Democrat appointed Speaker of the NH House Shawn Jasper (R) – In favor of raising the Gas Tax? - Granite Grok

Democrat appointed Speaker of the NH House Shawn Jasper (R) – In favor of raising the Gas Tax?

NH Gas tax payerI have said for years that the primary reason why the NH Highway Fund is in such a stupid financial position is that Politicians refuse to do the right thing – let that fund do what it is supposed to fund and stop raiding it.  And, instead of constantly using taxpayers to pay for the lack of true priorities by lazy politicians (who love to claim they have “solved” the crisis – but rarely ante up that Government created the problem in the first place).

Lately, the “wonder cure” is to put expenditures on auto-pilot – which is exactly what and how the Highway Fund has been used.  And it is in BIG trouble because that auto-pilot has been buffeted like a jet in the thunderstorm as politicians keep taking, and taking, and taking more out of it.

Thankfully, it seems like SOMEONE has decided that this cannot continue and one of the smartest Legislators in the NH House is trying to do the Very Right thing.  Yet another little birdie sang what seemed to be a happy, melodious song to me this morning – and then the Democrat appointed NH Speaker of the House and his Majority Leader decided that their duet would go off key – from my taxpayer ear, rather flat indeed:

From: Carol McGuire [mcguire4house@gmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, March 21, 2015 4:48 PM
To: ~Republican House Members
Subject: DOT Budget

The “Republican Review” claims that DOT faces an “$88 million deficit if no new revenue source is identified or enacted.” The calendar blurb for HB357 makes a similar claim, “The only solution would be new or increased revenue streams into the highway fund. This would come in the form of higher registration fees and/or an increase in the road toll.”

That is where they show their lack of imagination. They apparently think there is something magical about a statute passed by another legislature years ago. They couldn’t possibly allow less than 26% of the Highway Fund to go to the Dept. of Safety (DOS).

I’ve said similar for years – if something was set up by law, well, then another law can change it.  The only thing in the way of changing it are Politicians that don’t want to as they need an excuse.  This is especially true with Republicans when they start whining about “mandatory vs discretionary spending” – if a law created mandatory spending, well, another can either stop it or make it discretionary.  Instead, they want a shield to protect their lack of will.

NH State Rep Carol McGuire has the fearlessness to call “the good old boys” out on it – Good On Her!  She continues (all emphasis mine, btw):

The DOS siphons off $153 million from the Highway Fund in the current biennium. The DOT needs more money? Stop sending that money to the DOS [Department of Safety – the State Police   -Skip]. Give all $153 million to DOT and suddenly they have a big surplus instead of a scary deficit.

The problems with DOT are easily solved just by letting the money raised for highways actually go to the department that maintains roads and bridges.

What a brilliant idea!  Gosh, we’ve heard nothing but whining about the state of our NH roads and bridges for years – but the only thing that her chuckleheaded fellow legislators can do is to act like water and follow the easiest path – raise taxes.  Thank you, Carol!

Okay, then what do we do about the DOS? If it is funded by the General Fund instead of by the Highway Fund, then the problem is no longer unique. It must then compete with hundreds of other agencies and programs for its money. If DOS is the highest priority, then cutting 1% from all other items would just about solve that problem.

BINGO!  She is absolutely right – we elect our representatives to make hard decisions and set hard priorities.  It is because they have refused, for years, to do exactly that because they don’t want their seats put at risk (“ewe, the media won’t like me!!!  The Democrats will hate me…ewe!”) that they find themselves in a pickle of their own making.  And good on Carol for calling them out on it.  That, my friends, is Leadership and the willingness to Do The Right Thing(s).

The problems facing the DOT are not serious; they are easily solved. The problems then facing the DOS are not unique; they are the same problems facing a hundred other line items. One other thing: the fact that DOT’s problem can be solved easily without a higher tax shows that the tax, in effect, would go to the safety department, not really to the highway department.

The Constitution does not require, it merely allows, the Highway Funds to be used partly to pay for patrolling. The Constitution does not specify 26% or any other amount. It is only RSA9:9-b that states no more than 26% – and even it specifies 26% as an upper limit, not a floor. (And HB2 has often suspended the limit.)

I will be preparing a floor amendment for Wednesday that restores Highway Fund dollars to DOT, taking them from Safety. I’ll confirm the numbers, but it looks as though half the highway fund sent to Safety would be enough.
________________________________________

And my friend from Belmont agrees with her.  I would like to hope that others that have a penchant for fixing things (instead of yet another patch job) will join them:

From: Mike Sylvia [mike@mikesylvia.org]
Sent: Saturday, March 21, 2015 8:20 PM
To: McGuire, Carol; ~Republican House Members
Subject: Re: DOT Budget
That’s a great solution. I’ll be happy to support your amendment. I’d be proud to have my name listed as a co-sponsor.

