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Week Ten - March 27, 2009
This electronic publication, known as The Advocate,
is brought to you each Friday by your Greater Nashua Chamber of
Commerce, in partnership with our friends at Devine Millimet &
Branch, and ActiveEdge. Please use this piece to review what has
happened in Concord this past week, read about our Chamber's lobbying
efforts relating to those activities, and preview what we are
doing on behalf of our Chamber members in the coming week.
This Week’s
Update
What a week! While the media was focusing on some of the social
issues being discussed in the Legislature this week, there was
plenty of movement behind the scenes relative to business-related
issues.
SB
40
The saga of the New Hampshire version of the WARN Act that pierces
the corporate veil lingers on. The Chamber met again this week
with Labor Commissioner Copadis, an attorney from the Attorney
General's office, the AFL-CIO, Senator DeVries of Manchester,
and the State Senate General Counsel. The Chamber was clear that
we cannot compromise on the issue of piercing the corporate veil.
Personal liability for management, boards, and venture capitalists
in business decisions is unacceptable. The Chamber has given compromise
language to the Commissioner and Senator DeVries that we feel
resolves our concerns over the personal liability issue while
still giving the State some enforceability. Our compromise would
place the Federal WARN Act into New Hampshire statute, and mirror
the Federal Act including the use of the 100-employee threshold
relative to which companies are affected by it. We also suggested
language that gives the State a statutory lien against the assets
of the business that fails to comply with the notice provisions
of the WARN Act. We have one more meeting to try to work out a
solution before the committee votes on a recommendation for the
bill next week. The Chamber has rarely, if ever, had to oppose
legislation with 18 senators as sponsors. Since it only takes
12 now (one seat is vacant) to pass legislation in the Senate,
this has been a huge uphill battle!
Moving
On
After three days of legislative debate in the House, what is
now moving to the Senate that is of importance to the Chamber?
HB 580, which puts into statute patient confidentiality
procedures over medical records, has good intentions, but interferes
with patient care and conflicts with federal law.
The Federal HIPAA law balances patient privacy and access to
information necessary for medical care of patients. The recently
enacted federal stimulus bill contains important HIPAA revisions.
We feel New Hampshire needs to wait until those new provisions
are fully operational before enacting counterproductive laws in
New Hampshire.
There are many potential negative impacts if the Senate passes
HB 580.
- NH health care providers could lose stimulus money.
- The adoption of the electronic medical record, which both
Governor Lynch and President Obama support, will by stymied.
- The cost of health care will increase.
- Medicaid and medication errors will increase.
- NH health care providers have already expressed confusion
about trying to comply with federal and state law. For many
of our providers who care for patients in NH and Massachusetts,
there will be added confusion and burdens.
- NH law would say a provider can deny treatment to a patient
who does not disclose protected health information. Federal
law requires treatment. What does the health care provider do
in such a predicament?
Both the health care and business communities are actively opposing
HB 580.
HB 438, which allows courts to consider as evidence
hospital and medical records, reports, and bills without requiring
the parties to subpoena or present record custodians, health care
providers, billing coordinators, etc., in person. The belief is
the bill will lessen the expense and delay of litigation matters.
HB 572 makes a procedural change in the statute
relating to medical malpractice screening panels. The bill will
allow the facts to be presented to the screening panel by “offers
of proof,” which are informal presentations not subject
to the strict rules of procedure applicable to jury trials.
HB 613 establishes a committee to study the
advantages and disadvantages of the acquisition of New Hampshire’s
existing rail corridors by the State. The House believed this
would be prudent in light of the fact that more rail transportation
is in our future. Others believe the threat of “taking”
these rail corridors by eminent domain would adversely impact
the ongoing negotiations for commuter rail.
Stalled
HB 197, relative to apportionment of damages in civil actions,
was LAID ON TABLE. The legislation started out as a bill (which
was vetoed by the Governor a couple years ago) to allow damages
to be apportioned in personal injury cases among those who are
actually defendants in the cases. It was amended to deny employers,
and their workers compensation insurers, the right to receive
back wages and medical benefits paid to employees when the employees
recover such damages in lawsuits against third parties arising
out of the same lawsuit, if the employees can prove in those lawsuits
that the employers were also negligent. This would have allowed
double recovery by an employee injured in the workplace.
Killed
What were we able to kill in the House?
HB 104, repealing the law authorizing the State
Supreme Court to establish a business and commercial dispute docket
in the superior court. The bill was opposed by business and industry
groups and by the judicial branch. It was premature to consider
repealing a new procedure before it has even been tried.
HB 203, eliminating the requirement that the
trial judge present unanimous findings of the screening panel
to the jury in medical injury actions.
HB 628, establishing tangible personal property
inventory and use taxes. This bill would have required everyone
to inventory all personal property and pay to the state 4% of
all property valued at greater than $9,999. The question to the
House was “How much is that tuba worth?”
HB 496, establishing a limit on the amount of
cost recovery for the emissions reduction equipment installed
at the Merrimack Station. The legislature mandated in 2006 that
PSNH install the scrubber without placing a limit on the costs.
To place a cap on the cost to be recovered would send a very negative
message to all businesses in New Hampshire and those thinking
of locating in New Hampshire.
Is
NH Experiencing a Climate Change?
In the span of three days this week, the New Hampshire House
voted to repeal the death penalty, legalize medical marijuana,
and establish same sex marriage in New Hampshire. It would be
hard to deny that this constitutes a watershed moment for the
New Hampshire legislature. Just a couple of years ago, the passage
of even one of these bills would have been considered unlikely
or even impossible. By passing these bills in a single week, the
House has clearly announced that it intends to go down roads that
are controversial at best and which a majority of New Hampshire
citizens may not even agree with. It is hard to say what, if anything,
this willingness to break sharply with the past might have for
the future of New Hampshire businesses. But, whether one agrees
or disagrees with what the House did this week, there surely is
a new climate taking hold.
Acknowledgements
This weekly update is made possible by the generous support of
Devine Millimet
& Branch, one of the state’s top law firms and our
Chamber’s contracted representative in Concord. If your
business has a legislative or local issue that needs strategic
consulting and attention, they are a valuable resource that can
help navigate you through both local and state processes.
This weekly update is designed and maintained by our friends
at ActiveEdge,
and we thank them for their help in delivering this piece to your
inbox every Friday!
If you have questions about this update, or comments to share
with us about other issues in Concord, please email Chris Williams
at cwilliams@nashuachamber.com.
We want to be sure we're representing you to the best of our ability,
so do not hesitate to reach out to us!
J.
Christopher Williams
President & CEO
Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce
151 Main St.
Nashua, NH 03060
Phone: 603.881.8333
Fax: 603.881.7323
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