SB 436 - AS INTRODUCED
2026 SESSION
26-2220
06/09
SENATE BILL 436
AN ACT relative to zoning board of adjustment membership criteria.
SPONSORS: Sen. Abbas, Dist 22; Sen. Lang, Dist 2; Sen. Gannon, Dist 23; Sen. Sullivan, Dist 18; Sen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. Murphy, Dist 16; Sen. Birdsell, Dist 19
COMMITTEE: Election Law and Municipal Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This bill replaces the existing recusal provision for zoning board of adjustment members with a conflict of interest standard requiring recusal whenever a member’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned and including prior quasi-judicial involvement on another board.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
26-2220
06/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six
AN ACT relative to zoning board of adjustment membership criteria.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Appointment and Terms of Local Land Use Board Members; Zoning Board of Adjustment and Building Code Board of Appeals. RSA 673:3, V is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
V. Any member of a zoning board of adjustment who has a conflict of interest in a matter before the board shall recuse himself or herself from acting or voting on that matter. A conflict of interest shall include any circumstance in which the member’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned, including prior involvement in the matter in a quasi-judicial capacity as a voting member of another board.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
| Date | Body | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Jan. 13, 2026 | Senate | Hearing |
| Feb. 5, 2026 | Senate | Floor Vote |
Jan. 29, 2026: Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate; Vote 5-0; CC; 02/05/2026; SC 4
Dec. 10, 2025: Hearing: 01/13/2026, Room 122-123, SH, 09:30 am; SC 46
Nov. 21, 2025: Introduced 01/07/2026 and Referred to Election Law and Municipal Affairs; SJ 1