Penny ante/ Nickel & Dime / Soak 'em all NH Democrats
I got the following from our friends over at the Moultonboro Citizens Alliance concerning how the looming budget deficit in NH. Given the rise of 17.5% in the overall budget that the newly empowered Democrats engineered at the last session in Concord, here are a few things that the MCA folks found that the Dems are now trying to use to close the budget gap.
Of all the issues facing NH, the loss of the "NH Advantage" due to fiscal irresponsibility, is one of the most pressing. Over the last two years, spending has increased by $475 Million or 17.5%. To defray the costs of this overspending, taxes and fees have been raised on 20 separate items.
Below, you can see all the 2007-2008 increases.
Home and Personal:
- Repealed communications tax exemption, increasing residential phone rates (HB 2)
- Increase in motorcycle registration fee by 25% (HB 2)
- Increase in registration fee for all automobiles of at least $6 per year (HB 2)
- Increase on the tax on both diesel and regular gasoline for cleanup fund (HB 1426)
- Increase in certain motor vehicle fees (HB 1596)
- HB 2 shifts to the county taxpayers all future responsibility for all nursing home and Medicaid costs
Tobacco/Gambling:
- Increase in tobacco tax by $.28 per pack (HB 2, 2007)
- Increase in tobacco tax by $.25 per pack (if $50M is not raised by Oct-SB 321)
- New tax on cigars (HB 1309)
- Increase in tobacco licensing fees (SB 317)
- New tax on charitable gaming (HB 1509)
Sportsmen:
- Increase in the wild turkey fee from $5 to $15 for residents, and $5 to $30 for nonresidents (HB 2)
- Increase in the nonresident fee for moose permits too $450 (HB 2)
Business/Real Estate:
- Increase in tractor trailer registrations (HB 2)
- New fee for meals and rentals licenses (HB 599)
- New $25 fee assessed on each property transaction recording for LCHIP (HB 2)
- Increase of registration fee for mortgage servicing companies (SB 162)
Environment:
- Increase of fees for reviewing terrain alterations from $500 to $1250 (HB 2)
- Increase of fees for shoreline structure application from $100 to $200, plus impact fee increase (HB 2)
- Increase of fees for impact dredge and fill projects application from $100 to $200 (HB 2)
- Increase of fees for hazardous waste management by $2500 (HB 472)
Access to Courts
- New fees for certain cases in the judicial family court (SB 350)
- New $25 filing fee for court proceedings (HB 2)
Moultonboro Citizens Alliance (MCA)
PO Box 678
Moultonboro, NH 03254
email: moultonborocitizensalliance@yahoo.com
website: www.moultonborocitizensalliance.org
