HB148

My name is Emily Nelson and I was born in this state at a maternity ward which, like many, shut down because it could scarcely afford to operate in the condition of depopulation that has come to exist in many New Hampshire communities. I was raised here in a town which did not return to its pre-Civil War population until the 1990s and like many of my generation felt for a time compelled to leave in search of better opportunities that might provide me a way of life. Unlike so many people from so many places, a lot of people here in New Hampshire are staying and coming back for the common sense policy that's allowing people to build that way of life and a life for themselves and their families without fear of retributions or complications like those offered up by this move and others like it. Young professionals with much needed skills in the very industries we most desperately need to invest. The very last thing we need is the sudden displacement of a noticeable percentage of our working age population and even if that wouldn't be a crisis unto itself the following is a statement of fact. Trans men are not women, trans women are not men and intersex people are people too.

Strongly oppose any erosion of transgender and non-binary individuals rights! This is a very cruel law.

I oppose discrimination!

Dear Committee: I write because I strongly oppose HB148. I am a resident of Campton. Our economy here relies on tourism and hospitality. These bills are exclusionary to residents and visitors, and interfere with how public accommodations and schools operate themselves, which is interference that I am against. New Hampshire is a state where we cherish our rights to privacy and autonomy. Any attempt to verify someone’s sex, including a child or a vulnerable person is an unneeded and invasive process. If you are concerned about assault, this bill does not fix that. Transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people are more likely to be assaulted than others, especially if they are forced to use a bathroom, locker room, or prison that doesn't match how they look. In addition, if someone is being creepy, harassing, or assaulting someone in a restroom, locker room, or prison, the sex of that person is irrelevant, and that conduct is impermissible under the law, regardless of what sex or gender identity that person holds. If someone wants to commit criminal behavior in a restroom, a non discrimination law will not stop them. This law is trying to solve problems that don’t exist. Sincerely, Sarah Morton Campton, NH

As a nonbinary/transgender citizen of New Hampshire, I am one of the people who would be directly harmed by this bill. Trans and nonbinary folks want nothing more than to live their lives free of discrimination and violence. We are far more likely to be victims of violence than to perpetrate it, and removing anti-discrimination protections makes NH less free for people like me.

Discrimination in any form is unacceptable, but it's particularly dismaying coming from my elected officials. Please oppose this bill.

There is no truth backing the fear mongering misinformation being used to support the hatred of this right wing agenda. They do not take the time to educate themselves, and are incapable of stepping beyond their imagination to understand the difference between sex and gender and going beyond how their view of being transgender is that of a mental illness. Transgender people are not perverts in disguise trying to get access where they don’t belong. In fact trans people are the most likely to experience harm in bathrooms. I went 10 years with avoiding NH female public bathrooms at all cost even if that meant most of the day because of the harassment I received for looking too butch, Ive had things thrown at me, I’ve been screamed at, I’ve been ganged up on and chased out of bathrooms. It wasn’t until I could fully pass as male before I would even consider using a multi person stall.. Now in only my 30s, I have medical complications limiting my ability to initiate or control my bathroom needs as a result of going so many years of holding it in when I needed access to a bathroom: not just the infections that creates but the physical damage on the bladder, kidneys, urinary & gastric tract from functioning properly. The “trans agenda is to be treated as human- & have safe access to maintain our human functioning needs.- this isn’t about “keeping girls safe” as they proclaim its an open attack on trans people and removing the ability for them to be safe. And as gender and sexuality are not the same, nor are they reliant on each other- how you feel about yourself and who you are has zero to do with who you are sexually attracted to. The majority of trans girls and women I know – ( which is a lot) most of them – hate their male- appendage or don’t identity in a way that they would actually use their sex organ in the villainous way they are being portrayed as being their objective. - They are not trying to get girls they just want to be “one of the girls” and trans girls Ive known – tend to naturally not behave in a “ boy” manner but more accurately described by a “feminine” personality with interests, characteristics and Behavior traits actually falling in the “expected female role perceptions” but are often even more timid or gentle than many biological girls. Trans individuals themselves are the most at risk of being the recipient of harm and highest population where suicide becomes their safest option. Trans people need more safety measures, not less. Bills like these, that hide behind inaccurate fear mongering prejudices is only an excuse that justifies hatred permitting the means of identifying and eliminating trans people “for the sake of safety” If there truly is a man that is doing the crimes this bill is trying to focus on, by using it as a rouse and then claiming he is trans as an excuse or a disguise – then he is still NOT trans! He is a predator & he shouldn’t be tried as a trans person. That is doing an even greater injustice to actual trans people. If someone fakes their credentials or profession to gain access and commit a crime, you don’t attack the professionals who actually are qualified for the title that was used by the criminal. An additional FYI- Unless your going to be inspecting genitals these laws will also directly impact the gender nonconforming people and cause harm to an even greater number of people than its actually even intended for. Including straight people who don’t have any indications of being trans but simply don’t match the stereotypical roles.

