New Hampshire
Pushback on adopting new building energy codes in NH highlights climate, affordability tensions
New Hampshire is poised to update its building codes, the laws meant to keep homes and commercial buildings safe and comfortable.
But in the bill approaching Gov. Chris Sununu’s desk, the code that regulates the energy efficiency of new homes is set to stay at the 2018 version.
The energy conservation code has been the subject of a long-running debate in New Hampshire, intersecting with some of the state’s thorniest issues: the affordability of homes, the livability of our climate, and the cost of living.
Proponents of adopting the 2021 energy conservation code highlight that more efficient homes would help people reduce energy use, lowering monthly bills and reducing the climate-warming pollution that homes produce.
Federal agencies that insure mortgages adopted the codes after making the assessment that they won’t impact the affordability and availability of the housing they cover. Some studies have shown that households save money in more energy efficient homes, though updates do have an increased upfront cost.
The codes have faced strong opposition, particularly from New Hampshire’s chapter of the Home Builders Association. In keeping with years of work pushing back on energy efficiency efforts, that group has come out in force against the 2021 codes across the country.
In New Hampshire, the Home Builders Association has testified to lawmakers that the 2021 codes would raise the cost of building homes too much, arguing they would make new homes unaffordable. The numbers they cite, from a survey of a handful of builders in the state, are about five times higher than federal estimates of the cost of upgrades.
All told, the 2021 codes would make homes almost 10% more efficient than the previous codes from 2018. The past two model codes adopted by the International Code Council barely made efficiency improvements for residential buildings.
What the 2021 codes would do
The 2021 codes require efficiency improvements like more insulation and expanded testing for how much air leaks out of a building.
It could also improve the barriers that keep moisture out during the summer and in during the winter, said Paul Bemis, president of the state’s chapter of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.
“An environment like New Hampshire varies quite dramatically,” he said. “Having a proper vapor barrier is key to indoor and human health.”
Lighting systems and their controls face new requirements, too.
Bemis is a proponent of the 2021 energy codes. He says the updates there are important to improving the indoor environment, since people spend 90% of their time indoors.
Federal officials have said the codes could help lower asthma rates and respiratory symptoms.
More efficient buildings also put less strain on the energy grid and draw less power from fossil fuels.
Buildings are responsible for about 40% of energy use in the United States, and account for around 35% of the carbon dioxide emissions that fuel warmer and wetter conditions in New Hampshire.
The 2021 codes, if implemented in New Hampshire, would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 660,000 metric tons over 30 years, according to a reportfrom the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy.
That’s the equivalent of taking about 157,000 cars off the road, or almost as much of an emissions reduction as closing two gas-fired power plants.
“Climate change is upon us. We need to do something to try to reduce carbon emissions into the atmosphere in the building sector,” Bemis said. “It’s a big task. It’s going to take many years to do it. But we need to start somewhere.”
The cost of the codes
When it comes to cost, there’s agreement on one thing: making homes more energy efficient costs money.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s study estimates the increase in the cost to build a home to the 2021 energy conservation code instead of the 2015 energy conservation code is around $4,000 for a single family home in New Hampshire. (New Hampshire currently uses the 2018 version of the code).
For multi-family apartment or condo buildings, the increased cost of construction would be between about $1,200 and $1,700 per unit.
The cost varies based on the design of the building and the part of the state it is in, with communities in colder areas facing higher costs.
The study says the average person in the state would pay about $400 more in down payments and other up-front costs and would have an annual mortgage increase of about $140.
Compared to the 2015 energy conservation code, the 2021 code would save a homeowner a bit more than $500 a year on energy bills, according to the study, leading to positive savings by the second year of homeownership.
But in testimony in front of state lawmakers, Matt Mayberry, the head of the New Hampshire Home Builders Association, estimated the upfront costs of building a home to the 2021 standards would be much higher, around $20,000.
“Housing is the number one issue facing the state of New Hampshire,” Mayberry said. “Everyone is touched by this. By staying with the 2018 energy codes, that produces energy efficient homes at affordable prices that people can maintain and can afford to stay in.”
