Fourth-Graders Get Harsh Lesson in Lawmaking

An afternoon, first-hand civics lesson for elementary school students in New Hampshire didn’t turn out to be like an episode of “Schoolhouse Rock” for students from Hampton Falls last week.

The students from the Lincoln Ackerman School came to Concord to watch the debate about their own bill, HB 373, a request to make the red-tailed hawk the official state raptor. The bill was introduced in January and according to progressive political blogger Susan the Bruce, the students came to Concord to testify before the committee, as other students have in the past. The bill later received an “ought to pass” recommendation, by a 10-8 vote, not unlike many other “feel good” bills proposed by students around the state.

However, when the bill went to the floor, that’s when things began to go awry.

The debate on the bill was held in a second marathon session day where Representatives Hall considered a number of bills, including a proposal to increase fees for right-to-know requests and a sales tax proposal, both of which were rejected.

The first to rise in opposition of the bill was state Rep. Christy Bartlett, D-Concord, who said she would speak briefly, because representatives were busy, but then spent four minutes shooting the bill down.

“We have little time to invest in this topic,” she said. “Must we designate one state raptor? The red-tailed hawk is a beautiful bird but it’s ubiquitous. I’m not trying to be mean … but this is a prime example of being swayed against our better judgment … we need your help to stay focused on issues of more importance this year.”

State Rep. Warren Groen, R-Rochester, then rose to speak in opposition to the bill, and likened the behavior of the hawk to that of Planned Parenthood.

“As I was doing the research on this bill, I watched a couple of videos,” he said. “Its known for its extremely strong and sharp talons, which it grasps its prey. It uses its razor sharp beak to rip its victim to shreds, tearing it apart limb by limb. I guess the shame about making this a state bird is that it would serve as a much better mascot for Planned Parenthood.”

After more debate about the bill, it ultimately failed to receive approval by a 133-160 vote, and afterward, a firestorm of reaction occurred in light of the comments of representatives and the vote.

“This is how adults serving in our Legislature chose to comport themselves in front of a fourth grade class,” Bruce noted in her post. “These students were there because they embarked upon a project that was intended to teach them about how the NH legislature functions (or dysfunctions) and how a bill becomes law. They had one heck of a learning experience. If our legislators can’t manage to do better than bullying 10-year-olds, they ought to resign.”

State Rep. Marjorie Porter, D-Hillsboro, agreed.

“The argument was that we waste time on these kinds of bills but we could have wasted less time if we didn’t debate them,” she wrote online. “Shame on us.”

Photo credit: State of New Hampshire.

VIDEO of HB 373 Debate

Editor’s Note: The first version of the post misidentified Porter’s party affiliation and home community. It has been corrected.