Advocates for elderly services, public education, legal assistance and a variety of other causes made their case for state funding on Monday as the House Finance Committee hosted a public hearing on the state budget for fiscal years 2020-21.

Many came sporting colors for their cause, filling almost every spot in the 400-seat Representatives Hall.

Parents and people with disabilities joined students and survivors of domestic violence Monday in urging New Hampshire House budget writers to support programs that have helped them.

Republican Gov. Chris Sununu proposed a $13.1 billion biennial budget last month, launching a process that will include the Democratic House developing its own spending plan to send to the state Senate next month. After holding public hearings around the state, the House Finance Committee got even more input Monday at the Statehouse, where nearly 100 people signed up to speak.

The New Hampshire Senate has approved a bill aimed at strengthening the state’s comprehensive system of care for children with mental health problems.

The state in recent years has been moving toward a system that emphasizes family-driven, community-based services coordinated across child protection, juvenile justice and other systems. The Senate on Thursday passed a follow-up bill, the centerpiece of which is the creation of mobile crisis teams for children within an hour’s reach statewide.