News – Politics – Opinion – Podcasts
In 2024, when Vermont property taxpayers were whacked with an average 14 percent year over year increase, with some communities seeing nearly 40 percent increases, nobody (or at least not enough) in the legislature asked if citizens could afford this. They just shrugged their shoulders and stuck us with the bill. Same as every year … Read more
With June just around the corner, and the town of Hartford swelling with pride, the townsfolk are confident this year they will find the pot of gold at the end of the many rainbows adorning both field and sky. Despite record rainfall and biblical level flooding over the past four years the residents are certain … Read more
A recent post on the “What’s Happening Hartford” Facebook page asked town members if their new property appraisals increased and by how much. As the answers came in the numbers were staggering as were many of the complaints. The original poster (OP) stated their property assessed value increase by $10,000 which led to a slew … Read more
Rep Jeremy Slottje and various others have tweeted from Reps Hall during today’s House session while the budget was being worked on. It’s reported that 38 Rs voted to remove property tax relief from HB 2. Of the 38, Rep Kuttab and Judge Lynn come as no surprise because their disdain for Nashua taxpayers and … Read more
Many of you saw a petition warrant article on the agenda at your recent town meetings. The idea was to get towns to vote to send the petition to the legislature and the governor. It’s kind of a silly idea — if you’re going to tell your representative something, you should do that as an … Read more
Property taxes are a problem. Towns and cities use imaginary value to charge taxes for profits you have not nor may ever realize, and the drunken sailors then spend it all and come back for more. Sometimes, they pretend to cut taxes by lowering the rates per thousand (on assessed value). Still, when calculated against … Read more
As a matter of public policy, if the Democrat party is behind something, it is probably bad for women and children, minorities, individual rights, human dignity, liberty, individual responsibility, taxes, education, or the future. Whatever they call it, it does the opposite or something radically tangential to its advertised purpose. I was reminded of this … Read more
I read what Ian Underwood writes on these pages about education Freedom Accounts (EFAs), education, funding, and learning goals. I have to say I agree, and like Ian, I like the idea of EFAs, so I hope you will tune in tomorrow for my interview with Ian and Jody. We talk about education. From money … Read more
I’ve seen a rise in town fire department and emergency service issues reports from readers around the state. They all seem to be having problems. And? I wonder if this is how we break the SAU local school district’s death grip on property taxes. Few if any will say property taxes are low or just … Read more
The words “Housing Crisis” have achieved epidemic status next to “overdose deaths,” “Bird Flu,” and if you are one for reminiscing, everything about the COVID thing. It is a topic with a polarizing quality whose solutions I have inferred might not be so good for New Hampshire. A less frequently cited problem in housing “issues” … Read more
Little-noticed Senate Bill SB383 somehow managed to become law without much fanfare, but one of the bill’s provisions could be the key to controlling property tax hikes in your New Hampshire town. First, from Grokster Rep. Judy Aron, what does it do? In summary, this bill provides an additional practical method for a local tax … Read more
In the picturesque town of Ossipee, New Hampshire, a storm is brewing beneath the surface of its idyllic landscapes. What started as whispers of land disputes has grown into a full-blown controversy that threatens to upend the lives of every resident. As your neighbor and fellow community member, I feel compelled to shed light on … Read more
Sane people are puzzled over the question of how our Vermont public school system can lose roughly twenty-five percent of its student population since Act 60 “reform” in 1997, yet now cost three times as much – and return worse results for students. But conversations in the Commission on the Future of Education in Vermont … Read more