New Hampshire

The fraught path forward for cannabis legalization – NH Business Review

Published

2 years ago

April 29, 2024

The fraught path forward for cannabis legalization – NH Business Review

New Hampshire’s cannabis legalization effort has reached a tricky crossroads.

A year after Gov. Chris Sununu announced he would support a legalization approach that meets a number of strict conditions, the New Hampshire House has passed a bill. That bill, which cleared the House 239-136 last week, is now in the hands of the Senate.

But the governor has already raised issues with the bill, arguing that it does not follow his vision of establishing retail cannabis outlets that are state controlled.

Now, House Bill 1633 is in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and senators, House members, cannabis advocates, and representatives of the governor’s office are working to find a compromise that might please all sides, and not fall afoul of federal laws.

Here’s the latest on the state of cannabis legalization.

Sununu’s position

After years of wavering between skepticism and outright opposition to cannabis legalization in New Hampshire, Sununu surprised many in May 2023 when he released a statement saying he would sign a legalization bill if it met certain criteria.

In order to win Sununu’s support, the bill would need to include a retail model that allowed legal sales only at specific outlets overseen by the state, the governor stated. That approach would include measures to keep cannabis outlets away from schools; prohibit “marijuana miles,” or areas where cannabis stores are concentrated; allow towns to decide whether to permit a cannabis outlet; and provide state control over marketing, messaging, distribution, and access.

Some legalization advocates have opposed that approach, seeing it as unnecessary interference with the free market that would keep costs high.

What has the House done?

The House has passed a number of versions of the cannabis legalization bill this term, as lawmakers quarrel over how closely to adhere to Sununu’s vision.

The legislation that left the House last week, HB 1633, would allow the state to license up to 15 retail establishments. The 43-page bill would legalize the use and purchase of cannabis for anyone 21 or older, and create a commission to license and regulate retail outlets.

Sununu’s issue arises from how those outlets would be managed by the state. The House has adopted a licensing model. The governor prefers a franchise model, which would allow the state to dictate the marketing, layout, and appearance of the cannabis outlets, similar to how fast-food companies allow people to open franchises but require that stores follow brand guidelines.

“The state would essentially be an operational partner, like McDonald’s to a McDonald’s franchise,” said Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy organization.

To Sununu, the retail license model doesn’t give the state sufficient control over sales.

“Governor Sununu has been crystal clear about the framework needed for a legalization bill to earn his support, focusing on harm reduction and keeping it out of kids’ hands,” the governor’s office said in a statement last week. “The legislation passed today doesn’t get us there but the Governor looks forward to working with the Senate to see if we can get it done.”

Why did the House deviate from Sununu’s position?

To some House lawmakers and cannabis legalization advocates, the question of whether to adopt a franchise or license model is not academic: It could have real legal implications for the state.

“Here we are in the world of cannabis, where everything is changing federally under our feet as we try to legalize it here in New Hampshire,” said Tim Egan, an advocate representing the New Hampshire Cannabis Association.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has regulatory power over franchised businesses, and requires a certain level of disclosure by companies that are selling franchise rights to others in order to prevent unfair practices.

While 24 states have legalized cannabis, New Hampshire’s state-run retail system would be a first in the U.S. That lack of precedent has made some legalization supporters concerned that a franchise model could allow the FTC to step in and shut down the state-run stores, given that cannabis is still illegal under federal law. Concerns over state liability have pushed some to argue that the licensee model is better.

“Early on, people that knew something about franchise law said, ‘Just don’t do this; you can’t do this,’” said John Reagan, a former Republican state senator from Deerfield who now lobbies in favor of legalization. “You’ll be in a paralyzed situation, and won’t be able to get anything done.”

Others have raised concerns about how close the franchise model could put the state to the cannabis sales themselves. That could raise the possibility for lawsuits, O’Keefe said. The state could potentially face a lawsuit under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), under the premise that it is engaged in sales of an illegal drug. Or it could face litigation over the “impossibility pre-emption,” the doctrine that prevents an employee from needing to follow both a state law and a federal law if the two conflict.

Meanwhile, many states that have legalized have already faced difficulty navigating how to collect revenue from retail sales without falling afoul of banking regulations. New Hampshire’s franchise model could invite similar headaches, Egan said.

What’s next for the bill?

HB 1633 has arrived at the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is holding a hearing on April 25. But even before the committee takes it up publicly, stakeholders and senators are already meeting to attempt to finesse the bill to Sununu’s liking.

To be successful, senators will need to thread a needle: Tweak the House bill just enough to win the governor over, but not so much that it transforms the state model and loses support in the House. If the Senate passes a bill that the House does not immediately accept, it could go to a committee of conference, which advocates worry could doom its chances.

Amid those stakes, a potential compromise to the bill has emerged, Egan and O’Keefe say. The proposal would create the franchise model the governor asked for, but include a trigger clause that would implement the licensee approach should the franchise approach be struck down in court. That could allow the state to carry on retail sales even if the federal government intervened.

“I think that would be a great way to bridge the gap,” O’Keefe said. “If (the governor) thinks the franchise model is going to work, then if it works, it works. But if it doesn’t work, then you can address the House’s concerns there.”

For now, discussions are ongoing with Sens. Daryl Abbas, Becky Whitley, Cindy Rosenwald, Tim Lang, and Rep. Erica Layon, according to Egan.

Legalization supporters have attempted a variety of legislative models over the past decade, only to see them struck down by the Senate. But for advocates, with Sununu declining to run for reelection, legalization could be now or never.

“If the goal is to get it done, this is the window,” said O’Keefe. “There is no guarantee that next year there will be a governor that will sign any bill.”

