Can they do that?

by Steve MacDonald

Once again it’s budget time for most towns and counties here in the Granite State. As most folks are busy preparing for the Christmas season, important decisions are being made that will determine how much money will be taken from property-taxpayers’ paychecks and savings and delivered to local governments. That’s right—being that we pay for government services through a system of property taxation, and, unlike the Federal government, cannot run deficits, almost every dime of local spending must be paid for by a levy placed on our homes and places of business. We must never lose sight of the fact that every dollar spent must be taken from somebody.

In an era of contracted economic activity and rising unemployment, the chances of driving people from their homes and workplaces when unable to pay becomes a growing problem. Thus, it behooves the spenders of the public’s monies to look for ways to curtail growth, or even shrink spending. Just like the hard choices made by families at the kitchen table when prioritizing the dispensation of a shrinking amount of dollars in response to the times, so must government follow suit.

Being a member of Gilford’s Municipal Budget Committee and having a chance to scrutinize our Town and School District’s budgets, I can report that, while certainly not really wanting for much, such an attitude towards spending is beginning to take shape. Still not as lean and mean as this frugal Yankee would like to see, the overall trending is in the right direction. Employees are, in fact, beginning to pay a little more for some of their benefits. Raises, while perhaps still higher than what is the current rule in the private sector, are closer to reality. And yes, the “I want it ALL right NOW” attitude seems less in vogue than it once was (except for the library boosters, who never seem to “get the memo”).

Indeed the overarching question that is rightfully (and finally) being asked is, “What is the proper role of the specific local government?” What exactly should we expect to pay for with our town and school taxes? That is what started the ball rolling in Gilford with regards to funding over a half- dozen so-called “outside agencies”—those certain non-profit entities that remain private and separate from the town itself. While such groups — for example, Genesis mental health clinic or New Beginnings (women’s shelter) — provide what some people would deem important services, the question still remained as to whether the Town should be providing them with money. Ultimately, when the question was put to the voters, they said no. Instead, they want their local town and school taxes, taken under the threat of the loss of one’s home, to pay for police, fire, schools, roads, and snowplowing, and not much else. Charity ought to remain as such. Care of the truly needy is left to the state, for the most part. Besides, with many of the agencies receiving funding from other higher levels of government, more than one instance of double – and even triple – dipping was occurring.

The other significant portion (along with the “statewide” property tax) of every New Hampshire property taxpayer’s bill is that which funds the county. Following a series of dramatic yearly increases in Belknap County’s budget, beginning with last year’s cycle, officials started to finally hear some grief from local residents. As Laconia worked within its tax cap and towns like Gilford and others were making structural changes to adapt to more fiscally tight ways of doing things, for the county, it was business as usual. Given the vocal outcry and the knowledge that their critics and whistleblowers weren’t going to go away, this time the County Commissioners actually made an attempt in their original proposed budget to make some cuts, held the line in some instances normally destined for automatic increases, and finally asked the question mentioned above:  “What is the proper role and duty of county government?”

Unfortunately, my euphoria at the news was short-lived. You’ll recall that some 140 people—mostly directly or indirectly getting a paycheck, along with their government-employed “brethren,” (what one might consider a polite mob) — jammed a meeting and caused the commissioners to relent on some of their original cuts resulting in a budget presented this week that, while leaner than in years past, is still not as trim as it could be. “But Doug, these services are necessary. Why, where would we be without them?”

Besides the sure bet that worthy services will somehow still get provided, perhaps in a different form, you have to consider what the law actually specifies. Actually, what could be a better place to start to find the proper role of government than the law itself?

What exactly is the statutory role of county government and specifically for what purposes is the county empowered to appropriate or administer tax Revenues from Federal, State or municipalities? The NH Constitution Part One, Article 28: “Taxes, by Whom Levied” tells us, “No subsidy, charge, tax, impost, or duty , shall be established, fixed, laid , or levied, under any pretext whatsoever, without the consent of the people, or their representative in the legislature, or authority derived from that body June 2, 1784.”  Simply stated, the Legislature can give another body (such as a county) the right to tax. These powers are given in the form of state laws, called “enabling legislation.” Nothing in government can happen without one.

As the county budget process rolls on and the weak-willed leaders (Mostly "REPUBLICANS") continue to cave and add the entire outside agency spending package back into the thing, it will be good to further investigate whether the law actually ALLOWS for such purposes in the first place. The other point that can’t be lost through all of this is the fact that once you begin to grow government beyond its actual purposes, it becomes quite hard to stop. To shrink it? Forget about it…

Author

  • Steve MacDonald

    Steve is a long-time New Hampshire resident, award-winning blogger, and a member of the Board of Directors of The 603 Alliance. He is the owner of Grok Media LLC and the Managing Editor, Executive Editor, assistant editor, Editor, content curator, complaint department, Op-ed editor, gatekeeper (most likely to miss typos because he has no editor), and contributor at GraniteGrok.com. Steve is also a former board member of the Republican Liberty Caucus of New Hampshire, The Republican Volunteer Coalition, has worked for or with many state and local campaigns and grassroots groups, and is a past contributor to the Franklin Center for Public Policy.

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