Mike Sylvia
Belmont

And then the “old way” boys start showing up, wanting people to think a direct, simple fix is all convoluted and “beyond your ken”.  Yes, the answer, if you listen to Majority Jack Flangan (cohort of Democrat appointed NH Speaker of the House Shawn Jasper).  And Yes, their only solution is a tax for it is absolutely beyond them to think that:

  • priorities can be juggled
  • lesser important ones drop in importance in funding so as to fund those of higher priority

But here’s the deal – Flanagan shows his hand and it is flush with Democrat spades – “What, cut Government?!?!?!  EVERY dollar is precious – especially when we take it from taxpayers because we know how to spend it better than those that earn it.”  Don’t believe me? Read his own words:

 From: Flanagan, Jack
Sent: Saturday, March 21, 2015 9:03 PM
To: Mike Sylvia; McGuire, Carol; ~Republican House Members
Subject: RE: DOT Budget
This would be a possible solution if we didn’t already cut budgets and didn’t have to deal with two law suits in this budget.

Even if we took the money away from DOS to give to DOT, where are we going to get the money from the other agencies to fund DOS.

Basically, with the aforementioned cuts, law suits and no more shell games to play for DOT, we are in a tough position.  We need to get something to the Senate and hope for better revenues.

I would encourage EVERYONE to attend the Finance Committee’s budget presentation on the 30th of March.

Best Regards

Jack Flanagan

Here we go – “cutting” a proposed budget bloated by Gov. Maggie “The Red” Hassan’s $1 Billion budget busting addition to last cycle’s budget – a 12% uplift?  I read Flanagan’s email a couple of times – why do I get the idea he’s already thrown up his hands in helplessness?  Is that Leadership?

So now he sounds, with his utter refusal (and I would add, lack of any “messaging” to the public), like he is really protecting the increase in taxes, doesn’t he?  Yeah, that old Conservative NH GOP Platform – we can ignore that.  Screw the base that voted for us that wanted a smaller, less expensive State Government – those rubes, they don’t know what they want.

Answer, Jack, is simple.  THE OTHER AGENCIES OF LESS IMPORTANCE GET LESS.  Or even better, put them out of our misery.  And to restore the Highway Fund to pay only for the things it was to originally pay for is not a shell game – it IS Doing The Right Thing. Gawd, you sound like a moron with those words.  Worse, like a Democrat.

And then his boss, the Democrat appointed NH Speaker of the House Shawn Jasper, refuses to Do The Right Thing:

 From: Jasper, Shawn
Sent: Saturday, March 21, 2015 9:13 PM
To: McGuire, Carol; ~Republican House Members
Subject: RE: DOT Budget

Any thoughtful analysis of the solution proposed below exposes the fundamental problem with it; it is a shell game. While in theory it funds the DoT budget it creates a huge hole in the general fund budget. No responsible legislator should find this to be an acceptable solution without proposing cuts in the general fund budget which are necessary to make this a “real” solution. Before anyone “buys” into this “solution”  please ask for the details of where the cuts would be made in HB 1 to make this a real solution and ask yourselves if you are willing to vote for those deep cuts. In order to do that one would need to first understand the very deep cuts that the Finance committee is already proposing. Most of us should realize that the simplistic idea of cutting 1% additional from all other sources may sound good, but that is not something that can be done in all areas of the budget. The devil is always in the details and this plan lacks any detail at all. I welcome thoughtful ideas

as how to balance our budget without any new or increased fees or taxes, but that can only be accomplished through hard work, something our Finance Committee has been doing on our behalf. We were elected to govern, not to govern by gimmicks.

Representative Shawn N. Jasper
Speaker of the NH House

Look, if there isn’t enough money to do every Pie In The Sky Activity of Government, then stop buying the pies.  And yes, they should be cutting if there is insufficient monies.  And if a budget of ANY department can’t live on 1% less than last year, then it certainly shows couple of things:

You fail to realize that ALL departments pad their budgets so as to have some slush for unknown unknowns (or, at times, because they can get away with it.  Been there, spotted that).

YOU, sir, are unwilling to make those hard decisions yourself.  That’s what Leaders do – step up, step out, and do the hard things.

Nope, Jasper is taking a page out of the Obama / Alinsky playbook – let’s just demonize someone instead of actually solving a problem.  Tell you what, Shawn – if you are unwilling to do so, I know a bunch of people who can and will.  It isn’t rocket science – just a case of having the political will to do so.

Something that seems to be lacking in your email.  And other areas as well:

Republican Repair Kit

 

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