SB 570 - AS INTRODUCED
2026 SESSION
26-2191
09/05
SENATE BILL 570
AN ACT relative to the legislative ethics committee and legislative ethics.
SPONSORS: Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Ward, Dist 8
COMMITTEE: Executive Departments and Administration
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ANALYSIS
This bill amends definitions related to determining conflicts of interests for legislators.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
26-2191
09/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six
AN ACT relative to the legislative ethics committee and legislative ethics.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Paragraph; Legislative Ethics Committee; Definitions. Amend RSA 14-B:1 by inserting after paragraph III-b the following new paragraph:
III-c. “Public at large” means any reasonably large group of individuals or organizations that is similarly situated and likely to incur similar benefits or detriments as a result of legislation, including but not limited to professions or occupations, owners of widely held forms of property, or participants in a commercial marketplace.
2 Legislative Ethics Committee; Definitions. Amend RSA 14-B:1, V(a) to read as follows:
(a) A financial interest exists where a legislator or household member is an employee of, or receives compensation from, an individual or an organization which[, or a person or organization, whether nonprofit or for profit, by which the legislator is employed, or from which the legislator receives compensation, to act as the person's or organization's agent or advocate,] could stand to gain or lose anything of material value as a result of the official activity.
3 New Paragraph; Conflicts of Interests for Legislators; Definitions. Amend RSA 14-C:2 by inserting after paragraph II the following new paragraph:
II-a. “Direct benefit” or “direct detriment” means a financial benefit or detriment that flows to the legislator or household member without any intervening action by an independent actor, consumer, or other instrumentality or action that is not under the control of the legislator or household member. A “direct benefit” or “direct detriment” does not include a benefit or detriment that affects a marketplace or program in which the legislator or household member participates as a member of the public at large.
4 New Paragraph; Legislative Ethics; Recusal for Conflicts of Interest. Amend RSA 14-C:4-a by inserting after paragraph II the following new paragraph:
III. For purposes of this section:
(a) “Organization” means the client and not the person, partnership, firm, or corporation acting as lobbyist.
(b) A person who registers as a lobbyist pursuant to RSA 15:1 does not "exercise substantial influence over the affairs of the organization" unless he or she also satisfies the test set forth in RSA 14-C:4-c through 14-C:4-e.
5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Nov. 24, 2025: Introduced 01/07/2026 and Referred to Executive Departments and Administration; SJ 1