$450 million needed; let's explore all revenue options

by: rames14779

Sun Nov 13, 2011 at 11:14:29 AM EST

I am told that another $72 million is needed for education adequacy funding to comply with Claremont.  So that brings the funding need up to $449 million.  

If we can't come up with $449 million through some combination of revenues and management efficiencies, our hospitals will continue with their lay-offs and service reductions, equal educational opportunity will continue to erode, children and others in need will be underserved, and our infrastructure on which all growth depends will be insufficient to the task.  So where will the money or savings come from?

Can as much as $449 million of new revenue somehow be generated from the giddying array of narrow-base taxes and fees that are currently in place?  Reversing the cigarette tax cut, might add $10 million.  Is there another $439 million lurking somewhere in that thicket of narrow-base taxes and fees?  Are there other narrow-base taxes and fees that should be added to the mix that have the potential to bring in new revenues sufficient to close this gap?  Are there management savings to be had that could make a big difference?  I don't see an answer here.  But I lack a deep understanding of these taxes and fees and of their potential to generate additional revenue.  Perhaps those who have been advocating the taking of The Pledge against new broad-base taxes while also attacking the Republican Legislature's budget cuts can help me on this question.

I am told that we could raise about $500 million with a new 3% personal income tax, replacing the interest and dividends tax and including exemptions of $15,000 per taxpayer and $5,000 per dependent. With that, with management savings, and perhaps with an estate tax and a capital gains tax with reasonable exemptions, we could both restore the lost funding and begin to provide property tax relief while moving our tax structure in a more progressive direction.  Why not at least look at the pros and cons (including political viability) of this option (or of other variants) in comparison to the pros and cons of narrow-base revenue options rather than use The Pledge to cut off meaningful debate?

Bill O'Brien's Solutions, One Year Later

by: Dean Barker

Wed Aug 31, 2011 at 20:02:44 PM EDT

Okay.

I'm glad this came up, because it reminds me that the call was in response to when, last September, Bill O'Brien was so scared of losing his own state rep primary that he mailed out a write-in plea wherein he pretended to be supportive of Democratic party values. In part, emphasis mine:

Creating jobs, educating our children and looking out for our most vulnerable citizens transcends [sic] party politics. That is why, as your state representative, I have focused on solutions and not political rhetoric. I would be honored to have your support and to have your [sic] write in my name to fill the fourth, unfilled, state representative nomination for the Democratic party in our district.

"Creating jobs": In the two months since the budget Speaker O'Brien crafted and championed became law, it has directly caused the loss of 1,376, mostly private sector, jobs.

"Educating our children": The House of O'Brien has been particularly hostile to the education of children, pursuing a raft of bills that included: pushing a constitutional amendment to eliminate the state's obligation to pay for schools; lowering the dropout age; abolishing kindergarten; eliminating educational public television, decimating Children In Need of Services; gutting the new bullying law; defining down what is an adequate education; and taking the least funded public college system in the country and cutting that funding in half.

"Looking out for our most vulnerable citizens": From the report on the vote for the budget Bill O'Brien called a "historic achievement":

The budget would cut $115 million from hospital reimbursements and would reduce funding for dozens of programs including domestic violence prevention, child-care subsidies, ServiceLink resource centers and community health centers. It eliminates mental health services for 7,000 people and eliminates services for children ordered by the court to get counseling.

...During yesterday's debate, Democrats introduced 14 amendments to restore money for mental health services, drug and alcohol treatment, career and technical schools, the university system, child-care subsidies, domestic violence programs, the consumer protection bureau, and other services. Each amendment was voted down.

UPDATE: More today on the "Creating jobs" solution:

St. Joseph Hospital laid off 44 people Wednesday, reduced hours for some employees and eliminated vacant positions in its latest response to state budget cuts.

..."It's the unfortunate situation we find ourselves in as a result of the state budget," [hospital spokesperson Melissa] Sears said. "We would not have needed to do this if the budget hadn't been created and passed in the manner it was."

No Jobs Fair

by: susanthe

Thu Aug 11, 2011 at 14:50:52 PM EDT

From Manuse:

The people behind this protest, Judy Stadtman, Zandra Rice Hawkins and Mark MacKenzie, are radical operatives hired with George Soros's money to turn New Hampshire into another socialist haven like Massachusetts, which can barely support its own weight.

No wonder all the dogs in my neighborhood are howling. Manuse is working that dog whistle hard. Fortunately, it's a right to work dog whistle, so he won't have to pay it overtime.  But seriously, read the whole thing, especially the responses from Manuse and Bettencourt.  

Hold Them Accountable

by: susanthe

Tue Aug 09, 2011 at 04:00:00 AM EDT

New Hampshire Department of Transportation (DOT) is proposing no longer plowing some roads between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m. as well as allowing snow to build up to between 5 and 7 inches before turning some crews out onto the road.

