December 4, 2022
Dear Friends,
My last day as State Senator is December 6th. There’s no coasting out of office, I’m working to the final week.
Friday, I cast my last senate vote. As a member of the Joint Legislative Fiscal Committee that acts for the legislature between sessions, I voted to authorize $65 million for expansion of broadband across NH. You can view the article and see me on the right side of the photo. Funny that my bill to expand broadband through municipal financing and provider contributions in 2017 would lead to an influx of over $200 million of federal funding distributed by the state’s Department of Business and Economic Affairs. https://indepthnh.org/2022/12/02/fiscal-committee-approves-65m-for-broadband-expansion/
Then, I polished up four recommendations from the Committee on Teacher Shortages and Recruitment, a committee I’ve chaired since September. Those recommendations, approved by the Committee on Nov. 29th, will be acted upon during the coming legislative session.
Earlier this month two interim reports were submitted from commissions I’ve chaired for the past two years: the Commission on Telehealth Services and the Commission on Holocaust and Genocide Education. Much progress has been made to implement both of these initiatives. I wrote legislation creating these initiatives and their oversight Commissions in 2020 and the legislature and Governor enacted them in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It's great to observe teams working to implement initiatives I sponsored where all high school students will complete a Career Ready Credential and another for students completing a federal student aid request to avail themselves of postsecondary education scholarships. And implementation of a one-year Licensed Practical Nurse programs through River Valley Community College is going statewide this next semester helping fill staffing voids in nursing homes and hospitals across NH. We’ll need to see if new interstate licensing reciprocity agreements for nursing and counseling improve access to healthcare in NH.
I’ve thanked many State House staff who helped me pass into law over 70 bills in 6 years. And now I want to thank you for giving me the honor of representing you in Concord. I leave the state senate with wonderful relationships in the legislative and executive branches of NH government. I’m grateful to many Cheshire County constituents who helped me lead on many state issues. We got a lot done without getting bogged down in the enmity of partisan politics.
Not all my efforts have changed life in NH. School funding remains distributed on a presumption that it costs basically the same amount to educate all students. There is almost no accountability and oversight of the school vouchers program. The Graduate Retention Incentive Partnership program that I led into law in 2019 needs to be implemented by the Department of Business and Economic Affairs. There is much work to be done on these issues and more and I plan to still be of influence. If you need help navigating your way to your newly elected legislators and other state leaders don’t hesitate to contact me at [email protected]
More recently the state house has been filled with new and veteran legislators filing bills for the coming session and trying to set a more positive tone. There’s a lot of talk about how this year’s legislative session will be different, how parties will tamp down partisanship and work together. Such optimism arises at the start of a new term and hopefully can be sustained.
On that positive note, I hope you enjoy a good holiday season and new year, 2023. Let’s stay in touch and continue to do good work.
Sincerely,
Jay Kahn,
State Senator, District 10 through Dec. 6, 2022
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