Special legislative session approved amid Ayotte’s budget standoff with GOP lawmakers

New Hampshire Gov. Kelly A. Ayotte at the State House in Concord

New Hampshire Gov. Kelly A. Ayotte at the State House in Concord

By CHARLOTTE MATHERLY

Monitor staff

Published: 06-25-2025 2:31 PM

Modified: 06-25-2025 3:37 PM


With the $16 billion two-year state budget on the ropes, Gov. Kelly Ayotte and the Executive Council authorized a special legislative session to open the door for extra time to hash out the details of the spending plan and accompanying legislation.

Republican councilors Joe Kenney and John Stephen both said they hope it won’t come to that. They want the budget completed by Thursday, when lawmakers are scheduled to vote on it.

However, Ayotte has said she will veto the budget in its current form after lawmakers removed changes to pension benefits for a select group of first responders.

Karen Liot Hill, the lone Democrat on the five-person council, which serves as a check on the governor’s power, called on state representatives and senators to pass a “responsible” spending plan by the deadline.

“Adopting a state budget is arguably the most important job of the state Legislature,” Liot Hill said at the council’s meeting on Wednesday. “I am disappointed, obviously, that we are days away from the end of the fiscal year and facing the prospect of a potential government shutdown. This is not a responsible way to govern our state.”

Still, they unanimously approved the special session as a contingency plan, which will begin Friday, if needed.

Last week, Ayotte called out 11th-hour amendments that she said shortchange police officers’ and firefighters’ retirement benefits and cut funding for healthcare and certain school districts.

“Doing the people’s work means putting together a responsible, balanced budget that keeps our promises to protect services for our most vulnerable citizens, ensure our children receive a best-in-class education, and take care of the men and women who have made our state the safest in the nation,” Ayotte said in a statement.

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Special sessions are uncommon but permitted by Part 2, Article 50 of the New Hampshire Constitution, so long as the Executive Council approves them.

The budget bills can no longer be amended, so state representatives and senators on Thursday must give a blanket thumbs-up or thumbs-down on the proposal. Lawmakers can pass the bills and challenge Ayotte to veto them, or vote them down and take the extension to make adjustments.

In the case that the budget still has loose ends by the end of Thursday, the governor also pushed for a continuing resolution of up to 90 days that would continue to fund the state government while she hashes out her legislative priorities with the Legislature.

“We must ensure certainty for our citizens and continuity for our tourism industry during this critical revenue period,” she said.

Charlotte Matherly is the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor and Monadnock Ledger-Transcript in partnership with Report for America. Follow her on X at @charmatherly, subscribe to her Capital Beat newsletter and send her an email at cmatherly@cmonitor.com.