Legality of Cannabis by U.S. Jurisdiction

Jason Osborne
Majority Leader of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
Assumed office
December 2, 2020
Preceded byDouglas Ley
Member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
from the Rockingham 4th district
Assumed office
December 3, 2014
Preceded byGene Charron
Stella Tremblay
Dan Dumaine
Personal details
Born (1977-06-15) June 15, 1977 (age 46)
Political partyRepublican

Jason M. Osborne (born June 15, 1977) is a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. He represents Rockingham 4, comprising the towns of Auburn, Chester, and Sandown.[1] In November 2020, the Republican caucus chose him to serve as the New Hampshire House Majority Leader.[2]

Biography[edit]

Osborne is from Defiance, Ohio, where his family founded Credit Adjustments, Inc. (CAI), a debt collections company, in 1964.[3][4] Osborne joined the family firm in 1995 and worked as the CIO, and later CEO.[5][6] With Osborne as CEO, CAI applied for and was granted more than $4 million in federal loans from the Paycheck Protection Program.[7]

In 2021, CAI re-branded as Mammoth Tech.[8] In 2022, Mammoth Tech. abruptly closed, laying off more than 500 employees.[9] The company is currently facing a class-action lawsuit for failing to give notice. This includes rent payments, a $1 million judgment to a staffing agency, and another $181,000 decision on a management company. Former pregnant employees have reportedly filed two disability discrimination suits, one settled and one ongoing.[10]

In 2010, Osborne moved to New Hampshire from Ohio as part of the Free State Project.[11][12]

Political career[edit]

Osborne is a Republican. As New Hampshire House Majority Leader, Osborne has been credited with achieving conservative legislative victories despite the Republican caucus's slim majority.[4][13]

Political positions[edit]

Abortion[edit]

In 2017, Osborne voted for SB 66, which authorizes murder charges for an individual who causes the death of a fetus.[14] In 2021, he voted for HB 625, which prohibits abortions after 24 weeks.[15] He has also voted to repeal New Hampshire buffer zone law and against requiring insurance plans that cover maternity benefits to include coverage for emergency or elective abortion services.[15] In 2022, Osborne voted with Democrats to table HB 1477, a bill that would have prohibited abortion upon the detection of a fetal heartbeat.[16]

Gun safety[edit]

In June 2022, Osborne proposed that firearms training be taught at every grade level in public schools.[17] He also described efforts to pass gun safety measures at the federal level as "fruity ideas."[18]

Marijuana legalization[edit]

Osborne argued for the legalization of cannabis in New Hampshire in a 2023 op-ed titled "Conservative case for cannabis reform".[19]

Personal life[edit]

Osborne holds a PhD in economics from George Mason University.[20] Osborne's children do not attend public school.[21] Osborne's wife, Sharon, is the chair and director of Latitude Learning Resources, a nonprofit offering cross-curricular classes for homeschoolers and other students.[22][23][24]

Controversy[edit]

In 2022, web forum posts from Osborne between 2007 and 2011 surfaced. In them, Osborne used racist slurs and sexist comments about women breastfeeding. He also appeared to argue for abolishing age-of-consent laws.[25]

Electoral history[edit]

2020 Rockingham District 4 General Election[26]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jess Edwards (incumbent) 6,686 14
Republican Chris True (incumbent) 6,330 13.3
Republican Jason Osborne (incumbent) 6,235 13.1
Republican Tony Piemonte (incumbent) 5,982 12.5
Republican Oliver Ford 5,966 12.5
Democratic Michael D'Angelo 3,533 7.4
Democratic Jane Van Zandt 3,441 7.4
Democratic Matthew Krohn 3,178 6.7
Democratic Ben Geiger 3,162 6.6
Democratic Russell Normal 3,158 6.6
Total votes 47,676 100
Republican hold
Republican hold
Republican hold
Republican hold
Republican hold
2018 Rockingham District 4 General Election[26]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Chris True (incumbent) 4,416 12.6
Republican Jess Edwards (incumbent) 4,371 12.5
Republican Becky Owens 4,236 12.1
Republican Jason Osborne (incumbent) 4,093 11.7
Republican Tony Piemonte 3,948 11.3
Democratic Cynthia Herman 2,934 8.4
Democratic Todd Bedard 2,834 8.1
Democratic Patrick McLaughlin 2,784 8.0
Democratic Stephen D'Angelo 2,698 7.7
Democratic Benjamin Geiger 2,622 7.5
Total votes 34,940 100
Republican hold
Republican hold
Republican hold
Republican hold
Republican hold

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Welcome to the NH General Court | NH General Court". www.gencourt.state.nh.us. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
  2. ^ "Jason Osborne Will Be New House Majority Leader". InsideSources. November 22, 2020. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
  3. ^ "Our Story: Credit Adjustments Inc". Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  4. ^ a b Rogers, Josh (June 14, 2021). "Out Of Public Eye, Jason Osborne Helps Lead Historic Push By GOP In N.H. House". New Hampshire Public Radio. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
  5. ^ "Key People: Credit Adjustments Inc". Archived from the original on 8 May 2012. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  6. ^ "Jason Osborne". THE INTELLIGENT INVESTING PODCAST. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
  7. ^ "ProPublica: Tracking PPP". Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  8. ^ "New Name, New Future - Mammoth Tech is Here". 2021-03-08. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  9. ^ Helberg, Todd (2022-03-10). "Mammoth Tech employees express disappointment". The Crescent-News. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  10. ^ Sanders, Bob (2022-07-13). "The decline and fall of NH House majority leader's Mammoth Tech Inc". New Hampshire Business Review. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  11. ^ KITCH, MICHAEL (2021-08-30). "'Liberty Republicans' and an evolving GOP". Concord Monitor. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  12. ^ Wolfe, Rob (2021-11-07). "The White Mountain Boys". Washington Monthly. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  13. ^ Brakey, Eric (July 24, 2021). "The rise of the 'Liberty Republican'". Washington Examiner. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
  14. ^ "SB 66 - Authorizes Murder Charges for an Individual Who Causes the Death of a Fetus - New Hampshire Key Vote". VoteSmart. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
  15. ^ a b "Jessie Osborne's Voting Records on Issue: Abortion". VoteSmart. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
  16. ^ "Bill Tracking in New Hampshire: HB 1477". FastDemocracy. Retrieved 2022-06-29.
  17. ^ @Osborne4NH (June 12, 2022). "Here's a commonsense gun safety reform: yearly age-appropriate firearms training in school at every grade level" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  18. ^ Sexton, Adam (2022-06-12), CloseUp: NH House Majority Leader promises no new abortion restrictions, retrieved 2022-06-16
  19. ^ "Rep. Jason Osborne: Conservative case for cannabis reform". New Hampshire Union Leader. April 19, 2023. Archived from the original on April 20, 2023. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  20. ^ "Executive Team: Credit Adjustments Inc". Archived from the original on 4 June 2019. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
  21. ^ Sexton, Adam (2022-06-12). "CloseUp: NH House Majority Leader promises no new abortion restrictions".
  22. ^ "New Hampshire Department of State".
  23. ^ "Facebook Latitude Learning Resources". Facebook. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  24. ^ "Latitude Learning Resources". Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  25. ^ DeWitt, Ethan (September 1, 2022). "N.H. House majority leader used racist slur on online forum, resurfaced post shows". New Hampshire Public Radio. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  26. ^ a b "New Hampshire House of Representatives District Rockingham 4". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2022-06-14.
New Hampshire House of Representatives
Preceded by Majority Leader of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
2020–present
Incumbent