Last Thursday evening marked the first time all six declared candidates for governor stood together at the same podium. The six debated in Portsmouth at a forum sponsored by a coalition of the 34 communities seeking to overturn the statewide property tax. NHPR's Doug MacPherson reports.
THE COALITION COMMUNITIES ARE THE 34-CITIES AND TOWNS THAT ARE PAYING MORE TO THE STATE FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION THAN THEY RECEIVE BACK IN STATE FUNDING FOR EDUCATION. NONE OF THE SIX CANDIDATES WASTED ANY TIME IN DECLARING OPPOSITION TO WHAT?S KNOWN AS THE STATE-WIDE PROPERTY TAX. THE TAX WAS THE LEGISLATURE?S 9TH INNING COMPROMISE HAMMERED OUT THREE YEARS AGO IN RESPONSE TO A SUPREME COURT ORDER TO FIND A NEW WAY TO FUND PUBLIC EDUCATION.
LIBERTARIAN GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE AND INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER JOHN BABIARZ OF GRAFTON WANTS TO CIRCUMVENT THAT DECISION, AS WELL AS THE COURT?S RULING THAT THE STATE MUST PROVIDE AN ?ADEQUATE? EDUCATION.
TAPE BABIARZ the libertarian solution, the one that I am pushing, is to set the adequacy level to zero, to null, indefinable. Once we do that, the statewide property tax is finished; done. At that point, we can go to targeted aid. Because let?s face it. the statewide property tax is nothing but a shell game. It?s an accounting gimmick to raise an additional, really, 30 million dollars that is distributed. : 21
WHEN ASKED WHAT HE WOULD DO IF STATE LAWMAKERS DIDN?T GO ALONG WITH HIS PLANS, BABIARZ REPLIED THAT THROUGH SHEER STUBBORNNESS HE WOULD PREVAIL.
REPUBLICAN BUSINESSMAN CRAIG BENSON OF RYE ALSO FAVORS A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO CIRCUMVENT THE COURT?S INVOLVEMENT. BENSON SAYS HE WOULD TRIM THE STATE?S BUDGET BY MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.
TAPE BENSON what we need to do is manage the state?s finances in a much more effective way. If we grow our state budget at three percent or less in the next biennium, that alone solves the funding issue all by itself, ?cause revenues grow faster than that. we can also find opportunities for savings. I?ve come out with an e-government initiative. And by using technology we can be much more cost effective at delivering services in the state of nh, saving us a fair amount of money. :25
BENSON DID NOT OFFER A DOLLAR AMOUNT. HE SAID NEW HAMPSHIRE COULD ALSO SAVE MONEY ON HEALTH CARE FOR STATE EMPLOYEES. WHEN A PANELIST NOTED THAT HEALTH CARE COSTS KEEP GOING UP, BENSON ADMITTED IT WOULDN?T BE EASY.
PERHAPS THE MOST VEHEMENT ANTI-TAX REPUBLICAN IS FORMER U-S SENATOR GORDON HUMPHREY OF CHICHESTER, THE 2000 G-O-P NOMINEE FOR GOVERNOR.
TAPE HUMPHREY if I stand for anything, it?s for nh without an income tax. And I will veto any such tax, as I will veto a sales tax or any increase in the business enterprise tax, or the business profits tax, or casino gambling for that matter. :15
HUMPHREY SAID PASSING A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT ON EDUCATION FUNDING GOES BEYOND LOCAL CONTROL ? HE SAID ITS ABOUT PRESERVING FREEDOM. THE EARLIEST AN AMENDMENT COULD BE PLACED BEFORE THE VOTERS WOULD BE 2004 ? AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE NEXT GOVERNOR?S FIRST TERM. TWO-THIRD OF VOTERS WOULD THEN HAVE TO RATIFY IT. FIRST, HOWEVER, THREE-FIFTHS OF STATE LAWMAKERS WOULD HAVE TO APPROVE AN AMENDMENT.
ONE PANELIST ASKED HUMPHREY HOW HE WOULD WIN LAWMAKER?S APPROVAL, WHEN MORE THAN A DOZEN PREVIOUS ATTEMPTS HAVE FAILED. HUMPHREY REPLIED THAT NEW HAMPSHIRE HAS NEVER HAD A GOVERNOR WHO CHAMPIONED A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT ON EDUCATION FUNDING.