The DOT plan is not acceptable, according to Rep. Gene Chandler, R-Bartlett, who also serves as the chair of the transportation department in the New House of Representatives. He hopes DOT officials will come up with a new plan because the current one could have "huge ramifications" on tourism and revenue for the Granite State.

Chandler says this is not acceptable. Bill Boynton from DOT had this to say:

Boynton said DOT lost 42 employees to budget cuts (there remain about 800 employees). Its budget was cut 11.5 percent; the budget is expected to be cut an additional 11 percent in 2012 and 13 percent in 2013; there was a 25 percent reduction in the state's sand and salt budget.

Representative Chandler voted for the budget that created the need to make these cuts. Gene allied himself with the TeaStaters, and now he's reaping the rewards. This story reminds me of the slogan of a bar called Chilkoot Charlie's in Spenard, Alaska: "We cheat the other guy and pass the savings on to you." Apparently Gene thought he was too important to experience any of the negatives of this budget in his district.

We need to save these stories for 2012.  

"Time Will Tell"

by: Dean Barker

Tue Jul 26, 2011 at 20:59:47 PM EDT

New Hampshire House Speaker Bill O'Brien was quick to distance himself from accountability:

"Whether or not this was planned before or after the budget came into effect, time will tell..."

"This is a terribly sad day in health care," said Doug Dean, president and CEO of Elliot Health Care. "No one wants to see hard-working people, who have done nothing but perform their jobs for this community, suffer from a reduction in force brought on by the failure of the state to manage their own expenses."

   ..."The consequences of the state's failure to pay us for taking care of the poor are truly devastating, particularly as the state changes its course from the past 20 years and walks away from needed matching federal dollars," Dean said.

"This doesn't come as a surprise," said Lynch spokesman Colin Manning. "The budget proposed by the governor was very different from the one passed by the Legislature. The governor took a more balanced approach and did not propose such a drastic cut to hospitals."

"We are determined to stand up for our patients for the committed people who deliver care to them. This lawsuit comes after we have exhausted all other avenues to express to the state Legislature the impact of these draconian budget cuts," he said.

(h/t Harrell)

(find me > 140 on birch paper; on Twitter < 140)

Obama Wants To Attack The Middle Class? Take Congress Hostage!

by: fake consultant

Sat Jul 09, 2011 at 04:07:17 AM EDT

And it looks like the President doesn't really lose if you or I get hurt here: in fact, it seems that, in his eyes, it's to his advantage to fight against his own base as he seeks to be "the adult in the room" in the runup to the '12 election.

So we're going to have to find a way to put The Fear on this guy - and I think I've got a plan to force this President to listen.

And it works like this: if this President ain't gonna be moved by our message...we do it by holding the rest of his Party hostage.

NH Budget Will Slow Economic Recovery & Job Creation

by: William Tucker

Fri Jul 01, 2011 at 06:00:00 AM EDT

Speaker Bill O'Brien claims the GOP's 2012-2013 state budget will "help our economy grow and create jobs." Not so, says Michael Leachman, Senior Policy Analyst with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Leachman explains why the budget, which relies on substantial cuts to services, "will slow the economic recovery and undermine efforts to create jobs."

Cutting state services not only hurts vulnerable residents but also slows the economy’s recovery by reducing overall economic activity. When states cut spending, they lay off employees, cancel contracts with vendors, reduce payments to businesses and nonprofits that provide services, and cut benefit payments to individuals. All of these steps remove demand from the economy.

Moreover, many of the services that states are cutting are important to states’ long-term economic strength. For instance, research shows that in order to prosper, businesses need a well-educated, healthy workforce. Many of the budget cuts described here will weaken that workforce by diminishing the quality of elementary and high schools, making college less affordable, and reducing residents’ access to health care. That, in turn, could slow the state’s economic growth over the long term.

And there goes...

by: kite

Tue Jun 28, 2011 at 20:08:11 PM EDT

To be honest, I'm not a big fan of public TV.  Maybe, in balance, a cut here was justified.  Thing is, the cut wasn't made with balance in mind.

And certainly the legislature didn't say, "what was the original purpose of public TV?"  There was no discussion of the idea that there should be some news or communication forum that is driven by public service, rather than by advertising and profit.  Do we really want all news to exist only if it can generate ad revenues?  (That's a structural problem with the internet as well, but i digress.)

There was no discussion of better ways to use that money to keep the public informed, or inspired.  No discussion of giving the money to public radio instead of public TV, or giving part of the money to a web news outlet.  No discussion at all, really.  

Personally, I think NHPTV should cancel Sesame Street, and just list the mailing addresses of every legislator that voted for this budget during that time slot.  And of course, thankfully, cigarettes are now 10 cents cheaper.

