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The subject of the week is the state budget, which has to be approved by the end of the month. The House and Senate Conference Committee is set to meet this week to come up with a final plan. The shortfall is $150 million and there are a few ideas on the table to bridge that gap.
Republicans are yelling cut! cut! cut! To Lynch's credit, this quote from the article about the refinancing tax, shows his thinking on that:
Lynch said he does not support an across-the-board spending cut as a solution. He called that option "simplistic and poor financial management." He said he will consider specific cuts but said he and lawmakers have already made deep cuts, which will result in about 200 layoffs.
Reducing state services, particularly to the needy, would simply redirect them to communities and their welfare offices, Lynch said.
More from our State House pundits after the jump
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Fahey reports on the gap, saying at the start that more cuts are not an option. The question remains, how will new revenues be raised?
The tax on refinanced mortgages will be on the table, with an exemption that gives lower-income and the elderly a break. There will also be a crackdown on limited liability corporations. And look for another jump in the proposed Rooms and Meals Tax increase that puts the rate at 8.75 percent from the current 8 percent. The tax could go to 9 percent.
On gaming, an interesting bit of testimony(bold mine):
Jeff Hooke, a gambling industry consultant from Maryland who has testified in several states on gaming proposals, said the licenses here are far undervalued. Considering its closeness to the Boston market, the Rockingham license could be worth 10 times what the state has set, he said Friday.
In the spirit of gambling, Landrigan gives odds on the likelihood of certain proposals passing. He says it's 5 to 1 in favor of the refinancing tax,and 5 to 1 against expanded gambling. The capital gains tax he gives 20 to 1 odds against. Gas tax? 1000 to 1 against. Still, it's worth calling or e-mailing the Governor and your legislators on these proposals. It ain't over till it's over, after all.
Lauren Dorgan's column focuses on the people involved in these decisions, and the bipartisan nature of the gambling debate, both for and against.
She also included this tidbit
Many Democrats believe-slash-hope that John Lynch will seek a fourth term as governor. He hasn't said he would, but he also hasn't said he wouldn't. Here's something: A Lynch Committee 2010 was filed with the Secretary of State's office in April, with true-blue Lynchies Debby Butler and Kate Hanna signing the papers.
In non-budget news, the conference committee on the medical marijuana bill completed its work, making the bill tighter and addressing the Governor's concerns.
Fahey:
Committee chair Rep. Cindy Rosenwald, D-Nashua, said the plan will now have a system of three nonprofit "compassion centers" around the state. The center will grow marijuana for distribution, not sale, to critically or terminally ill patients.
Leave it to the Republicans, the party of "no" (as in no new ideas) to ignore reality and trot out the old cut taxes canard. Yeah, that wealth sure trickled down over the last generation, didn't it? Removing regulations really worked, now...
Our old buddies at Cornerstone, undaunted by their huge defeat on marriage equality are at it again, but on necessary government spending. They're planning a rally. Landrigan:
The rally, billed as "It's the Spending, Stupid,'' is set for noon June 24, the date set for lawmakers to adopt the tax and spending blueprints.
Sponsoring groups include Cornerstone Policy Research, the New Hampshire Advantage Coalition and a dozen other grassroots groups.
How about "do the math, people?"
I liked this bit about Sununu:
Republican State Chairman John E. Sununu snidely remarked that the only hope fiscal conservatives have is that Lynch breaks his stated commitment to broker this budget deal with higher taxes like he did his past opposition to legalizing gay marriage.
Snidely? Also, Sununu goes on to demand Lynch come up with more budget cuts and accuses him of using "weak and lazy" excuses. But demanding these cuts without offering specifics is weak and lazy thinking, to my mind.
That's the Sunday New Hampshire wrap-up. What's your issue for the upcoming week?
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