I oppose taking away protections for Transgender granite staters. As a Granite Stater with family, friends, and co-workers who identify transgender and bon-binary I have very personal reasons to promote the protection of Trans members of our community. Especially now that the Federal Government has taken it upon themselves to try to erase their very existance, our Trans citizens need to feel the protection of our state. We need to exercise our State right to see our citizens are not unduly treated. We need to stand as an example of respect for our fellow citizens. We need to show them and the rest of the country, that every New Hampshire citizen has a right to live their life in a free and honest way without fear that they will be targeted for the way the present themselves to the world. Trans people are just as productive, caring, and worthy as any other population in our state, and yet, they are targets of ridicule, violence, and denigration at much higher levels than most. NH needs to stand strong against hate and bigotry, and for the freedom and honor that we have always been so proud of.

Transgender individuals should be protected from discrimination.

I oppose this bill. I wish I had a suggestion for incarceration settings, because it’s unsafe for a trans woman to be in a men’s prison. If this becomes law Caitlin Jenner would be places in a men’s prison if she was incarcerated here. There were two trans women who walked in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in 2024. They would not be safe incarcerated with men. And how would anyone know they were born men? https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna175699 If we’re normalizing men going into the ladies room because they were born women that just normalizes men in the ladies room. How does that help the women who are “living in fear” of seeing men in the women’s bathroom? It doesn’t help the people desperate to “go back to how it was” because everything was fine for white, cis people who didn’t have to hide who they were. I can’t support putting trans women in jail with men, and it’s also unsafe for women for anyone with a penis to be in a woman’s prison, and I mean the COs as well. I don’t know what the answer is for the inmates. It is cruel to keep someone in solitary confinement for the duration of their sentence just because they can’t be sorted into a binary gender. It is also cruel to make laws that would make it legal to discriminate against our friends and neighbors and community members. Discriminating against people won’t solve the problems of some of the people who testified in support of this bill. Who is going to stand at the bathroom door to check men before they go in the ladies room, and what threshold are we using to determine who uses the women’s room? An “F” on an ID, XX Chromosomes from a lab test, genitals, or hormone lab work (because my health insurance doesn’t cover hormone testing unless it’s medically necessary). Also I realize this is anecdotal, but I’ve been in a planet fitness locker room when a trans woman was showering and she wasn’t a problem for me. If she was I could have changed in a stall, or asked an employee to chaperone, or I could have left and cancelled my membership. The real problem is that when we are assaulted by men it’s a struggle to get the police to take it seriously, and to actually investigate and find evidence we don’t hand them ourselves, and that’s why women live in fear. Because the laws we already have don’t protect us. We should really do something about that instead of making laws to discriminate against people who aren’t the ones assaulting us.

