NH Senate is Deciding Its Priorities

Senators faced the bill to appropriate money for the Land and Community Heritage Program, the measure to fund more milfoil control and legislation to increase Community Technical College funding.

Those are just three of the some 30 bills seeking state surplus revenue estimated at 21-27 million dollars.

Despite New Hampshire lawmakers' reputation for being thrifty, most Senators are eager to use the surplus.

What they don't agree on is which projects should get it.

Democrats and a handful of Republicans wanted to boost funding for LCHIP.

Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan.

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2:06 LCHIP is about investment. It's about the very essence of who we are. And like my father told me, you get what you pay for. This is a very important and reasonable investment. I urge people to support the amendment.

But Senate Finance Chair Republican Chuck Morse told his colleagues there isn't enough money to go around.

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16:38 this is about the Senate living within its means. And we are right at that about now, if we do nothing else today. But I am sure we will be doing something else as we talk. But the fact is we haven't overspent at this point.

Morse explained that almost every dime of the 21 million dollars is already allocated.

The Senate has passed legislation that spends nearly 5 million to the state to pay for energy costs.

2.4 million has been earmarked for charter schools and hundreds of thousands of dollars are targeted for various other projects.

But Senate Democrats, like Peter Burling, don't believe any decision is final yet.

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:47 the fact of the matter is everything is in flux. Including what we need the most. Events are happening everyday that change our priorities...the more they fight to say we can't do that, the more I say 'no you are just telling me your spending priorities instead of mine.'

In addition to LCHIP, Burling says his party wants to see more money for social service providers, milfoil eradication efforts, and technical colleges.

And Burling adds more money may be on the way when May and June revenues come in.

But not everyone agrees it's only a matter of priorities.
19:48 Kindergarten aid needs more money. Breakfast program in the school needs more money. Everybody needs more money. I need more money. I think a $100 dollars a year. We all need more money.

That's Republican Senator Bob Boyce- who sits on the Finance Committee.

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19:20 ...We don't have it! Taxpayers don't have it! Unless we want to raise taxes, we need to vote NOOO once in a while.

Boyce ultimately got many of his no votes..

The fiscal restraint pleased Finance Chair Chuck Morse.

But he still thinks the funding plan is irresponsible.

6:48 quite frankly, we are spending every penny of it. and that's not where we should be. We should be leaving some of it on the table. That's not a bad thing...building the rainy day fund. We don't know what could hit in '07. we've heard that HHS could be hit with audits.

While the Senate majority will set the economic priorities coming out of the chamber, after that it's anybody's guess.

Take LCHIP for example.

The House has passed a plan that gives the conservation program 5 million dollars over the next two years.

The Senate has only allocated $500,000.

Later this spring House and Senate negotiators will have to have their own battle of fiscal priorities.

For NHPR News, I'm DG.