By Grant Bosse December 23, 2011 As originally published in the Concord Monitor Economic downturns and budget deficits are not good things.  But like most things in life, we can always look on the bright side.  One of the fringe benefits of tough times is that public officials spend our money a little more carefully.  [...]

By Charlie Arlinghaus November 2011 As originally published in the New Hampshire Union Leader In many ways, most of what those of us on the right are trying to achieve today is just recycling the efforts of John Sununu from thirty years ago. It is fitting that he is being honored next week as an [...]

By Charlie Arlinghaus May 2011 With ten of the twelve months of revenue collected for Fiscal Year 2011, revenues are on track to be $54.6 million short of the budgeted amount. The shortfall will not only require action to balance the last budget but also reduces the base used to project revenue growth for the [...]

The House budget was a huge step forward in the process. It set priorities and achieves a realistic balance. It also allows us to compare and think about priorities and making some alterations to those priorities.

The House prioritized cuts to state government that were significantly…

State budget numbers can are particularly confusing in making any comparison with fiscal years 2010-2011 because stimulus money is accounted for in different ways in different documents. As part of explaining the numbers behind the state budget, we have devloped a few spreadsheets to explain the proposed budget changes.

Fewer New Hampshire drivers are paying a premium to customize their license plates, following a 60% increase in the fee. The New Hampshire Legislature increased the annual surcharge for customized plates from $25 to $40 as part of the 2009-2010 budget. The higher rate went into effect on August 1, 2009. One year after the fee increase, there were nearly 10,000 fewer vehicles with premium New Hampshire license plates. This drop-off represents a small fraction of car owners, as the percentage of vehicles with vanity plates has fallen from 14.8% to 14.3% of all cars on the road.

Higher Price, Slow Economy mean fewer customized plates in NH By Grant D. Bosse December 9, 2010 Fewer New Hampshire drivers are paying a premium to customize their license plates, following a 60% increase in the fee. The New Hampshire Legislature increased the annual surcharge for customized plates from $25 to $40 as part of [...]

The incoming Senate and House have their work cut out for them when it comes to the state budget. The economic downturn, coupled with decisions on the parts of both the Legislature and the Governor, have left a $700 to $800 million dollar hole in the budget. The Legislature, while looking for cuts in other departments, which resulted in hiring freezes and layoffs, increased its own budget faster than the budget overall. Given current revenue forecasts, overall spending will have to decrease. The Legislative Branch, having seen the largest increases, has much more room to cut than other departments. Though the Legislative Branch accounts for less than 1% of the budget, it is crucial for legislators to lead by example

After months of discussion about the exact size of the historic deficit we face next year, the news is filled suddenly with reports of a surplus. Did something change or are we just in the middle of election season? The short answer is things haven’t changed but the easiest distraction from bad news is to ignore it completely. The deficit is still huge. It will dominate the state’s financial future. And, paradoxically, we have a mid-budget surplus for the same reason we face a huge deficit.