This guide was originally produced by Citizens Count. NHPR is republishing it in partnership with the Granite State News Collaborative.
A public hearing is a part of the legislative process in which elected officials invite members of the public to give input on why they should or shouldn’t vote for a bill. You don’t have to have any special credentials to testify, nor do you need to be some kind of subject matter expert. In this article, we’ll walk you through the process for testifying at a public hearing.
1. Identify the bill you wish to speak about
If you have a particular issue you care about, but you aren’t sure what bills are being considered that relate to that issue, you can start by perusing bills on the Citizens Count website: CitizensCount.org/Bills. Many advocacy groups also highlight bills with upcoming public hearings.
2. Find out the hearing date and location
If you click on a bill through the Citizens Count website, you will see the latest public hearing date and location on that page. “SH” stands for “State House,” the golden-domed building in Concord. “LOB” stands for “Legislative Office Building,” a stone building just behind the State House.
You can also find public hearing dates and locations on the official legislative website, gencourt.state.nh.us. Type a bill number into the “Find A Bill” search on the homepage of that website. You will get a results page that shows the “Next/Last Hearing” date and location.
If there’s nothing listed yet, try checking back occasionally. Hearing dates are often updated on Fridays.
3. Prepare your testimony
Now that you’ve selected a bill and found out when the hearing will be, it’s time to prepare. You have a few options when it comes to testifying about a bill in New Hampshire. You can get up in front of the committee and testify in person. You can also just hand in written testimony. Either way, it’s a good idea to gather your thoughts about the bill on paper in a succinct, compelling statement. If the issue personally impacts you, it can be powerful to share your personal experience with the legislators.
Although it is not required, you can prepare copies of your testimony to be given to committee members. Bring 21 copies for a House hearing and 10 copies for a Senate hearing.
4. Head to Concord
Now it’s time to make your way to the State House and Legislative Office Building in Concord. It’s located off Exit 14, a few blocks west of I-93. Leave plenty of time to find parking.
If you are testifying on a very popular issue, such as marijuana legalization, it’s possible the public hearing will go on for a few hours, so keep that in mind. Most bill hearings will be under an hour, however.
5. Arrive and sign in
Once you make it to the hearing room, you’ll want to sign up to speak. You do this by filling out a “pink card” (literally, a pink notecard) in the House or the sign-up sheet in the Senate. Usually these are located near the entrance of the room. These forms will ask you to identify yourself, whether you’re in favor of or against the bill, and how long you’ll need to speak. You’ll usually get about three to five minutes. Depending how many bills are being discussed in that room on that day, there may be multiple sign-up sheets, so be sure you sign up to testify about the correct bill!
6. Testify
The chair of the committee will open the bill hearing and call your name when it is your turn to speak. You’ll be ushered to a microphone where you can give your testimony. You can choose whether or not you want to take questions from the legislators after you are done presenting.
Once you are done, you can hand any written copies you’ve brought with you to a committee member who will pass them along to the committee clerk.
It’s worth noting that you don’t necessarily need to testify out loud. You can also just sign in and state your position. You can also hand over a written statement without speaking.
If there are many people signed up to speak that day, legislators appreciate if you avoid repeating arguments other people have already made. Instead, say something like, “I agree with many of the people who have spoken before me, but I will not repeat what they have already said.” You should still share any new information or unique perspectives you have.
7. Continue sharing your voice
There are many opportunities outside a public hearing to share your opinion with legislators. Keep an eye out for more of these columns or visit citizenscount.org/how-to.
Citizens Count is a nonprofit serving the New Hampshire community by providing objective information about issues, elected officials, bills, elections and candidates. These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.
