CONCORD, New Hampshire (LifeSiteNews) — New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed into law two bills on Friday banning “gender transition” procedures for minor children.  

With her signature on Friday, New Hampshire (NH) has become the first New England state to outlaw transgender mutilation for children and teens.

“Medical decisions made at a young age can carry lifelong consequences, and these bills represent a balanced, bipartisan effort to protect children,” said Ayotte in a statement. 

While Democrats and LGBTQ+ activists decried enactment of the measures, recent polling showed the Granite State voters overwhelmingly supporting the legislation. 

A July 2025 NHJournal/Praecones Analytica poll found NH voters to be in favor of the bans by a margin of 69 to 16 percent.

The first bill, HB 377, bans puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for those under the age 18, though it does not apply to procedures “undertaken to treat a minor born with a medically verifiable disorder of sex development.”

Regrettably, the legislation also does not prohibit transgender drugs for minors who have already begun using them as of January 1, 2026.

The second, BH 712, limits breast surgeries for minors to “only those procedures needed to treat malignancy, injury, infection, or malformation and those needed to reconstruct the breasts after such procedures.” It also bans other surgeries, including hysterectomies, as part of a “gender transition.”

New Hampshire outlawed transgender genital surgery last year.

“I’m celebrating today the signing of the ban on puberty blockers for minors. Governor Ayotte is leading from the front on issues Granite Staters care about, and she stood up to the woke mob and the extremists,” said GOP State Sen. Dan Innis. “She stood with common sense, biology, and parental rights — and I was proud to vote for this important legislation to protect children from irreversible decisions.”

“I applaud Governor Ayotte for signing HB 377 and HB 712, which protect minors in New Hampshire from harmful cross-sex hormones and irreversible surgeries. These commonsense safeguards, strongly supported by Granite State voters, ensure children aren’t subjected to life-altering medical interventions they can’t fully understand or consent to,” said NH State Rep. Lisa Mazur, primary sponsor of HB 377.

“New Hampshire is now the first state in New England and the Northeast to take this important step to protect vulnerable youth,” continued Mazur. “I’m proud to stand with families across our state in putting children’s safety and well-being first. Thank you to my colleagues and Governor Ayotte for their leadership.” 

“This is just plain common sense. Kids shouldn’t be given life-altering puberty-blocking drugs or irreversible sex-change surgeries that alter their bodies forever before they’re even old enough to understand the consequences,” explained State Sen. Kevin Avard, a cosponsor of the bills.  

“We’ve finally drawn the line and said, ‘Not in New Hampshire,’” said Avard. 

Though Ayotte signed the restrictions on “gender transitions,” she has vetoed other conservative legislation, including bills to protect parental rights and medical freedom, and vowed to oppose a 15-week abortion ban.