A Pro-Secessionist in Concord

by: Dean Barker

Thu Jun 23, 2011 at 20:25:22 PM EDT

MEDIA ADVISORY
Josiah Bartlett Center and Mercatus Center Hold Briefing on "Freedom in the 50 States" Ranking NH Most Free State
Monday June 27, 10:00 a.m.
Legislative Office Building Room 210

The Josiah Bartlett Center will hold a briefing with Profs. Jason Sorens and William Ruger, authors of the Mercatus Center study "Freedom in the Fifty States" which ranked New Hampshire as the most free state in the country on Monday at 10:00 in the Legislative Office Building...

Losing the Future

by: Dean Barker

Wed Jun 22, 2011 at 07:20:34 AM EDT

Legislature's hidden tax increase

by: kite

Sat Jun 18, 2011 at 08:43:09 AM EDT

Under a plan crafted by House budget writers, New Hampshire hospitals stand to lose $250 million dollars over the next two years. New analysis shows that if they lose these funds, all but four of the state's largest hospitals would suddenly plunge into the red.

This budget tactic is disturbing on so many levels.  First, the sheer mendacity of Republican leadership regarding their so-called refusal to raise taxes, although not unexpected, is still appalling.  And this fee on hospitals violates an agreement going back to Republican governor Judd Gregg.

Worse, at the same time Republicans are saying the New Hampshire health care system is in good shape, they are about to tax it into changing beyond recognition:

Under a new analysis done by the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies, if Wilhelmsen doesn't make any changes, his bottom line would suddenly plunge from a $5 million surplus to a $6 million dollar loss.

Mentioned very briefly in the story is the fact the obstetrics are expensive, making those facilities a frequent target of cuts.  The implications for the rural poor in the northern part of the state are left as an exercise for the reader.

budget writer Neal Kurk says hospital execs are crying wolf. "We're dealing with very large institutions. Only one of those in 2009 lost money. 12 of the 13 were doing very well, thank you

Well, at least we're lowering taxes on cigarettes.
 

Two Videos of the NH Budget Process

by: Zandra Rice Hawkins

Fri Jun 17, 2011 at 17:24:06 PM EDT

And a true story about Speaker Bill O'Brien and his priorities that everyone should know:

Created by the Granite State Progress State House Monitoring Project

"We Don't Govern Like This!" - Budget Negotiation Tensions

by: cblodg

Wed Jun 15, 2011 at 11:07:56 AM EDT

I spent months putting this budget together in a sophisticated manner," Morse said in a raised voice. "And you offer an amendment that could affect everybody in this state and we haven't debated it. This is absolutely wrong.

Never thought I'd see the day where I'd agree with Chuck Morse, but he's absolutely right.  And he didn't let Rep. Ken Weyler try to spin-doctor why the Republican House members were doing this either.  Weyler tried to say that it was the only opportunity they could get the provisions in the budget.  Morse didn't buy it one bit,

You could have drafted them and you could have had them to the Senate in time to read them all.  This is absolutely wrong.

Weyler, of course, continued to try and spin his way though the amendments while Morse continued to get louder and angrier, "This is the wrong way to govern in the state of New Hampshire."

I guess they placed a deadline of today to hammer out a deal both chambers could agree to.  As much as I don't want to see a shutdown, part of me really hopes Morse can stick to his guns and prolong this.

Who Needs Tourism Anyhow?

by: susanthe

Fri May 13, 2011 at 13:11:25 PM EDT

The 2010 elections were full of talk about jobs, the economy, and balancing budgets. The NH GOP promised that job creation was their first priority. There was also a lot of talk about balancing the state budget, and "budget deficits." Informed readers are aware that the NH budget is required by law to be balanced every biennium, and that the last one was no exception. The Republicans didn't like that budget, so they spread a lot of misinformation, including using numbers that were outright fabrication.  

Did Frank and Charlie vote for health insurance mandates?

by: Lucy Edwards

Wed May 04, 2011 at 18:44:18 PM EDT

Now the Republicans hate the mandate to buy insurance, and it's really screwing up Mitt Romney's run for the White House.  So it's very odd to discover that the famed Roadmap that the Ryan budget's healthcare proposals are based on includes...OMG, mandates!

Abandoning Children in Need

by: William Tucker

Wed May 04, 2011 at 06:00:00 AM EDT

The Concord Monitor examines the impact of eliminating "Children in Need of Services" (CHINS), a state program in which parents or school officials can ask the court system for help with children whose behavior suggests serious problems.

That intervention ... is often a last resort for families dealing with uncontrollable, troubled children and the only way to provide adequate treatment and monitoring, said Maggie Bishop, the director of the state's juvenile justice division.

