Wetlands buffer zone minimum requirements are currently devolved to local governments in New Hampshire. Each municipality determines its own buffer requirement, and some towns impose no buffer requirement. This policy brief assesses the desirability of continuing to set the buffer zone requirements at the local level versus at the state…
New Hampshire is currently entering the evaluation and implementation phase of its e- Courts Project, commissioned in July 2011. The project aims to “...increase efficiency in the New Hampshire Judicial Branch (NHJB) by implementing automated systems through re-engineering of business processes resulting in reduced cost of operations and improved customer…
Shoreland development along lakes and ponds in Vermont is responsible for considerable impacts to aquatic habitats. These impacts include physical erosion, nutrient loading, and damages to near-shore shallow water environments. Before this year Vermont has not had an official policy managing shoreland development specifically. During the 2013 and 2014 Vermont…
In 2012 the Vermont Legislature passed Act 79 following the significant loss of inpatient mental health care beds from Tropical Storm Irene. Act 79 provided resources to expand the state’s community-based approach to mental health care, including peer counseling services. This report provides an in-depth analysis of Vermont’s community-based programs…
This report examines the rate of maltreatment substantiation for youths under the age of 18 in New Hampshire. Substantiation rates refer to the proportion of assessments investigated by the Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) deemed to exhibit evidence of abuse or neglect. New Hampshire’s substantiation rate is particularly…
When a child or youth enters out-of-home placement, one of the primary goals of the New Hampshire Division for Children Youth and Families (DCYF) in the Department of Health and Human Services (NH DHHS) is to maintain a stable environment. With more stable living situations, fewer youth re-enter into child…
This report presents an overview of Career and Technical Education (CTE) in Vermont and nationally. A preliminary analysis of curricular opportunities available through Vermont’s CTE programs reveals that while there are many options for students to pursue across the state, programmatic offerings differ at each individual center, meaning that the…
The Northern Pass Project is a proposal for a transmission line route that is designed to deliver electricity from Québec to the New England area. The $1.4 billion project will transmit Canadian hydroelectric power to the New England grid via 187 miles of transmission line, including 32.25 miles of new…
President Obama’s job approval rating in New Hampshire falls to 36 percent (from 45 percent in 2013), while his favorability rating plummets to 28 percent (from 41 percent in 2013).
NH Senate Race within margin of error between incumbent Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D) and challengers Scott Brown and Bob Smith…
A transparent system for accessing New Hampshire’s government spending and revenue collection is an essential component of ensuring the state’s accountability to its citizens. The public has the right to understand where its state receives revenue, how its tax contributions are spent, and who receives these allocations of money. One…