NH Supreme Court Strikes Down Tax Cap Gimmicks
Court unanimously rules tax cap gimmicks illegal; ruling overturns Manchester gimmick, six other NH cities and towns could be impacted
Manchester - The NH Supreme Court released a unanimous opinion today that finds tax cap gimmicks are illegal in New Hampshire.
The NH Supreme Court decision was the final step in a year-long case spurred by the citizens group Keep Manchester Moving, represented by Attorney Robert Backus of Backus, Meyer and Branch, and the City of Manchester, represented by Manchester City Solicitor Peter Chiesa, as they sought to protect local budget-making control for the residents of Manchester.
The court opinion focused on the legal argument provided by Attorney Backus, which highlighted state law requiring a simple majority vote versus a super-majority to adopt a budget. The tax cap gimmick interfered in town and cities' right to propose and adopt a budget as provided by state law.
"The tax cap gimmick is illegal, plain and simple," said Josiette White, President of Keep Manchester Moving. "It takes away local control from city taxpayers, and ties us to a one-size-fits-all budget that has nothing at all to do with our community needs or priorities. It's a political gimmick at best, and illegal at worst; the unanimous ruling by the New Hampshire Supreme Court today finds it to be both. We are pleased by the decision of the court and are glad to see the tax cap gimmick will be overturned in Manchester and other communities."
A total of six other communities in New Hampshire have a tax cap gimmick in place. It remains to be seen what the process will be in other communities for addressing the court ruling. Somersworth currently has a similar court case pending. The Nashua Taxpayers Association participated in the NH Supreme Court case in support of the defendants, while the NH School Administrators Association, represented by Attorney Dean Eggert of Wadleigh, Starr & Peters, had filed an amicus brief in support of the case challenging the legality of the Manchester tax cap gimmick and similarly-worded proposals. Existing tax cap gimmicks in Derry, Dover, Franklin, Laconia, Nashua and Rochester have similar but varying language, though it appears that the specific statutes referred to in the NH Supreme Court ruling would apply to each.
"This is a huge win for people who care about their communities and want to protect the New Hampshire way of life," said Ryan Cashin, a Manchester firefighter and a lead citizen petitioner for the court case. "We know that tax cap gimmicks are bad public policy. They reduce police and fire emergency response, do real damage to public education, and negatively impact local businesses. With the way the economy is right now, we can't waste time on political gimmicks that end up hurting us in the long run. We are glad that other communities will be able to take this court ruling and use it to protect local decision-making in their towns as well."
Today's Supreme Court ruling is in line with a decision issued by the Merrimack County Superior Court in a comparable court case in March 2009, City of Concord v. William M. Gardner, Secretary of State et al., (08-E-406), that found that a proposed tax cap gimmick in the City of Concord violated the New Hampshire Constitution and the general laws of the state.
The NH Advantage Coalition, which spearheaded an initiative to expand the number of communities with tax cap gimmicks, had been a party to the case in Concord. Instead of appealing the ruling there, the organization instead chose to target towns outside of the Superior Court's jurisdiction. Former Manchester Mayor and current Congressman-elect Frank Guinta served as honorary chairman and remained involved with the NH Advantage Coalition over the past year.
"Frank Guinta and the NH Advantage Coalition could have saved taxpayers a lot of money and time by not skirting the law," said Zandra Rice Hawkins, executive director of Granite State Progress, which supports local efforts to challenge the illegal tax cap gimmicks. "Their disregard for New Hampshire state law has caught up with them in this decisive Supreme Court ruling."
The full ruling can be found here: http://www.courts.state.nh.us/...
To learn more about the court case or to schedule interviews in-person or via phone, contact zandra@granitestateprogress.org.
