Recently in NH Revenues Category
“Lynch Turns Back on Citizens, Asks for Tax Increases”
For Immediate Release Contact: House Republican Office
May 1,2008 603-271-3665
Today Governor Lynch announced a plan to raise more money for the general fund, but in doing so he ignored a pledge he made just months ago not to raise taxes or impose new fees on the citizens of New Hampshire.
The Lynch plan calls for increasing the tobacco tax by 25 cents, imposing a new tax at a rate of 10% on Texas hold’em winnings, raiding dedicated funds in the amount of $1 million, imposing additional costs on business owners by reducing the discount on alcohol they buy to 10%, and forcing lapses of $2.2 million on Home-Community Based health Care (HCBC) and nursing services programs. This plan would theoretically bring in approximately $45 million for the year, according to Rep. Norm Major (Plaistow), former Ways & Means Chairman. The governor also proposed to bond $40 million of school building aid, which will free up an additional $40 million in general fund revenues.
House Deputy Republican Leader David Hess (Hooksett) stated, “I am frankly disappointed that the governor has not kept his pledge to the citizens of New Hampshire. But I am not surprised.”
“Ronald Reagan famously stated in Washington in the 1980s that ‘we don’t have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem.’ That is exactly the case in New Hampshire in 2008. Rather than looking for reasonable places to reduce the bloated budget passed last year and bring it into line with our rising revenues, the Governor and the Democratic leaders of both the House and Senate want to raise still more taxes and fees. If we had passed a reasonable budget, with an increase in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), we would not be where we are now,” added Rep. Hess. “While our projected deficit for this fiscal year is $45 million, revenues are actually up $72 million, or 3.7 percent above last year,” stated Rep. Major, who serves on the Ways and Means committee.
Republican Policy Leader Rep Gene Chandler (Bartlett) said, “This plan is going to hurt more than help our citizens. Reducing the discount for small business owners to 10% for alcohol, threatening our hospitality industry; it is outrageous to think that either consumers will pay more or small business owners make less at a time when our economy is in trouble. These businesses are the backbone of tourism for our state economy; we can not and must not do anything to endanger that. By bonding $40 million in school building aid, we’re mortgaging the future rather than paying our obligations as they come due. We also should have learned our lesson from last year when we increased the tobacco tax and revenues dropped off. Here we go again with an additional tax burden to our citizens; it is irresponsible and not in the best traditions of doing what is right for New Hampshire.”
Citizen
Article Date: Monday, January 28, 2008
Governor Lynch managed to paint a rosy picture about the future of New Hampshire in his State of the State address before the legislature last week. And while we agree that New Hampshire is, "a strong state, with a solid foundation upon which to build," there is still much work to be done to prevent the financial crisis that Republicans have been warning about since last spring.
The governor needs to realize that Republicans are more than willing to reach across the aisle and work together with him to erase the growing state deficit, but first the he must be willing to admit that the problem we are facing is much larger than the one he talked about in his address.
By admitting to a $50 million deficit last week, Gov. Lynch took an important first step, but he did not nearly go far enough. The problem is more like a $150 million problem. In fact, even his own department heads, appearing before the House Ways and Means committee, predicted revenue shortfalls of anywhere between $140 million and $195 million for the biennium. As far back as last spring Rep. Norm Major, a veteran of the House Ways and Means Committee and former chairman, was warning of a "Perfect Storm" should the Democrat-controlled House accept the inflated revenue projections in support of the state's first $10 billion budget-projections that he believed then were overly optimistic and unsustainable.
To compound the problem, in June revenue estimates were artificially raised by close to $40 million, to give the appearance of a balanced budget. Rep. Major's warning fell on deaf ears, the inflated revenue figures were accepted, the General Fund expenditures were increased by 17.5 percent, and now the state is facing a real crisis.
The governor would have you believe that economic forecasters were not predicting the severity of the situation that the nation is currently facing at the time the state budget was being crafted. However, there were clearly a number of economic indicators that were identified last spring by Rep. Norm Major that supported the prediction that revenue streams would continue to falter, setting the state up for a financial crisis.