Dear Members of the Judiciary Committee, Thank you for taking the time to read the online testimonies. I vehemently oppose this bill. This bill effectively pits parts of our NH population against each other; cisgender women and girls and their discomfort in a bathroom, locker room or prison, and transgender or non-binary people and similarly their discomfort in a bathroom, locker room or prison. Ultimately, this bill creates a hierarchy of which some NH citizens are more important than others, and that should be against our core values as a state. The bill states that there are certain limited circumstances 'in which classification of persons based on biological sex is proper because such classification serves the compelling state interests of protecting the privacy rights and physical safety of such persons and others.' This classification based on sex assigned at birth does not benefit the trans/non-binary community, it puts them more at risk and danger, so inherently this bill is based on lack of full understanding of the experiences of trans citizens in our state. In this way, it prioritizes cisgender citizens by saying their privacy and physical safety are more important. Many people have said, over and over in verbal and I'm sure written testimony, that it is documented that trans people are more at risk than cisgender people generally, particularly in bathrooms, locker rooms and prisons. A distinction I would like to make is that cisgender people might be uncomfortable in bathrooms with trans people, but discomfort does not make someone unsafe. Safety means a threat or risk of harm, and this perceived harm is often based on lack of understanding or misinformation, as there isn't documented evidence that cisgender people are targeted by trans people in bathrooms. For trans people, however, going into a bathroom and being perceived as being in the wrong one (because their sex assigned at birth is different than their physical presentation) does present a legitimate risk to their safety. There is a legitimate sense of harm, as backed by evidence of verbal or physical altercations toward trans people by cisgender people. To go a step further, because of bias and misinformation, when a trans person is the target of bullying or aggression, they are less likely to have the backing of security or law enforcement to protect their safety, leaving them more vulnerable and at risk of harm. I have personally witnessed a nonbinary person be targeted for how they presented and it led to very near physical harm. When the police officer came to take the report, when they saw this person's license and gender marker, their whole demeanor changed and they basically said they would take a report but there was nothing they would do. In many situations, trans people are not given the benefit of the doubt or their concerns are not taken as seriously, whereas cisgender people are believed for their experiences. So, it's important to be careful with the word safety in this bill, because safety is not protected or the same for all individuals, and this is based on a false assumption of who is safe and who isn't. Ultimately what I would like to get across is that as elected officials it is your responsibility to protect all members of this state, and not allow some people's misplaced fear motivate you to take away the rights of other citizens of this state. We all don't need to fully understand the experiences of our trans and non-binary neighbors, we just have to believe inherently that they are deserving of all of the same rights and protections as cisgender neighbors. From all the verbal testimony, it is clear the majority of people do not believe that taking rights away from some of our citizens makes other citizens safer. I urge you to listen to the majority of the members of this state that this is not what we want for our state, and vote ITL on HB148.

Dear Members of the New Hampshire Legislature, I am writing to express my strong opposition to House Bill 148, a bill that seeks to codify discrimination under the guise of public safety by permitting classification of individuals based on "biological sex" in specific circumstances. This bill is a direct assault on the dignity, safety, and rights of transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals in New Hampshire, and it should be resoundingly rejected. HB 148 attempts to justify discrimination in public accommodations, sports, and detention facilities by claiming a "compelling state interest" in excluding people based on their gender identity. It is nothing less than an attempt to roll back decades of progress in civil rights. This bill is harful because it legitimizes discrimination. It singles out transgender individuals and codifies exclusionary policies that treat them as lesser members of our society. No law should be used to strip away fundamental rights from any group of people. HB 148 falsely claims to be about protecting privacy and safety, but in reality, it does the opposite. Forcing transgender individuals to use facilities that do not align with their identity puts them at increased risk of harassment, violence, and discrimination. This bill also puts gender nonconforming people at risk. For example, my wife was assigned female at birth and she identifies as a cis gender woman, however, due to her appearance with a short haircut and slightly masculine appearance, she is often harassed in the women’s restroom by other women who thinks she is a man in the wrong restroom. It’s to the point that she does not feel safe going to a public restroom without someone she knows with her. This bill says nothing about how this would be enforced. Anyone can decide amongst themselves that they have a right to determine if someone is in the proper bathroom and “proving” their point by determining the sex of someone. Not only would that put transgender people in a very unsafe situation, that opens the door to allow anyone to force someone to prove what their gender is. This is unsafe for everyone. The provision that excludes transgender athletes from competition is based on fear-mongering, not science. The New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association already has policies in place to ensure fair competition, and there is no evidence that transgender participation has harmed women's sports. Instead of lifting up all athletes, this bill aims to target, humiliate, and exclude a vulnerable population of students. This bill opens the door to further legalized discrimination against transgender individuals in other areas of life—employment, housing, healthcare. New Hampshire has long been a state that values freedom and equality, but HB 148 seeks to move us backward toward an era of exclusion and division. HB 148 is not about fairness or safety—it is about codifying state-sanctioned discrimination. It creates unnecessary fear, fosters exclusion, and inflicts real harm on transgender people in our state. I urge you to stand on the right side of history and vote NO on HB 148. We must protect the dignity, safety, and equality of all New Hampshire residents. Sincerely, Heather Woods

This bill is blatant discrimination. I was born and lived in NH for several years and still travel and stay in NH regularly. I have never ONCE been concerned or felt unsafe around transgender people. Transpeople should have the same rights as anyone else. When there is talk about "protecting women" you should actually ask women what they are concerned about and need protection from. The answer is: guns, and males (not transgender males). I have had several close relationships with transgender people and have never felt threatened or unsafe - in contrast- I have felt very safe and cared for. I strongly suggest this bill does not pass and NH protects it's people and citizens- as you say- live FREE or die.

