describe PRCs as valuable free services that should not be forced to act against their mission or religious beliefs. Opponents, including a number of medical professionals, argue PRCs are unlicensed and can provide medically inaccurate or misleading information, that the bill removes needed oversight and accountability, and that reproductive healthcare decisions should remain private between patients and their doctors.

Generated by claude-sonnet-5 (claude code agent) on Jul 20, 2026. Quotes are verbatim excerpts, verified against the cited submission before publication. Summaries are AI interpretation of the record, not part of it.

Donna PetersonSupportLoudon, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Dear members of the House Judiciary Committee, I want to urge you to vote OTP on this bill. This allows women with unplanned pregnancies to explore ALL options available to them. Pregnancy resource centers that assist women in need who choose to give life to their babies, are important in providing much needed resources and support to them. Centers that provide abortions talk about providing choices to women, yet they would not be trying to pass legislation to shut these resource centers down in other states if that were true. Women who receive counseling in pro-life pregnancy centers are free to change their mind about continuing forward with the pregnancy and go to an abortion provider, and quite a few do this. Abortion providers should afford the same to choice to women who decide not to have an abortion to access the supports they need. Please vote OTP on HB1416! Sincerely, Donna Peterson

ST LUOpposeMerrimack, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

This bill is sex discrimination masquerading as limiting regulation. Vote ITL

Jane FunkOpposeDover, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

To be clear, reproductive health centers, such as Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, offer the full range of evidence-based, quality sexual and reproductive health care. Reproductive health providers give patients complete, medically accurate information so they can make informed decisions about their own health care. Anti-abortion centers, which HB 1416 protects, do not.

Amanda BradfordSupportGorham, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I support this bill to protect Pro-life Pregnancy Centers because they have been under increased attack since Roe Vs. Wade was overturned by the US Supreme Court. Some centers have faced attempts to close them (as in our neighbor to the south, Massachusetts). Some centers have had extensive physical damage to them with graffitti, broken windows, broken outside locks and doors, computers destroyed, rooms spray painted, etc. Other centers have received threats if they continue to operate, including death threats for their staff and families. This has got to STOP! Lies have been posted on social media pages about what work pro-life centers perform. It appears that the proponents of Planned Parenthood want to get rid of Pro-life Pregnancy Centers altogether, yet it is these centers that offer free services to all women in crisis pregnancies. PLEASE SUPPORT BILL HB1416 to give legal protection to Pro-Life Pregnancy Centers! Thank you!

Terry RoySupportDeerfield, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

To the Honorable Members of the House Judiciary Committee, As Chair of the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, I have spent the last four years carefully weighing where the state’s authority ends and where individual liberty begins. I am writing today to express my strong support for HB 1416, the Pregnancy Resource Center Freedom of Expression Act. Our state is built on the foundation of the First Amendment. It is a fundamental violation of that principle for any government—state or municipal—to compel a private, mission-driven organization to provide or refer for services that directly contradict its core beliefs. These centers are charities that provide essential support to Granite Staters, and they should not be subject to regulatory "gag orders" or forced speech as a condition of their existence. HB 1416 ensures that these organizations can continue their work without the looming threat of being forced into ideological compliance by local or state bureaucrats. It protects the diversity of services available in our state and upholds the constitutional freedoms we all took an oath to defend. I respectfully urge an Ought to Pass recommendation on HB 1416. Respectfully submitted, Rep. Terry Roy Chair, House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee

Aline FloresOpposeLondonderry, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Local towns and communities and state agencies should be able to enact and maintain appropriate guidelines for the public service businesses that serve their communities.

Sara RosenbloomOpposeLaconia, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

These facilities do not require special treatment.

Chesley MarvinOpposeNashua, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Completely unnecessary, partisan, and motivated by religious beliefs as opposed to actual personal freedoms. We are already allowing these businesses to peddle their beliefs and opinions under the guise of medical care, and we absolutely should not subject the state to ridiculous lawsuits and strip its ability to regulate a problematic industry that aims to take advantage of unknowing and vulnerable people.

Nancy ThurrellOpposeMEREDITH, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I oppose this bill that would allow anti abortion centers to not be regulated

Nancy GlynnOpposeNorth Sutton, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Passing this bill would hurt women in NH. Keep your religious views out of my healthcare.

Susan BartlettOpposeWarner, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

As a midwife and RN you have no idea of the perils of this bill to harm women. These anti-abortion centers go to any lengths including lying to women when they most need support and knowledge of all options

Roy SimsSupportGuild, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Please pass this bill.

Julie SimsSupportGuild, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Please pass this bill.

Suzanne McDonaldOpposeTilton, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

All medical decisions should be between a person and their doctor and no one else.

Rachel TeagueSupportChichester, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I have firsthand experience with pregnancy help centers in New Hampshire. Over the last 20 plus years I have personally seen how they selflessly serve the community because they care about men women and children. They use no tax dollars. They provide limited medical services, education, material needs and referrals. All the care is patient directed depending on their specific needs and concerns. There is ongoing training for staff and volunteers to ensure excellence in care. Patients repeatedly report feeling heard, cared for, and supported during what can be a stressful time in their lives. Pregnancy help centers provide very valuable services to individuals in any community and should be protected and supported for the work they do.

