HB 1416 Offered the Most Minimal Protections Imaginable — and the Senate Still Killed It
Senate Republicans repeatedly blocked or weakened many key priorities advanced by grassroots pro-life advocates and House Republicans this session. One of the clearest examples was HB 1416 — a narrowly tailored bill designed to provide basic protections for Pregnancy Resource Centers (PRCs).
Senator David Rochefort was at the center of several of these fights. Rochefort played a major role in undermining Right to Try legislation this session. During the HB 1268 debate, the Senate also weakened the homeschool freedom bill by removing key protections, while Rochefort — a pharmacist and lobbyist for a private equity rollup of compounding pharmacies — hijacked the bill with pharmaceutical pricing language favoring pharmacy industry interests.
And it did not stop there. Rochefort also backed HB 520, legislation that would have opened the door for minors to undergo irreversible gender-transition procedures without meaningful parental involvement or safeguards. As we detailed previously, the bill would have opened the door to life-altering medical interventions for teenage girls pushed by activists and medical interests. Rochefort also voted with his Senate Republican colleagues to kill HB 1416 without even taking a roll call vote on the Senate floor.
Taken together, these fights paint a troubling picture. Time and again, Senate Republicans sided against parental rights, conscience protections, and safeguards for children and families.
Representative Sam Farrington introduced HB 1416 to provide the most minimal protections imaginable for PRCs: preventing state agencies from shutting them down or forcing them to provide, promote, or refer for abortions or other services that violate their mission.
That was it.
Representative Katelyn Kuttab of Windham also deserves thanks for her work on HB 1416 and for helping advance these protections in the House.
PRCs serve women facing unplanned pregnancies with compassion, practical support, and genuine care. Across New Hampshire, these centers provide counseling, parenting support, ultrasounds, material assistance, baby supplies, referrals for community resources, and ongoing care for women, children, and families — all while affirming the dignity of both mother and child.
Yet across the country, PRCs are increasingly being targeted by hostile government officials and abortion activists. In neighboring Massachusetts and other states, pregnancy centers have faced investigations, regulatory pressure, state-sponsored ad campaigns labeling them “fake clinics,” compelled government messaging, and attempts to force them to speak or act against their mission and convictions.
HB 1416 was designed to ensure that would not happen in New Hampshire.
The Senate did not merely vote “no” on HB 1416. At every stage of the process, Senate Republicans made deliberate decisions to kill the bill.
1. The Senate committee stripped all original language from HB 1416 and replaced it with a study committee.
2. Senate Republicans approved gutting the bill through a voice vote instead of a roll call vote — shielding individual Senators from public accountability on one of the most basic pro-life protection bills of the session.
3. When the House non-concurred and requested a Committee of Conference to continue negotiations, the Senate refused.
In other words, Senate Republicans refused to even try to get to yes.
After a full legislative session of testimony, advocacy, and debate, what exactly was left to study?
Claiming the Senate simply needed more time to “study the issue” is not a serious argument. HB 1416 did not create sweeping new legal frameworks or controversial mandates. It simply stated that government agencies could not shut down PRCs or force them to refer for abortions.
If even those minimal protections are considered too controversial to pass, then what protection would ever be acceptable?
Some Senators pointed to a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling involving PRCs as justification for delaying action. But the Supreme Court did not issue an opinion saying states may force PRCs to refer for abortions or ban them from operating.
More importantly, New Hampshire falls under the jurisdiction of the First Circuit Court of Appeals — one of the most hostile federal appellate courts in the country on free speech and religious liberty issues.
The First Circuit recently ruled against student Liam Morrison after he wore a shirt stating “There Are Only Two Genders,” finding the First Amendment did not apply to the shirt because its message would traumatize transgender students. That is the federal court New Hampshire falls under.
If a New Hampshire state agency targets PRCs, as Planned Parenthood and the ACLU are already calling on them to do, the First Circuit is the court most likely to decide the case. The U.S. Supreme Court accepts fewer than 1% of cases for review, meaning statutory protections at the state level are critically important.
That was one of the central arguments made repeatedly throughout testimony on HB 1416. Senators understood the risks. They were told directly why these protections mattered. Yet they still refused to act.
The reality is simple: HB 1416 offered the most basic protections imaginable, and Senate Republicans still refused to pass it.
The Senate’s failure to advance HB 1416 leaves New Hampshire Pregnancy Resource Centers vulnerable to the same kinds of government hostility already unfolding in neighboring states. Protecting organizations from government coercion should not be controversial. It is a matter of basic constitutional rights and preserving the freedom of faith-based ministries to serve according to their mission and convictions.
This outcome should concern every pro-life voter in New Hampshire. When even the most basic protections for Pregnancy Resource Centers are rejected after months of advocacy and public testimony, it sends a clear message about where Senate Republicans truly stand on defending the pro-life movement and the ministries that support women, children, and families every day.
Take Action Today:
Contact Your Senator:
Call or email your senator to let them know that their failure to protect Pregnancy Resource Centers is unacceptable, and that safeguarding community care should not be rejected through a study committee.