Governor Says She Plans To Work On Housing, Childcare, Public Safety Initiatives In 2026

By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org, InDepth NH

CONCORD, NH — Gov. Kelly Ayotte said going forward some of her priorities in 2026 including working on affordable housing issues, childcare and public safety initiatives.

Meeting with reporters following the Executive Council meeting she also touted the state being again chosen as the "freest" state in the country by the Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy for the 24th year.

She noted considerable progress this past year in some of her priority issues including bail reform. But she said there is work to be done on areas which also are front of mind for many residents in poll after poll that show that a lack of affordable housing is holding the state back in many ways.

She gave credit to the Republican controlled House and Senate for passing policy measures meant to encourage housing but Democrats have criticized them for not spending money on the issue.

Ayotte said she would like to also work on tax credits for co-locating childcare at businesses and large work centers. And she said she wants to work on making the roads safer by making changes to laws related to drunk driving, noting that the state has too high a level of refusals for breathalyzer tests compared to other states.

"There's plenty of work to do," she said.

Ayotte said some of the effective dates on housing are just coming up. She noted partnerships are key and included the former Mohawk Tannery site in Nashua as an example of collaborative approaches to housing.

"We are going to expand child care in the state and how can we make it easier also for child care providers. Sometimes it can be too bureaucratic when they are submitting to HHS in terms of the child care scholarship, how can we streamline those processes," she said.

Distracted driving is also a concern, she said, and some recommendations will require legislation. Another priority is to ensure that the changes that have come are working well in terms of implementation.

"If we have to make adjustments, we will make them, but I hope I have the opportunity to do this work," she said.

Ayotte, a Republican, is almost at the midpoint of her two-year term. She said she has an upcoming report at the end of the year from her committee to look at efficiencies and she said anything that is there that she can use to help she will also work to implement.

This article first appeared on InDepthNH.org and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.