Norma SorgmanOpposeLaconia, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I oppose this bill as it could have devastating consequences for women.

Liz SwensonSupportTilton, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I am very grateful for the work our pregnancy care centers do. They impacted my life in a huge way thru the care they gave me AFTER having had an abortion. It was a terrible mistake I made and the Bible study I was able to go thru with them was life changing. They also are able to show women with ultrasound the life that lives inside of them and give them other options than abortion. They love the women they serve regardless of their choice they make. We need these centers to work as they already are.

Jan ArchambaultOpposeRollinsford, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

As a nurse practitioner and obstetrical nurse I personally have witnessed the profound grief of a pregnant woman and family who's pregnancy has turned into a nightmare when they find their fetus has anomalies that are incompatible with life outside the uterus. NO woman chose to terminate a pregnancy at this stage in pregnancy as a form of birth control. The decision should be made between her doctor and her family, NOT the government!

Nancy HusarikOpposeCandia, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Those purporting to provide medical care or advice about any medical conditions should be held to the same standards as fully trained medical providers, including adhering to the standard of informed consent about all options for managing medical conditions and standard of care around potential treatment options. This bill would allow for misleading medical information, inadequate informed consent which ultimately can result in delays of care. I oppose this bill and am asking you to vote NO on HB1416.

Jean FosterOpposePeterborough, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I strongly oppose this legislation. If a business calls itself a "Pregnancy Resource Center" but does not provide contraception or abortion referrals it is false advertising. The organization is trying to hide the fact that they are promoting and evangelizing their radical religious doctrines about pregnancy and the state should definitely not be supporting this in any way. If they called their organization an "Anti-Abortion and Anti-Contraception Resource Center" which is the honest name, it would be a different matter.

Molly LittOpposeDunbarton, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

I oppose this bill and anything that misleads and coerces women into keeping unwanted pregnancies. Abortions save lives. These places care nothing about the women they “serve” and do nothing to actually care for the child after it’s born.

Susan BlackwellOpposeExeter, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Reproductive health centers, such as Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, offer the full range of evidence-based, quality sexual and reproductive health care. Reproductive health providers give patients complete, medically accurate information so they can make informed decisions about their own health care. Anti-abortion centers, which HB 1416 protects, do not.

Rebecca AudetOpposeNew Castle, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

Just no. We will not go back.

Mitchell CarmenOpposeExeter, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

This law just makes giving medical care to women more difficult, and is a stepping stone to attempt banning abortion and other such care. I oppose it entirely.

Maria BraleyOpposeNew Boston, NHfor MyselfFeb 25, 2026

House Bill 1416 – Pregnancy Resource Center Freedom of Expression Act Dear Honorable Chair and Members of the Committee, My name is Dr. Maria Braley, and I am a family practice physician practicing in New Hampshire. I care for patients across the lifespan, including adolescents and adults facing complex and often difficult reproductive health decisions. I respectfully submit this testimony in opposition to HB 1416. As physicians, our ethical obligation is to provide patients with accurate, evidence-based medical information so they can make informed decisions about their health. HB 1416 would prohibit the state or municipalities from requiring pregnancy resource centers to provide contraception, abortion referrals, or even factual disclosures about the services they do or do not provide. This creates a system in which patients may reasonably believe they are receiving comprehensive medical counseling, when in reality they may not be receiving complete or medically accurate information. In my clinical practice, I frequently care for patients who present after first seeking help elsewhere, confused about their options or misinformed about the availability, safety, or timing of care. Pregnancy is time-sensitive medical care. Delays caused by incomplete counseling can limit medical options, increase health risks, and worsen emotional distress. Patients deserve transparency and accurate information, not barriers that may delay appropriate care. Importantly, abortion is already legal in New Hampshire only up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, with limited exceptions thereafter. This represents a significant legal boundary on reproductive care. New Hampshire has historically maintained a balanced approach that allows patients and their physicians to make medical decisions within this existing framework. HB 1416 does not improve patient care or safety, it risks undermining informed consent and further complicating access within an already regulated system. This bill also places additional burden on primary care physicians and other medical providers. When patients receive incomplete or misleading counseling elsewhere, physicians must spend additional time correcting misinformation, rebuilding trust, and addressing delays in care. This contributes to fragmented care and worsens health inequities, particularly for young patients, low-income patients, and those in rural communities. As physicians, we support patients regardless of their personal decisions, whether they choose to continue a pregnancy, pursue adoption, or seek abortion care. Our role is not to direct patients toward one outcome, but to ensure they understand all medically appropriate options. Policies that reduce transparency or limit access to accurate information undermine this essential physician-patient relationship. New Hampshire patients already face evolving legislative proposals that could further restrict reproductive care. At a time when abortion access is already limited by gestational law and ongoing legislative debate, we should not pass laws that may indirectly restrict care by limiting access to accurate information or referrals. I respectfully urge the Committee to vote Inexpedient to Legislate (ITL) on HB 1416 in order to protect patient safety, informed consent, and access to comprehensive, evidence-based medical care. Thank you for your time and your commitment to the health of the people of New Hampshire. Respectfully submitted, Maria Boylan, DO Board Certified Family Physician Penultimate Past President of the NH Medical Society Board Member, NH Academy of Family Physicians