I oppose this bill and here is why. This bill sets out to villanize LGBTQ+ people and reinforce harmful stereotypes. This bill would also cause unnecessary policing of gender non-conforming/ non-binary people, and create safety concerns instead of a solution. Further, it seems nearly impossible to enforce unless there is some type of security or law enforcement who will be inspecting genitals at these very public locations, which is a disgusting violation of privacy and seems like it would cause more issues than simply minding your own business and not worrying about a stranger's gender identity.

Dear Representative Mackay My name is Diana Moore and I’m reaching out to you as your constituent in Concord, Ward 4. I am reaching out to you to strongly oppose HB148. I am a concerned parent of a trans boy. Since we began gender-affirming therapies starting in 9th grade, he has thrived. He went from suffering from depression and anxiety resulting from gender dysphoria and struggling to get his schoolwork in on time to being an amazing student. He did exceptionally well in school after his transition, because he was happy and confident in himself. Now he is a first-year architecture student in Boston and just crushing it. All because he received gender-affirming treatment. He is now a tax-paying and contributing member of society. I shudder to think what he may have been like had he not received the therapies his medical team prescribed, which is in accordance with recommended treatments by the American Academy of Pediatrics. These therapies save lives. With HB148, I am particularly concerned, because my son, who was assigned female at birth now is indistinguishable from any boy assigned male at birth. Therefore, if he were forced to use a woman’s bathroom, I believe he would cause a lot of anxiety among various women who might also be using the same bathroom, because they would think a man had just entered the bathroom. Please don’t do this to your constituents. And how would this be enforced? Is someone going to be checking people to make sure they are using the correct bathrooms? Or do we start just making trans people wear yellow star or pink triangle like they did in 1930’s Germany? Let’s stop this now and not go down this route for the sake of our town, our state, and our country. Please do not vote in favor of HB148. I oppose this bill and the frightening future that something like this could initiate for us here in New Hampshire. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Diana Moore

Hello Representative Jim MacKay, My name is Mavelin Santiago and I’m reaching out to you as your constituent in Concord, NH. I wanted to reach out to you because I believe in freedom and safety for all people, including LGBTQ+ people. It is important to me as being a part of the LGBTQ+ community, This law will be affecting many people I care about who have struggled to be happy in their own skin. In a world where breast implants have been accepted because women didn't feel comfortable with their body they were born with sounds unfair. Legislation that you will vote on this year seeks to rollback nondiscrimination protections, ban best-practice medically necessary healthcare, and make LGBTQ+ students less safe and free to learn in public schools. I’d like to know how you’re thinking about these bills, and I’d like to speak further in detail and encourage you to vote against bills like HB 148, SB 268, SB 38, HB 377, HB 712, SB 96, and HB 324. Sincerely, Mavelin Santiago

My best friend is a transgender woman, we met in the 1990s at work before she came out. We became friends during her transition and when people started asking us if we were sisters, we just said yes because we'd become that close. But BEFORE she could be considered for gender confirming surgery, she had to be certified as a woman by two psychiatrists and a therapist. THEN she had to live in society as a woman, as herself, for a year before she could schedule surgery. So. BEFORE she could have surgery she had to be certified a woman and live as one. To me, this means trans women are women and trans men are men.

People have rights. Humans have rights. All of them. Please stop the hate. As a NH resident I want the beliefs of the church and any religion out of my government. People are equal. People have rights. E Pluribus unum

I am very troubled by bills that seek to dehumanize and undermine my trans and LGBTQ friends & family, especially trans children & teens who are more at risk for suicide. Research shows that affirming a person’s gender reduces the risk of suicidality and improves mental health outcomes for these people. We must maintain these antidiscrimination laws in order to protect the trans folks in our community. As a state it is our responsibility to stand up for marginalized people who are being scapegoated in the current political climate. Trans folks deserve to live among us and feel safe — these protections are such an important piece of that.

