CONCORD – State lawmakers passed a bill that would dramatically expand a law enforcement program in the war against the heroin and opioid epidemic.
The state House of Representatives voted 235-74 to provide $1.5 million to take Operation Granite Hammer statewide. That’s the program that provides funds to the New Hampshire state police and the Manchester Police Department to arrest drug dealers.
The state Senate quickly followed suit, with a unanimous 22-0 vote. The legislation moved to the Corner Office. Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan, one of the state leaders that urged lawmakers to pass the measure, signed the bill into law on Thursday early evening.
Before signing the bill into law, Hassan spoke with NH1 News.
“What this bill passed today does is expand operation Granite Hammer statewide so that all of our law enforcement who are grappling on the front lines with our opioid and heroin epidemic have an additional tool, state support, partnering with the state, partnering with our federal law enforcement officials to really address the supply side of this heroin and opioid epidemic,” she said.
To reach the final vote, the chamber earlier in the day voted 241-97 to suspend the chamber’s rules to allow considering of Granite Hammer.
The parliamentary procedure needed to pass by a two-thirds vote, and there was 90 minute debate preceding the vote that at times turned heated and emotional. The showdown was mostly an intra-party battle between conservative and libertarian minded Republicans opposed to a suspension of the rules and the GOP leadership and more mainstream lawmakers supportive of the rules suspension.
There’s been a full court press the past couple of days by Hassan, State Sen. Majority Leader Jeb Bradley, and other top political leaders to pass the Granite Hammer funding.
“The state police and the Manchester police department have done a remarkable job. We need to get Granite Hammer funding to them ASAP,” Bradley said on Tuesday.
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