This story was originally produced by the New Hampshire Bulletin, an independent local newsroom that allows NH Business Review and other outlets to republish its reporting.

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New Hampshire

Possible 2028 Democratic White House contenders weigh in on Iran with New Hampshire voters

Published

10 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Possible 2028 Democratic White House contenders weigh in on Iran with New Hampshire voters

As the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran overtakes the foreign policy debate in Washington, two Democratic governors with potential 2028 presidential aspirations — Gavin Newsom and Andy Beshear — recently traveled to New Hampshire, introducing themselves to the state’s famously engaged voters. The two weighed in on the war and both criticized and questioned President Trump’s strategy and endgame.

“If a president is going to take a country into war, and risk the lives of American troops and Americans in the region, he has to have a real justification and not one that seems to change every five to 10 hours,” Beshear told CBS News after a Democratic fundraiser in Keene.

“This President seems to use force before ever trying diplomacy, and he has a duty to sell it to the American people and to address Congress with it,” Beshear continued. “He hasn’t done any of that. In fact, it appears there isn’t even a plan for what success looks like. He’s gone from regime change to strategic objectives and now is talking about unconditional surrender, which isn’t realistic where he is.”

Beshear also said he thought that Congress should have reined in Mr. Trump’s war powers.

“He is trying to ignore Congress. He’s trying to even ignore the American people,” Beshear said.

He went on to note that the president’s State of the Union address took place “three — four days before he launched this attack,” and Mr. Trump “didn’t even have the respect to tell the American people the threat that he thought Iran posed to us.”

Last week, both the House and the Senate failed to pass resolutions to limit Mr. Trump’s war powers and stop him from taking further military action against Iran without congressional support.

Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear speaks with voters in Keene, New Hampshire, on March 7, 2026.

Anne Bryson

For Newsom, the war with Iran constitutes part of a broader criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

At an event last Tuesday in Los Angeles, Newsom had compared Israel to an “apartheid state.” Later, in New Hampshire, he sought to clarify his comment.

“I was specifically referring to a Tom Friedman [New York Times] column last week, where Tom used that word of apartheid as it relates to the direction Bibi is going, particularly on the annexation of the West Bank,” Newsom explained during a book tour event Thursday night in Portsmouth. “I’m very angry, with what he is doing and why he’s doing it, what he’s going to ultimately try to do to the Supreme Court there, what he’s trying to do to save his own political career.”

Friedman wrote that at the same time that the U.S. and Israel are prosecuting a war in Iran, within Israel, Netanyahu’s government has undertaken efforts to annex the West Bank, driving Palestinians from their homes; fire the attorney general who is leading the prosecution against Netanyahu for corruption; and block the government’s attempt to establish a commission to examine the failures that led up to the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre of Jews by Hamas.

CBS News has reached out to the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., for comment.

On Iran, Newsom said, “I’m very angry about this war, with all due respect, you know, not because I’m angry the supreme leader is dead. Quite the contrary. I’m not naive about the last 37 years of his reign. Forty-seven years since ’79 — the revolution,” Newsom said. “But I’m also mindful that you have a president who still is inarticulate and incapable of giving us the rationale of why? Why now? What’s the endgame?”

California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks with political commentator Jack Cocchiarella at an event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on March 5, 2026.

Anne Bryson

Many attendees at Newsom’s book event said that the situation in Iran is a top-of-mind issue for them, too. Some said they’re “horrified” by what is happening.

29-year-old Alicia Marr told CBS News she decided to attend Newsom’s event because of his social media response to the war with Iran.

“There was one spot left, and I decided to pick it up, and it was due to his response to the war, that it is just unacceptable, and I would agree with that,” Marr said.

While some voters like Marr are eager to hear about where potential candidates stand on foreign policy, many at Newsom’s event said they care most about how potential candidates plan to address domestic issues.

“I’m more focused on getting the middle class back on track and fighting the oligarchy, and I’m less invested in international issues,” said Anita Alden, who also attended Newsom’s event,

“I wouldn’t call myself America first, but we have so many problems at home that are my priority,” she told CBS News.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris, who may also be weighing another White House bid, told Fox 2 Detroit last week that she “unequivocally opposes” the Trump administration’s military action in Iran and urged Congress to take action.

“If we want to stop Donald Trump with this random decision that he has arrived at, then Congress must act, and Congress must act immediately. The American people do not want our sons and daughters to go into this unauthorized war of choice,” Harris said.

Mr. Trump has lashed out against Democrats who have pushed back on his Iran strategy, calling them “losers” last week and arguing that they would criticize any decision he made on Iran.

“If I did it, it’s no good. If I didn’t do it, they would have said the opposite, that you should have done this,” the president said.

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New Hampshire

Mass. man nabbed after allegedly driving over 100 mph in N.H.

Published

22 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Mass. man nabbed after allegedly driving over 100 mph in N.H.

Local News

Police say the Attleboro man was driving 104 mph in a 55 mph zone on Route 202 near in Rindge, New Hampshire.

A Massachusetts man was arrested late Wednesday night after police say he was driving more than 100 mph on a New Hampshire roadway.

Officers with the Rindge Police Department stopped a vehicle shortly after 11 p.m. on Route 202 near Sears Drive in Rindge following a report of a car traveling at excessive speed, according to a statement from Chief Rachel Malynowski.

The vehicle, a 2020 Kia Stinger, was spotted traveling at 104 mph in a posted 55 mph zone, Malynowski said.

The driver, a 21-year-old man from Attleboro, was arrested and charged with reckless operation of a motor vehicle, according to police.

He is scheduled to be arraigned April 5. If convicted, the man faces a fine of at least $750, in addition to the court’s penalty assessment, and a 90-day license suspension, Malynowski said.