Elections 2010
We get phone calls. Many of them. People want us to tell them for whom to vote these primary/general elections upcoming.
We cannot choose your candidates for you. However, we can point you to information on each so you can make your own decisions.
For example, the Union Leader had a lot to say about John Lynch, who has won 3 consecutive terms thanks to many on the GOP side having voted for him.
Yet if you read information such as the following you may wonder why. CNHT has posted a list of some of the almost 100 new taxes and fees and tax and fee increases we’ve seen since the progressives took over the legislature, as well as other places like NH Watchdog etc. You will also see that this governor and legislature have a lot to answer for when it comes to defending positions they’ve taken on certain issues (for example, where is NH on the anti-Obamacare lawsuit and why hasn’t our governor tried to protect us from this as other states have done?)
So, please do your homework. There are many places outlining the problems with the state budget, another is the Josiah Bartlett Center.
New Hampshire debt climbs 30% in five years
(CONCORD) New Hampshire’s debt has grown by 30% over the last five years. According to official documents provided to potential bond buyers ahead of tomorrow’s planned sale of $150 million in new debt, the General Obligation Debt climbed from $634 million at the beginning of Fiscal Year 2006 to $823 million at the end of FY 2010.
The amount of new debt issued each year has also grown dramatically, from $75 million in FY06 to $282 million in FY10. The cost of the additional borrowing will start to hit the state’s bottom line this year. Nearly $123 million in bonds are due to be repaid this Fiscal Year, with $425 million payable in the next four years alone.
New Hampshire’s total debt tops $1.3 billion. This includes Turnpike and Highway Bonds which are funded through dedicated revenue sources, but does not include the state’s unfunded obligations to the state retirement system.
According to the Preliminary Official Statement issued for tomorrow’s $150 million General Obligation bond sale, New Hampshire debt per capita has risen from $491 in 2006 to $621 today. As a percentage of personal income, the debt has gone from 1.2% to 1.45%.
Earlier this year, the Legislature approved an additional $75 million in borrowing to help erase a $295 million budget hole. This included $50 million in new debt to make FY11 debt service payments, and $25 million from the University System, which will be paid back through the state’s annual Capital Budget. According to estimates provided by the State Treasurer’s Office, New Hampshire’s debt service ratio will reach 8% of General Fund expenditures next year. The state’s debt service ratio was 5.6% in 2005, and 5.7% in 2008.
According to State Treasurer Cathy Provencher, New Hampshire has traditionally carried a low debt burden. She cautions that the nation’s leading bond rating agencies would raise red flags if the state’s debt service ratio reached 10%. Provencher cited the state’s stable bond rating as the reason she scheduled the state annual General Obligation bond sale for this week. This year’s GO bond sale is the earliest by far over the past eight years. Since FY04, the annual bond sale has ranged from as early as November 4th to as late as January 19th. Provencher says that she does not plan to go back to the bond market again until the Fall of 2011.