Mayberry said he came to the $20,000 estimate by asking six home builders in the state how much they thought the new codes would cost to implement.
“You’re weaponizing these codes for societal agendas and political agendas, and that’s wrong,” he said. “We think you can decide the home you want to live in.”
Home builders would build homes to more energy efficient standards if customers want them, Mayberry said. But, he said, the association believes that should be up to individuals.
New Hampshire’s consumer advocate, Don Kreis, has expressed his support for the codes and their ability to save people money. In a column on his website, he notes the Home Builders Association supported a law that reinstated energy efficiency programs through the state’s utilities in 2022.
“New Hampshire’s home builders – or, at least, their trade association – are perfectly happy to champion energy efficiency (and make some money installing energy efficiency measures) when the costs are buried in people’s utility bills,” Kreis wrote. “They grow less enthusiastic when they have to reflect those costs directly in the prices they charge buyers of new homes.”
Ripple effects
Many of New Hampshire’s multi-family affordable housing buildings are already built to higher energy efficiency standards than the 2021 codes, said Ron Dapice, the head of New Hampshire Housing.
That organization helps first-time homebuyers with financing and works with developers to create affordable apartment buildings. Dapice hasn’t taken a position on what codes New Hampshire should adopt. But, he said, the state’s minimum standards don’t necessarily affect what kinds of affordable housing is being built.
“Most of these properties already exceed code requirements. Most of them are built to Energy Star standards. And the owners and contractors, I think, see the value long-term for affordable housing and keeping their operating costs as low as possible,” he said.
Dapice said the upfront cost of building more efficient buildings wouldn’t be borne by lower-income renters. Property managers set rents based on income, and Dapice said construction costs wouldn’t raise the gross rent – rent plus utilities – for folks living in those buildings. Landlords might pay for the utilities themselves, and raise the base rent instead.
If New Hampshire does not adopt the 2021 codes, the state will have different minimum standards than those adopted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Agriculture and the Veterans Administration.
The largest portion of homes affected by this change is likely to be those insured by the Federal Housing Administration. But the standards only apply to new construction, and Dapice said new construction homes are less likely to be purchased using FHA or USDA backed loans.
“It may not be an everyday occurrence if that type of buyer would be shut out of their financing options,” he said.
But if Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were to adopt the 2021 codes, homeowners using conventional loans would also be subject to the new requirements.
“Then I think you could have a situation where buyers are, they want just a conventional loan and they can’t get it because their house isn’t built to the newest energy code,” Dapice said.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, says they are considering ways to support more energy efficiency and have been conducting outreach.
That agency has come under pressure from New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen to adopt the 2021 energy conservation code. In a letter earlier this year, she said those standards would improve health, reduce wasted energy and lower costs.
“Energy efficiency is the cheapest, fastest way to deal with our energy needs,” Shaheen said in an interview earlier this year. “If we’re going to address our long term energy needs, thinking about how we make those buildings more efficient is really important.”
HUDSON, N.H. — An animal cruelty investigation led to the arrest of two former tenants who police say left three cats behind in the apartment they were evicted from.
The Hudson Police Department said officers responded to 19 Oliver Drive on Nov. 25 after the town’s animal control officer received a report that multiple cats had been left behind in an apartment previously occupied by Faith Byers, 48, and Kevin Greene, 57.
The pair had reportedly been evicted a week earlier, on Nov. 18.
Police said that attempts to reach Byers and Greene by phone were unsuccessful, and the property owner later confirmed that the two had moved out without taking the cats or arranging for their care.
With the owner’s permission, police entered the apartment and found three cats alone inside the unoccupied residence.
Police said they determined the cats had been left unattended for several days in conditions lacking adequate airflow, sunlight, litter and consistent access to food or water. Police added that no care plan had been made for the animals, and neither former tenant indicated any intention to return for them.
The animals were safely removed and transported to the Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire in Bedford, where they are now receiving care.
