| We are getting our first look at 2026 legislative language.
The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) releases bills on a rolling basis after the prime sponsor formally approves them. Prior to OLS releasing the final bill language, we only have a public list of Legislative Service Request (LSRs) titles. That list is available on the NH General Court website. As the language is released, the LSRs will be assigned a bill number, and the legislative language will be linked under that number.
State Senators are allowed to file bills confidentially, so we won’t see the complete list of Senate bills until later this year. The State Senate had until yesterday to sign off on draft legislative language, and the House has until November 21st.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll continue to spotlight newly released bills.
The first batch of 2026 legislation released by OLS includes several proposals to repeal all or part of last year’s regulatory reforms aimed at increasing housing options.
HB 1005, repealing the commission to study the historical evolution of the New Hampshire zoning enabling act.
- What It Does: This bill repeals the bipartisan commission contained in 2024’s HB 399.
- Why It Matters: The commission is tasked with studying the historical evolution of New Hampshire’s Zoning Enabling Act and providing legislative recommendations to the Governor and legislative leadership on November 1, 2026. Any recommended legislation would still need to advance through the formal legislative process. This commission provides a transparent, bipartisan, and knowledgeable forum for this important discussion.
HB 1009, relative to municipal parking requirements for residential units.
- What It Does: This bill reverts the ability of municipalities to regulate the number of parking spots required for new development to 2024’s HB 1400. HB 1400 said that a municipality could not require more than 1.5 parking spaces per unit for studio and one-bedroom units under 1000 sq ft that qualify for workforce housing and multi-family developments with 10 or more units. This would repeal 2025’s SB 284, which created a clear one spot per unit requirement.
- Why It Matters: Overburdensome parking requirements drive up housing costs, limit the amount of homes that can be built, and create seas of pavement. Nothing in SB 284 or HB 1400 prohibited a developer or homeowner from building more parking. The policy question is, who should be making the decision about how much parking is necessary?
HB 1010, repealing the statewide mandate requiring multi-family residential development on commercially zoned land.
- What It Does: Repeals 2025’s HB 631, permitting residential building in commercial zoning with a specific focus on retail (like aging strip malls) and office space.
- Why It Matters: One of the signature achievements of the 2025 legislative session, HB 631 enables the development of denser, mixed-use downtowns and the conversion of commercial-only buildings to residential use. Mixed-use development is an important tool not only in the housing toolbox but also provides the flexibility necessary to better use existing infrastructure.
HB 1011, repealing zoning restrictions on dwelling units.
- What It Does: Repeals 2025’s HB 457, prohibiting a town from preventing two people from sharing a bedroom and prohibiting a town from policing the relationship between people occupying a house.
- Why It Matters: Several New Hampshire municipalities had ordinances restricting the number of people who may occupy a bedroom or how many unrelated people may share a home. As nontraditional family structures become more common and seniors (and others) explore co-living strategies to save housing costs, these laws can limit housing options. Underutilization of the existing housing stock also contributes to housing demand.
HB 1012, repealing accessory dwelling units and detached accessory dwelling units.
- What It Does: Repeals not only 2025’s HB 577 that allowed homeowners to build detached accessory dwelling units, but also the provision of law that has allowed homeowners to build attached accessory dwelling units since 2017.
- Why It Matters: If this bill passes, municipalities could ban accessory dwelling units from being constructed, decreasing future housing options.
HB 1016, eliminating the requirement that municipalities allow for manufactured housing development opportunities.
- What It Does: Repeals the 1983 law that enabled manufactured homes to be installed in New Hampshire.
- Why It Matters: If this bill passes, municipalities could ban manufactured homes from being installed, decreasing future housing options.
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