The governor would also have you believe that revenues for the first six months of the fiscal year are coming in close to their projected levels. What he failed to tell you was that his figures ignore $18 million in one-time money, $5 million in funds not dispersed, and $5.7 million due to the timing of January securities receipts. Projecting the current deficit out to the end of the biennium could result in a deficit as high as $165 million. Despite these facts, he still holds to the belief that the budget shortfall is $50 million.
By recognizing that there is a deficit and by pledging to withhold support for any future spending bills, the governor has taken an important first step. We are ready to work with Governor Lynch to take the next step and make the necessary moves to eliminate the potential deficit of at least $150 million and put the budget back into balance. It is time to face reality and deal with the larger deficit before the taxpayer of this state has to suffer further.
State Rep. Mike Whalley is House Republican Leader. He lives in Alton.
Article Date: Monday, January 28, 2008
Governor Lynch managed to paint a rosy picture about the future of New Hampshire in his State of the State address before the legislature last week. And while we agree that New Hampshire is, "a strong state, with a solid foundation upon which to build," there is still much work to be done to prevent the financial crisis that Republicans have been warning about since last spring.
The governor needs to realize that Republicans are more than willing to reach across the aisle and work together with him to erase the growing state deficit, but first the he must be willing to admit that the problem we are facing is much larger than the one he talked about in his address.
By admitting to a $50 million deficit last week, Gov. Lynch took an important first step, but he did not nearly go far enough. The problem is more like a $150 million problem. In fact, even his own department heads, appearing before the House Ways and Means committee, predicted revenue shortfalls of anywhere between $140 million and $195 million for the biennium. As far back as last spring Rep. Norm Major, a veteran of the House Ways and Means Committee and former chairman, was warning of a "Perfect Storm" should the Democrat-controlled House accept the inflated revenue projections in support of the state's first $10 billion budget-projections that he believed then were overly optimistic and unsustainable.
To compound the problem, in June revenue estimates were artificially raised by close to $40 million, to give the appearance of a balanced budget. Rep. Major's warning fell on deaf ears, the inflated revenue figures were accepted, the General Fund expenditures were increased by 17.5 percent, and now the state is facing a real crisis.
The governor would have you believe that economic forecasters were not predicting the severity of the situation that the nation is currently facing at the time the state budget was being crafted. However, there were clearly a number of economic indicators that were identified last spring by Rep. Norm Major that supported the prediction that revenue streams would continue to falter, setting the state up for a financial crisis.
The governor would also have you believe that revenues for the first six months of the fiscal year are coming in close to their projected levels. What he failed to tell you was that his figures ignore $18 million in one-time money, $5 million in funds not dispersed, and $5.7 million due to the timing of January securities receipts. Projecting the current deficit out to the end of the biennium could result in a deficit as high as $165 million. Despite these facts, he still holds to the belief that the budget shortfall is $50 million.
By recognizing that there is a deficit and by pledging to withhold support for any future spending bills, the governor has taken an important first step. We are ready to work with Governor Lynch to take the next step and make the necessary moves to eliminate the potential deficit of at least $150 million and put the budget back into balance. It is time to face reality and deal with the larger deficit before the taxpayer of this state has to suffer further.
State Rep. Mike Whalley is House Republican Leader. He lives in Alton.
In addition to the Release below, be sure to watch the video of Gene Chandler, special speaker to the Belknap County Republicans, talk to why the Dems have set up NH deficit problems...
Fergus Cullen
said, “Last
year Gov. Lynch signed a budget that increased spending by 17.5%, while ignoring
the warnings of Republican legislators who argued that his revenue estimates
were unrealistically optimistic. The appropriate time for the Governor to
consider fiscal restraint would have been before he created this impending
crisis.”
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
Date:
January 16, 2008
Contact:
603-225-9341
office, 603-520-5450 cell
NH GOP CHAIR
FERGUS CULLEN ON LYNCH SPENDING ANNOUNCEMENT