For a bill claiming to be "Law Against Discrimination", all that this law does is codify discrimination against transgender individuals. There is absolutely ZERO evidence to back up the claims that this bill is needed to protect individuals by enforcing classification based on biological factors. The bill doesn't even define what "biological sex" is, just leaving it a nebulous term, and completely ignores the existence of intersex individuals who make arguments of "it's just obvious what sex means" as a very unscientific and not biologically based assumption. Why do you attack a minority group based on boogyman made up stories and fears of the unknown, when all the evidence shows that transgender individuals are no higher threat to individuals than other cisgender individuals of the same gender? This bill will actively place transgender constituents into harms way, by forcing women into bathroom and changing facilities with men, and forcing women to compete in sports against men. The very things you claim you are trying to prevent.

Trans kids in NH deserve to be safe and have the same educational opportunities as every other student. Do not allow discrimination against trans people, especially trans students! Thank you for doing the right thing. Your constituent, Rebecca Hedlund (Portsmouth)

Honorable Chair and Members of the Committee, Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. My name is Lu Butterfield-Ferrell and I am a resident of Rochester, NH. I stand in strong opposition to Senate Bill 268, which seeks to permit the classification of individuals based on biological sex under certain circumstances. This legislation is unnecessary, discriminatory, and harmful to transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals, and I urge you to reject it. New Hampshire has a strong reputation in protecting the rights of all its residents, regardless of age, sex, gender identity, race, creed, or any other characteristic. As it currently stands, the law that prohibits discrimination, is essential to preserve in order for our state to maintain commitment to ensure that no one is treated as a second-class citizen. This bill, however, carves out exceptions that directly target transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals, discriminates, and effectively rolls back protections that have been in effect since 2019. By allowing classification based on biological sex in lavatories, locker rooms, athletic competitions, and facilities such as mental health hospitals, treatment centers, and corrections- this bill sends a dangerous message that transgender individuals do not deserve the same rights and protections as everyone else. It perpetuates harmful stereotypes and fosters an environment of exclusion and discrimination. This motivation of this bill rests on harmful stereotypes which include but are not limited to: transgender individuals aren’t who they say they are, are somehow trying to trick or deceive others, and are inherently dangerous/a threat. Guised under the premise of protecting the safety and privacy of biological women and girls, this bill does nothing to actually protect anyone. All the bill speaks to is the exclusion of a specific population that is far more at risk and targeted based on their identity. Transgender individuals are far more likely to be the victims of harassment, assault, and discrimination in public spaces than to pose a threat to others. If the concern is that women and girls are made to feel uncomfortable and their safety is at risk because there is an individual who they perceive to be a biological male in the lavatory, I ask you, what happens if this proposed bill is signed into law and someone like me is forced to use the women’s lavatory. I am a transgender individual and have been on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for almost 10 years. Any individual who does not know me, upon meeting me, will assume that I am a man. Most people upon meeting me will make this assumption because of many standards that are based on stereotypes. I have a full beard, I wear masculine clothing, I am both broad and tall, and I have a deep voice. As per recommendation of this proposed bill, I would be required to use the women’s lavatory. If people don’t know me or my identity and they %100 of the time assume I am a cisgender/biological man based off of my presentation. Based on the reasoning of the representatives proposing this bill, how would that scenario not make women and girls uncomfortable? Most likely in this scenario, I would get harassed and the authorities would be called on me. In this scenario I would be following the law, however, the unintended consequence of this law would be to create the very scenario that it intends to prevent. Additionally, why is my safety not a concern? If this bill were to become a law, there would be significant consequences for transgender individuals. Those consequences include but are not limited to: transgender and gender non-confirming individuals being put into a position of having to experience increased violence and harassment and/or being excluded from public life. I have been a resident of New Hampshire for the last 9 and a half years. My spouse and I have invested in making New Hampshire our home. We both work in the field of education within the state, we have bought a home here, and are committed to bettering the lives of other New Hampshire residents on the local and state level. As we grow and build our family, legislation like HB 148, make us ask the difficult question of “is New Hampshire a safe place for us to be?”. Should HB 148 or a similar legislation become law, we would strongly consider moving out of the state. For all of these reasons, I urge you to ITL HB 148. Sincerely, Lu Butterfield-Ferrell

I oppose this bill.