House Bill 1709 would prohibit certain unlawfully present aliens with prior felony convictions from occupying or renting real property and would authorize sheriffs to arrest such individuals during service of a writ of possession.
The prime sponsor of the bill argued that removing these individuals could help free up housing units for state residents, including those experiencing homelessness, though he acknowledged that data quantifying the number of impacted units is limited.
The bill does not place specific responsibilities on property owners or landlords to enforce or screen tenants. Opponents expressed concerns that the proposal would significantly shift eviction law by tying it to immigration status rather than tenant behavior, potentially penalizing otherwise compliant renters.
The bill has passed the House, and last week the Senate Commerce Committee voted 3-2 to recommend passage. The Senate will take final action on the bill later this week.
No dead end for road length bill
Senate Bill 564 seeks to prohibit municipalities from placing limits on maximum road length and imposing a numerical cap on the number of housing lots on a dead-end road or street. ?The bill also mandates that municipalities must allow utilities to be placed within designated open space or perimeter buffer areas of subdivisions, provided that such areas are not wetlands nor protected shoreline.
During the House Housing Committee hearing, proponents (including NHAR) argued that arbitrary local restrictions on road length, caps on the number of lots on dead-end streets, and prohibitions on the placement of utilities in non-sensitive open space areas unnecessarily increase development costs and reduce the supply of housing.
The state fire code already establishes uniform and comprehensive requirements to ensure life safety, property access, and emergency vehicle passage, rendering more restrictive municipal caps on road length unnecessary and duplicative. Currently, a large number of New Hampshire towns do not have road length restrictions, and that has not led to health or safety issues.
The NH Municipal Association opposed the bill, arguing that cul de sacs and dead-end streets pose unique safety issues which warrant their prohibition. However, NHMA produced no evidence or real world examples to support the claim.
The Senate has already passed the bill. The Housing Committee voted unanimously to recommend passage. Final action by the House is expected later this month.
Quote of the Week
"Employers need employees, and they need someplace to live. We hear from C-Suite executives down to entry-level hiring managers, they’re trying to hire and prospective employees can’t find housing. I am not even talking about affordable housing, just no housing."
—Natch Greyes, Vice President of Public Policy for the NH Business and Industry Association, (Business NH Magazine, April 2026)
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For more information, contact New Hampshire Realtors CEO Bob Quinn: bob@nhar.com.