Governor Vetoes Voter Domicile, EBT Fraud Bills

As expected, Gov. Maggie Hassan, D-Exeter, vetoed two bills today that were sponsored and supported by rank-and-file Republicans but reviled by most Democrats, her political base.

Hassan vetoed SB 169, a bill that purported to help prevent EBT fraud in the state of New Hampshire, as well as SB 179, legislation that would establish a voter residency requirement similar to one that was required of voters about a decade ago.

Establishing residency in NH

On SB 179, Hassan said the legislation placed “unreasonable restrictions” on Granite Staters with “an arbitrary timeline” that could prevent lawful residents from participating in the voting process.

“Our present law provides for same day voter registration, whereby an individual domiciled within the state can register and vote on the date of an election,” she stated. “Contrary to this voting system, Senate Bill 179 requires that an individual establish a domicile for no less than 30 consecutive days before any election in which the person offers to vote. This durational requirement unnecessarily interferes with both the right to vote and the right to travel under the New Hampshire and United States Constitutions.”

Hassan added that the state and public needed to “prevent and aggressively prosecute voter fraud” but the bill wouldn’t prevent people from lying, “it merely denies people who recently moved to New Hampshire and are lawful residents of our state their fundamental right to vote.”

One of the bill’s prime sponsors, state Sen. Sharon Carson, R-Londonderry, said she was disappointed in Hassan’s veto because it would have restored meaningful elections to the citizens of the state by ensuring that people who lived in New Hampshire voted in New Hampshire.

“The legislation the Governor vetoed would have added a 30-day residency requirement and clarified the state’s voting laws,” she noted. “This bill has the full support of New Hampshire’s official on voting laws, Secretary of State William Gardner, who says it will protect the state from voter fraud and drive-by voting without infringing on an individual’s right to vote.”

The NH GOP’s Jennifer Horn said Hassan ignored “bipartisan legislation to ensure the integrity of New Hampshire elections” as well as “sensible advice” from Gardner, a Democrat.

“Secretary Gardner is one of the foremost authorities on New Hampshire election law, and his strong support for a thirty day residency requirement shows that this commonsense approach should have been signed into law,” she said. “Governor Hassan’s decision to veto this bill is partisan politics at its worst. She has made it clear that she is focused on appeasing liberal special interest groups that are pushing her to run for United States Senate instead of doing what is best for New Hampshire.”

EBT benefits fraud

SB 169 would have prevented residents who received cash benefits from EBT cards from using the money for gambling, tobacco, alcohol, lottery tickets, guns, and adult entertainment. Hassan said that while she agreed with the sponsors of the bill that public assistance shouldn’t be used to purchase these products, “the approach taken by this legislation would be unenforceable, as retail clerks and sales associates would have no way of determining where an individual’s cash came from at the time of sale.”

Hassan countered though that she would sign an alternative bill, HB 219.

“House Bill 219 allows for a more enforceable approach to address the issue of potential public assistance fraud or abuse,” she noted in a statement. “House Bill 219 prevents use of EBT cards within body piercing or tattoo parlors, cigar stores and smoke shops, and marijuana dispensaries. These locations are exclusive to the product or service they provide, and thus preventing use of EBT cards in these establishments does not prevent someone from purchasing basic household items that these locations do not sell. House Bill 219 also requires an educational component for cash assistance recipients and retail establishments, something Senate Bill 169 fails to do.”

State Sen. Jeanie Forrester, R-Meredith, one of the prime sponsors of SB 169, said that last year alone, the state found more than $1 million worth of fraud and misuse of EBT benefits.

“I’ve been working on this issue since the federal government mandated protections against the misuse of cash benefits in 2012,” she noted. “This bill served to build on legislation that I brought forward in my first term at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services, relative to requirements of federal government in order to keep funding. This bill was an important step in providing a clearer understanding of how these benefits should be used. I’m surprised and disappointed by the Governor’s refusal to take a simple step forward to assure that taxpayer dollars are being spent in a responsible manner.”