One of the more valuable aspects of the Children in Need of Services process is that it allows for oversight of a family's home, said Judge Ned Gordon, who oversees family cases in Franklin District Court.

"Usually, if a kid's not going to school, that's not the problem. It's a symptom of the problem," Gordon said. In addition to having a probation officer monitor a child and make sure he gets to school and participates meaningfully, the court can require a child to call the officer every night, impose a curfew and require that the child submit to random drug and alcohol testing.

Bringing the CHINS cases to court creates "a full-press effort," said David Kemper, chairman of the state's advisory group for the Coalition for Juvenile Justice, a national nonprofit association. "You're having a lot more people surrounding this kid and this family ... basically forcing this kid to make good choices."

Failure to intervene is likely to lead to increasingly negative outcomes: reduced engagement in school leading to a lifetime loss of employment and income, exacerbated family tensions resulting in assaults or abuse, and deeper involvement in criminal behavior and incarceration. Ultimately, they will require more costly services and will place increased burdens on local police and hospitals.

CHINS served 1,000 New Hampshire children last year. The House budget saves $7 million over the next two years by eliminating the program. GOP Rep. Neal Kurk, chairman of the House Finance subcommittee that proposed eliminating CHINS, said there was "no question" that cutting CHINS will shift costs elsewhere.

Next week, the Senate Finance Committee will begin voting on budget item recommendations.

Granite State Poll: Increase Revenue to Balance Budget

by: William Tucker

Tue May 03, 2011 at 06:00:00 AM EDT

By a 73% - 24% margin, New Hampshire residents favor some tax increases to help address New Hampshire’s budget shortfall. As the severity of the proposed spending cuts in the GOP House budget has become known, those who favor balancing the budget with spending cuts alone has decreased from 29% to 24%.

A new WMUR Granite State Poll asked respondents to select the approach they would choose to deal with the budget shortfall. 24% responded entirely with spending cuts, 21% said mainly spending cuts with some tax increases, 36% chose an even balance, 11% said mainly tax increases and some spending cuts, and 5% chose to address the budget shortfall entirely with tax increases.

When asked about spending cuts for specific programs, solid majorities said there should be no spending cuts in healthcare services for lower income residents (60% - 39%) or mental health services (59% - 39%). The respondents expressed support for at least "some spending cuts" in funding for hospitals (56% - 39%), infrastructure projects (54% - 43%), and state university and community colleges budgets (52% - 46%). Less than 10% support "significant cuts" for any program.

The comprehensive survey also indicated there is little support for GOP-backed proposals limiting workers' collective bargaining rights.

Several states, from Wisconsin to Massachusetts, have sought to curb state spending by limiting the ability of public employees to collectively bargain for benefits. There is little support for this proposal in New Hampshire. Most state residents (66%) think that private sector workers should have the right to form unions and collectively bargain and 62% think that public employees, should have that right.

The Granite State Poll — sponsored by WMUR-TV, and conducted by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center — interviewed 504 New Hampshire adults between April 15 and April 26, 2011. The margin of error is +/- 4.4 percent.

Then and Now

by: susanthe

Sat Apr 23, 2011 at 10:50:30 AM EDT

BERLIN, N.H. -- The city of Berlin may be home to a new federal prison, which could help turn around the economy of the North Country.
A prison would mean hundreds of new jobs in a region that has scene jobs and people leave the area in recent years. Sen. Judd Gregg has been pushing to get the prison built in Berlin, and he plans to announce that Congress has approved funding the facility Friday morning.

and

For the past two years, Danderson and other city leaders have been working with Gregg to land the federal prison. They had to do something to diversify the economy after the pulp and paper mills shut down in September 2001, devastating hundreds of families.

Laser Like Focus on Job Killing

by: susanthe

Fri Apr 22, 2011 at 05:50:09 AM EDT

In Carroll County, Gail Monet, who is the elected register of probate is retiring at the end of May. She is essentially being forced into retirement, by the budget being passed by the current legislature. Gail's been re-elected every term since her first win in 1998.  

Republicans Cut a Republican Safety Net

by: Lucy Edwards

Sun Apr 10, 2011 at 18:08:39 PM EDT

Throughout my lifetime, New Hampshire has been, for the most part, a Republican state, and our state budgets (except for the last two) have been adopted by Republican legislatures. New Hampshire Republicans created the structure that is currently our state government, which has historically been conservative and frugal.
In the four years that the Democrats were in the majority, we did not add any new social programs or change the structure that was largely dismantled by the recent House budget. But we, like the Republican legislatures before us, did fund these programs at respectable levels.
Over the decades, it was these successive Republican legislatures that put a social safety net in place, maybe not as tight a safety net as some Democrats wanted, but Republicans have tried to take care of New Hampshire's neediest citizens.