Tag Archives: Selective Service

Testimony – HB55 Repealing the Selective Service Compliance Act

Thank Mr. Chair, members of the committee. For the record, my name is Tom Mannion, representing Hillsborough 1, Pelham. I’m a United State Marine Corps infantry combat veteran with two deployments to Iraq.

Current RSA precludes individuals from being employed by, or achieving higher education in this state without first registering for selective service with the Federal government. I have not found any information suggesting we are financially compensated for enforcing this, unlike most other federal laws/programs that the states cooperate with the feds in enforcing. It should be noted there is no fiscal note. In addition, with regards to higher education, as of 2025, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has removed its own requirement that applicants be registered with the draft to apply for federal school loans.

As with many private sector industries, the state is having trouble filling many roles. We have a bill right now to form a study committee to look into the problems with hiring law enforcement. The Selective Service Compliance Act is a hindrance in this process. We limit the talent pool, unnecessarily, by putting hurdles in our own way.

The Federal government already has steep penalties should someone fail to comply with the draft, should it be started up again, it doesn’t make sense to me that we, as a State, put ourselves and our citizens at a disadvantage when the draft has not been active for 50 years.

I ask that you vote OTP on HB55 and with that I’m happy to take any questions.

LSR 25-0017 – Repealing the Selective Service Compliance Act

Similar to HB1338 from last session, I filed the repeal of New Hampshire’s Selective Service Compliance Act. The current law forbids individuals from enrolling in college, or receiving financial assistance for that education, or ever being permitted to be employed by the state in any capacity unless they have registered in compliance with the Federal Selective Service Act.

As an Iraq war combat veteran, I’ve become incredibly skeptical of United States’ foreign policy of the last several decades – between destabilization of Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and Libya, and the disregard for the lives of the Ukrainian and Russian conscripts dying for a proxy war at the behest of the military industrial complex puppet masters behind the Biden administration, and of course the 20-year occupation of Afghanistan that ultimately resulted in thousands of lives lost to transfer the country from the Taliban to the Taliban.

I no longer trust that bringing forth the draft would be in the best interests of the United States, especially at the expense of the lives of the next generation, and I will not allow New Hampshire to be a facilitator through coercion with the existing compliance act.

And from a federalism standpoint, it is simply not the role of New Hampshire to be enforcing Federal law. As such, I have filed a repeal of the existing statute.

LSR 24-2123 – Relative to New Hampshire’s Enforcement of the Military Selective Service Act

For those that don’t know me, I’m a Marine Corps infantry veteran with two combat deployments to Iraq. This experience has turned me into a vehement anti-war advocate as I don’t believe that United States’ foreign policy has made us safer, and all the death we’ve caused across the planet has, in fact, increased hatred towards our nation. Following from those wars, the United States fought on the same sides as Al-Qaida in various regime change operations in the middle east during the Arab Spring, trained individuals in Syria that eventually left to help form ISIS, and are assisting the Saudis in the genocide of the Houthis in Yemen. Not one of these actions has made us safer and will breed the next generation of terrorists across the globe.

The 2001 AUMF is still in effect, over a decade after bin Laden was killed, and is currently being used as justification for regime change in the African country of Niger. Senator Rand Paul tried to end or fix the AUMF in various ways twice this year, both times failing to get more than 11 votes. Waiting for the House and Senate to correct the massive mistake they made in 2001 by handing unlimited unilateral military power to the Executive Branch is a waste of time.

As such, I’ve devised as best a shield as possible to protect the next generation from being drafted and sent to these unconstitutional military conflicts, borrowing language from sanctuary state policies combined with the exception baked into Defend the Guard. This has culminated in what I like to refer to as Selective Service Sanctuary State legislation.

This simply states that New Hampshire law enforcement will not cooperate with Federal agencies in the locating, apprehension, or transportation of individuals failing to register or show for selective service call ups, unless Congress formally declares war or the homeland is invaded.

I have several Republicans co-sponsoring, and I’m reaching across the aisle to try and get this as an even R/D split. Pushing back against the ravenous military industrial complex, which is profiting off the deaths of our youth, is a nonpartisan issue.

2024 Bills to be Filed

Bill filing begins on September 11, and here is a list of bills I will be submitting this year.

Transparency in Military Recruiting

I will require schools and the DMV to provide casualty and suicide rate statistics of servicemembers, veterans, and civilians caused by US conflicts of the 21st century whenever military recruiters are hosted, anytime the ASVAB is administered, or when driver’s license applications include the Selective Service registration checkbox.

It’s important that young people are given all the information before making life-changing decisions, and military recruiters are not very forthcoming with information that will hurt their quotas. With escalating global tensions, I believe transparency is critically important.

Repeal Select Service Registration Awareness and Compliance Act (RSA 187-A:38-41)

The act prohibits students from enrolling in public colleges if they have not registered for Selective Service (the draft). This is not the responsibility of the state to enforce and I believe it should be repealed.

Selective Service Sanctuary State

I will combine language from Defend the Guard and sanctuary state laws from other states to read that New Hampshire will not provide resources to aid the Federal government in apprehension of draft dodgers, unless Congress formally declares war.

As part of this, I’ll add an option to the Selective Service registration checkbox on license applications to denote conscientious objector status out of the gate.

Campus Due Process

I will submit the FIRE Campus Due Process bill. It provides an accused student with due process (presumption of innocence, access to evidence, right to acquire counsel) in any suspension/expulsion hearing.

Due Process in Temporary Relief Protective Order

It came as a surprise to me to learn that NH has a de facto Red Flag Law within the protective order RSA (173-B:4). There’s pieces of this that require more due process that I am looking to improve.

In addition, the method of returning property to its rightful owner upon expiration of the order involves the accused getting a court order. Instead, the police should have to return the items upon expiration, unless a court order exists to the contrary.

Right to Die

This one is a bit rough, but a pure libertarian stance. You have the right to do with your body and life as you choose, to include ending it. Many folks are suffering with terminal illness with no hope for cures, often in extreme pain, putting their family in emotional and financial strain. I’ll ensure the legislation has enough safeguards in place to prevent abuse, to avoid any situations similar to the anecdotal instances of bad MAID prescriptions occurring by state-run medicine in Canada.

Co-sponsorships and the Future

There are other bills being conceived that I’ve offered to co-sponsor, that I won’t spoil too much on until I’m sure they are being filed. They include topics like augmenting sheriffs to a more constitutional role, transparency from the college system, loosening up car inspections, suppressor legalization, police vehicle visibility, and others.

It’s important to remember the House is basically 50/50 split, so anything too partisan is unlikely to pass. That being said, Overton window shifting is important, and bringing issues to light via legislative testimony can get a foot in the door to expanding liberty in future sessions.