Heath Howard

“We need to restore staffing & funding at our National Parks and other public land agencies to the levels that existed before DOGE. Our parks cannot be effectively managed without adequate personnel. I would support legislation to prohibit fracking on public lands. While Congress does not approve individual drilling permits, we can pass legislation to permanently protect federal lands from future fossil fuel development. I would also support expanding our network of protected public lands by creating new national parks and wilderness areas. As a state rep, a constituent who is a forest ranger came to my office hours to share that the Forest Protection Bureau spends weeks investigating timber theft because we do not have a chain of custody for harvested timber. I proposed a bill to establish a chain of custody so rangers can spend less time solving cases and more time protecting our forests. Conservation policy should be guided by best available scientific evidence, not politics. I support increasing funding for ecosystem restoration research, invasive species prevention & control, and wildlife population monitoring.”

KEYWORDS: Protect, Restore, Fund

“Unlike my opponents, I have a voting record on this issue. This past session, I made headlines for tricking Republicans into killing their own anti-vax bill by attaching 20 random amendments to it. They didn’t want to spend two hours debating those amendments so they voluntarily tabled it. These are the same tactics Congress needs to employ if we want to protect public health. I am a Medicare for All candidate, and I support providing free CDC recommended vaccines to the public. We need to ensure that vaccines recommendations are based in science rather than conspiracy theories. I will support the impeachment of RFK Jr for failing to protect public health, which is the job description for the Secretary of Health and Human Services. We need to rejoin the World Health Organization and fund the CDC rather than defunding it. We need to amplify the voices of scientists on both the national stage and in the halls of Congress to change the rhetoric surrounding vaccines.”

KEYWORDS: CDC, WHO, M4A

“New Hampshire’s economy and way of life rely on our natural resources: from skiing and outdoor tourism to our coastal communities. But rising sea levels, flooding, and environmental contamination threaten our health and economy. As Granite Staters, we have a deep connection to our state’s natural environment. Our forests, mountains, lakes, and coastline not only shape our way of life, but they drive our economy forward. We must commit ourselves to enhancing coastal infrastructure to address the impacts of flooding and sea level rise, particularly in low income areas so the impacts of climate change don’t disproportionately impact marginalized communities. Investing in coastal infrastructure will create jobs, so we should support access to free trade schools so we have a skilled workforce. Warmer temperatures create drier ecosystems which increases the risk of wildfires. This summer we have seen poor air quality due to wildfires in Canada. Ensuring we have access to water for our fire departments is crucial. Data centers create water shortages, and we need to make sure freshwater is used to protect our neighbors and our planet, not so tech billionaires can get richer.”

KEYWORDS: Coastal infrastructure, trade schools, firefighters

“Young people are having to grapple with the impacts of AI on the job market. When I entered college, I was told that I should go into computer science so I could make six figures as soon as I graduated. Computer science graduates cannot find jobs now due to AI. Artists, translators, historians, sales professionals, and financial analysts could all be replaced by AI in the next decade. Technological progress should improve people’s lives, not leave them behind. We need to slow the unchecked expansion of AI so that workers, educators, and policymakers have time to adapt. Without thoughtful guardrails, we risk creating widespread economic instability and concentrating the benefits of AI in the hands of a small number of companies while millions of people face uncertainty about their livelihoods. In terms of environmental impacts of AI, a data center was proposed eight miles from where I live. Our community was able to apply enough pressure on the developer for him to withdraw his proposal. We need to put a moratorium on AI data centers; expanding water and energy intensive data centers without adequate safeguards will only make those problems worse.”

KEYWORDS: Moratorium, guardrails, workforce

“We must phase out the use of fossil fuels as soon as possible. Waiting another ten years to act is not an option. We need to reduce our dependence on cars by making historic investments in public transportation. The United States has spent decades building communities around automobiles, leaving many people with no viable alternatives. Expanding reliable public transit and developing high-speed rail would dramatically reduce emissions while making transportation more affordable and accessible. We should take advantage of the renewable energy resources unique to each region. Here in New Hampshire, we have some of the highest tides on the East Coast, creating tremendous potential for tidal energy. Rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all approach, we should invest in the clean energy technologies that best match each state’s geography, whether that’s tidal, offshore wind, solar, hydroelectric, or geothermal power. The clean energy transition must create good-paying union jobs. Many blue collar workers in the coal, oil, and gas industries are understandably concerned about what a transition means for their livelihoods. We cannot ask these workers to bear the cost of climate action. I support robust job training, wage protections, pension guarantees, and targeted investments in communities that have powered our country for generations.”

KEYWORDS: Unions, Public Transit, Clean Energy