Arrest warrants were issued for Byers and Greene, who are each charged with one count of cruelty to animals, a Class A misdemeanor. They were arrested on Friday and released on personal recognizance bail.
They are scheduled to appear in 9th Circuit Court Nashua District Division at 1 p.m. April 28.
Follow Aaron Curtis on X @aselahcurtis, or on Bluesky @aaronscurtis.bsky.social.
Foreign ministers from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt will meet in Islamabad today in an attempt to come up with a plan to de-escalate the Iran war.
The meeting comes as several thousand more U.S. troops arrived in the region and after another group got involved in the expanding conflict: Yemen’s Houthis.
The Iran-backed Houthis launched missiles towards Israel, and there’s concern their involvement could threaten another vital global shipping lane in the Red Sea.
Here are more updates on day 30 of the Iran war.
Diplomacy Push in Pakistan
The four foreign ministers from regional powers will meet in Islamabad today and Monday for a push towards diplomacy to end the war.
In a statement ahead of the meeting, the Egyptian government said: “Discussions are expected to focus on recent developments related to regional military escalation and ongoing diplomatic efforts to contain tensions and promote de-escalation.”
“The talks come amid heightened concerns about regional stability, with participating countries seeking to coordinate their stances and support political solutions to emerging crises,” it added.
Whether whatever consensus the countries known as “the quad” come up with will be accepted by the US, Israel, and Iran is another question.
Pakistan has emerged as a possible peace-broker in the conflict, passing messages between the U.S. and Tehran. Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Saturday that “dialogue, diplomacy, and such confidence-building measures are the only way forward.”
Dar also welcomed the fact Iran has agreed to allow 20 Pakistan-flagged ships – or two a day – through the Strait of Hormuz.
Houthis enter war
Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen launched the first missile they have fired since the war began toward Israel on Saturday. Israel’s military successfully intercepted it but the Houthis’ attack opens another front in a war that has now moved into its second month.
Up until Saturday’s missile launch the Houthis had stayed out of this war. But a Houthi spokesman said attacks will continue until “the aggression on all resistance fronts stops.”
Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs / AP
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AP
The Yemen-based rebels were active during Israel’s war in Gaza, firing on cargo ships in the Red Sea and disrupting global commercial traffic.
With Iran essentially blockading the Strait of Hormuz, driving up global oil prices, there are concerns that if the Houthis start attacking ships in the Red Sea again global shipping will be even more disrupted.
Iran also hit multiple sites around Tel Aviv and Jerusalem Saturday and Israel’s military says Iran is increasingly using cluster bombs.
Designed to detonate at high altitude the munition disperses dozens of smaller bombs that are more challenging for Israel’s multi-layered air defense system to intercept and can cause damage over a wider area.
Dozens of countries have signed onto a cluster munitions treaty banning the weapons – except Iran, Israel and the U.S.
Iran threatens U.S. universities in region
Iranian authorities and residents say more airstrikes hit them overnight. Social media videos from across Iran showed strikes hitting all over the country.
Israel’s military said it had completed what it called a wide-scale wave of strikes targeting weapons production and storage sites.
Iran claims U.S.-Israeli strikes hit a Tehran university over the weekend and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened American university campuses in the Middle East in retaliation.
“We advise all employees, professors, and students of American universities in the region and residents of their surrounding areas” to stay a kilometer away from campuses, the statement, carried by Iranian media, said.
Several US universities have campuses in the Gulf, including New York University in the United Arab Emirates and Texas A&M University, among others, in Qatar.
Meanwhile, Iran continues to fire drones and missiles at Gulf countries, with Kuwait saying it was intercepting missile and drone attacks early Sunday. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted and destroyed ten drones.
Iran also claimed it had attacked two major aluminium sites in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Emirates Global Aluminium confirmed an Iranian attack wounded several and caused significant damage to its plant.
U.S. Troops injured, more arrive
At least 15 U.S. service members were wounded Friday in an Iranian strike on a Saudi air base that hosts American troops, according to the Associated Press, including at least five in serious condition. The missile and drone strikes targeted Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan air base, located outside the capital Riyadh.
