HB160. Castle Doctrine Hearing Jan, 29th 1:30pm room LOB 204

[ny2nh]

I don't think that public testimony as the same as say publicizing say the senate chambers. House sessions are streamed live, but those are members of the legislature - not just citizens.

In this particular case, I have specific, personal reason why I would prefer that my testimony not be broadcast. Keep in mind, this was testimony about an incident that caused me to fear for my life. Think about it - it's hardly unreasonable to want to not have that repeated over and over again.....for what should be relatively obvious reasons.

Bill - just for the record, there are youtube videos of me testifying at other hearings - so I am not against ever being broadcast, but in this case, I just asked that it not be.

[J’raxis 270145]

Interesting issues raised, and a good discussion to have.

If this is broadcast, I think there will be times that I will have to refrain for testifying if I see that someone - someone on the same side as myself - is recording. And I think others might do the same....and that would seem to be a waste.

I don't have a thesis to present, but some thoughts:

Does the committee audio and/or video record the testimony?
Would our process be different if there was CSPAN-NH?  Does CPAN change the way federal government happens?
Rowland is a kind and considerate fellow whom we can make feel guilty if he acts up; if there were an unknown videographer at the hearing would folks likely temper their testimony?

I didn’t see any recording taking place at this hearing, other than Rowland and (I think) Ridley. If the MSM is at a hearing, they’re usually fairly obvious, such as having large cameras on tripods or mics set up on the desk in front of the testifiers.

For some hearings in Criminal Justice this week, a reporter was sitting on the floor next to the desk, and WMUR had a camera in the back, facing the desk.

A few Committee hearings I’ve been to put up a sign on the desk that says the hearing is being recorded. That’s probably more of a courtesy than a requirement.

The Finance Committee actually has a stenographer. Other ones might, too; that’s the first and only one I’ve noticed. I’m sure that her transcripts gets put in some publicly available archive somewhere, or are perhaps even copied into the Committee’s reports to the House, or the House Journal.

I wonder if and how RSA 570-A would cover a public hearing, if someone got upset they were being recorded, and decided to pursue the issue.

I suppose one should always assume that a public hearing is going to be public record.

[Pat McCotter]

House Committee Audio Recordings

Welcome to our new committee audio streaming program. We hope that this pilot program to stream certain committee hearings online will help to open up the legislative process to those who are unable to attend the hearings in person. Thank you for participating in this program, and we hope that you find it helpful.

– Terie Norelli, Speaker of the House

Standing Committees With Audio Recordings:
FINANCE
WAYS AND MEANS

[keysersoce]

I really do NOT want my testimony to be broadcast on the internet.

I thought we were working to get government proceedings *more* exposure?

If I were Tammy, I wouldn't want that on the internet either.  It was rather personal and emotional.  I appreciate her doing it, but I know it wasn't easy and her wishes should absolutely be respected.


Unrelated, Evan N drafted an improved bill and gave it to each member of the committee.  That was great, since many people were complaining about the language without providing alternatives.  His might've been the most helpful.  Ryan M was short and to the point and very effective.  Kate and Tammy were also very effective.  Penny D was very effective at deflating one of the rep's arguments that the legislation wasn't needed because no one had been prosecuted for defending themselves...she made it very clear that that wasn't true, as she's personally defended a number of those cases.  Eli got the attention of the committee too.  A lot more people had great testimony, but those are the ones that stick out to me. 

No bearing on this situation due to other factors but in general, personal and emotional testimony get the best response from the public. Lord knows logic doesn't get you very far.