1 bill passed
New Hampshire would restrict cloud seeding to verified extreme drought conditions lasting at least 90 days, replacing the state's existing open-ended weather modification authorisation with a drought-contingent regulatory framework that requires environmental review and public disclosure.
New Hampshire's HB1618 creates an aggressive enforcement regime against atmospheric interventions involving pollutants, establishing a citizen deputy system where county sheriffs must deputise volunteers to help enforce felony prohibitions carrying minimum $500,000 fines, while simultaneously empowering the Air National Guard to interdict aircraft and imposing strict electromagnetic radiation limits on communications facilities—making artificial intelligence entities themselves subject to criminal prosecution.
New Hampshire's House urges the prohibition of atmospheric geoengineering through a formal resolution requiring the state environmental agency to notify 27 federal entities of the policy. However, the measure creates no enforceable penalties or regulatory framework—representing legislative intent rather than binding law.
This geoengineering prohibition bill received an overwhelming 17-1 negative committee recommendation but was rescued by the full House through a procedural table motion, leaving it in legislative limbo. The bill's Tenth Amendment rationale and requirement that New Hampshire formally notify 25 federal agencies - including nuclear regulators - of its new atmospheric restrictions reflects an assertive states' rights posture rarely seen in environmental legislation.
This predecessor to HB 764 combined geoengineering prohibition with electromagnetic radiation limits and a mandatory citizen reporting system deputizing the public as atmospheric monitors. The bill was decisively rejected 315-58 on the House floor after a 16-3 negative committee vote, representing one of the most lopsided defeats for geoengineering legislation in any state.