Iran has targeted U.S. service members at bases throughout the region since the war began a month ago, in retaliation for the U.S. attacks and seeking to drive troops out of the region. Overall, the Pentagon has put the U.S. casualty toll at 13 killed and more than 300 injured.
On Saturday, troops from the Japan-based 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, made up of around 3,500 sailors and Marines, arrived in the Middle East, according to U.S. Central Command.
The U.S. military will not say where and how they might be deployed. Thousands more soldiers from the U.S. military’s 82nd Airborne Division are also expected to be deployed.
Journalists killed in Lebanon
Three Lebanese journalists covering the Israeli invasion of the country’s south were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Jezzine.
One of them worked for a TV channel affiliated with Hezbollah and Israel accuses him of being a militant rather than a journalist – but has not provided evidence. The journalist Israel says it targeted was Ali Shaeb, a veteran TV correspondent and household name in Lebanon. After killing him, Israel’s military issued a statement accusing him of exposing the locations of Israeli troops.
The other two journalists killed were siblings, TV correspondent Fatima Ftouni and her cameraman brother, Mohammed Ftouni. Afterward their father appeared on TV, saying he was proud of his children.
All three had been covering Israel’s invasion of southern Lebanon.
Lebanese officials called the attack a flagrant violation of international law, and said they’re complaining to the UN Security Council. Hundreds of fellow journalists marched at a protest vigil in Lebanon’s capital.
The three journalists were among at least 47 people killed Saturday in Israeli attacks, according to Lebanese health officials.
Nine of those killed were paramedics, which the head of the World Health Organization called “a tragedy,” noting health workers are protected under international law.
Israel has intensified its attacks across Lebanon, mostly in the South, where Israeli ground troops are moving northward to try to oust Hezbollah militants.
Another Israeli soldier was also killed in Lebanon, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressing his condolences on X over the weekend.
Developments in Syria, Iraq
The war is spreading to more parts of the Middle East. On Sunday, Syria said it had intercepted a drone strike from Iraq targeting a U.S. military base. Pro-Iran Iraqi groups have claimed responsibility for some attacks on US interests.
Separately, the Syrian and UAE governments condemned an attack targeting the residence of the Kurdish region’s president Nechirvan Barzani.
French President Emmanuel Macron also condemned the attack saying: “The sovereignty of Iraq, and of Kurdistan within it, is essential to regional stability. Everything must be done to prevent Iraq from being drawn into the ongoing escalation.”
On Sunday, the Israeli army said it had launched its “first” attack into Lebanon from Syria.
Jane Arraf in Amman, Emily Feng in Van, Turkey, Lauren Frayer in Jezzine, Lebanon, Carrie Khan in Tel Aviv, and Kate Bartlett in Johannesburg contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 NPR
New Hampshire
Abandoned Camper Fire On South Main Street Knocked Down By Concord Fire And Rescue Teams
CONCORD, NH — The Concord Fire Department is investigating the cause of a camper fire on South Main Street late Friday night.
Around 11:30 p.m., fire and rescue teams were sent to South Main Street, not far from Langdon Avenue, for a report of a camper on fire. Dispatch said it was unknown if anyone was inside or if the camper was abandoned.
“We have a couple of calls on it,” a dispatcher said. “It’s fully involved.”
A few minutes later, the fire was confirmed, and firefighters worked to extinguish it. The battalion commander confirmed no one was inside, and it appeared to be abandoned. Dispatch said, if they recalled correctly, the camper had been there for “quite a while.”
News 603 posted videos from the scene on Facebook here:
And here:
The bulk of the fire was knocked down after about 20 minutes, with firefighters overhauling and dealing with “the hot spots.”
Not long after the overhaul update, firefighters were sent to a business on South Main Street, near the camper fire, in response to a report of an alarm activation.
After investigating, there did not appear to be an activation at the business, a commander said. Later, dispatch said the alarm appeared to restore itself automatically. Firefighters cleared the scene of the business alarm just after midnight on Saturday.
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