TAPE HUMPHREY if I have one skill, and I don?t have all that many, I think I?m a pretty good communicator. And I?m energetic, and I?m determined, and I?m passionate. And I will raise the money to mount a referendum style campaign, a paid media campaign, to rally public opinion behind this measure. :17
REPUBLICAN BRUCE KEOUGH SAYS HE?S RUNNING TO STRAIGHTEN OUT WHAT HE CALLS ?THE EDUCATION FUNDING MESS LEFT BEHIND BY JEANNE SHAHEEN.? THE DUBLIN RESIDENT IS THE FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE U-N-H BOARD OF TRUSTEES. NOW HE?S A PRIVATE INVESTOR. KEOUGH ALSO SUPPORTS A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. HE SAID WHAT THE STATE HAS TO SPEND ON EDUCATION IS WHAT IT CAN AFFORD TO SPEND.
TAPE KEOUGH my plan maintains the level of real state help at 443 million dollars. Which is next year?s level. That is more than enough money to have excellent schools in nh, provided we spend it in the right places. My plan sends more money to places that need more help, by considering income and other factors when we determine the need of any community. Each city or town would get a matching rate. And state dollars would only match local dollars that go into our schools. :33
BOTH DEMOCRATS AGREE THAT EDUCATION FUNDING IS THE KEY ISSUE IN THE RACE. STATE SENATOR MARK FERNALD OF SHARON, AN ATTORNEY, SAID BEFORE THE STATE CAN TALK ABOUT TAXES, IT MUST CLEAR UP A MYTH.
TAPE FERNALD the myth in nh is that we have a secret formula that no one else has been able to figure out. We sell booze, we tax cigarettes, we have a sweepstakes, and we run the whole state on the cheap, and aren?t we brilliant? The reality is something else. : 14
FERNALD HELD UP A CHART TO INDICATE THAT IN FACT, THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE STATE?S 4-BILLION DOLLAR BUDGET COMES FROM PROPERTY TAXES ? A SYSTEM HE CALLED UNFAIR, DIVISIVE, HARMFUL TO SCHOOLS, AND RESPONSIBLE FOR FORCING THE STATE INTO A DEFICIT.
TAPE FERNALD the logical, the fair answer for nh, is an income tax. That is my plan. It is a simple plan. Four percent, flat rate income tax, dedicated to education. And when I say dedicated I mean a constitutional amendment, that says the money has to go to education. : 16
THE OTHER DEMOCRAT IN THE RACE IS STATE SENATOR BEV HOLLINGWORTH. A FORMER MOTEL OWNER, HOLLINGWORTH LIVES IN HAMPTON, ONE OF THE SO-CALLED DONOR TOWNS. HOLLINGWORTH QUOTED THE MAYOR OF PORTSMOUTH TO THE EFFECT THAT JUST BECAUSE A TOWN MAY BE RICH, DOESN?T MEAN ITS PEOPLE ARE.
TAPE HOLLINGWORTH we must repeal the statewide property tax, which I tried to do this year. I tried to repeal it. we couldn?t do it. we tried to sunset it. couldn?t do it. why? The reason we couldn?t repeal it or sunset it is we didn?t have a means to replace it. :16
HERE, TOO, HOLLINGWORTH AND FERNALD AGREE.
TAPE HOLLINGWORTH we need to take it and replace it with an income tax, and we have to dedicate it to education. Then we can start to go on and move on to the things that are needed by the rest of the people in this state. Health care. Lowering prescription drugs. :13
HOLLINGWORTH DECLINED TO SAY HOW LARGE AN INCOME TAX SHE WOULD SUPPORT.
WHEN THE TWO DEMOCRATS WHERE ASKED WHERE THEY DIFFER, HOLLINGWORTH SAID SHE FAVORS A COMPLETE REPEAL OF THE STATE PROPERTY TAX. LEAVING ANY PORTION OF IT IN PLACE, SHE SAID, WOULD ONLY LEAVE OPEN THE POSSIBILITY IT MIGHT BE HIKED. HOLLINGWORTH WOULD KEEP THE BUSINESS ENTERPRISE TAX. FERNALD WOULD ELIMINATE THE B-E-T, BUT KEEP THE STATEWIDE PROPERTY TAX FOR SECOND-HOME OWNERS ONLY. THAT WAY, HE ARGUED, OUT-OF-STATERS WOULD PAY THEIR FAIR SHARE TO BE PART OF THE COMMUNITY.
THE CLEAREST RESPONSE TO A QUESTION IN THE DEBATE ? AND THE RESPONSE THAT MOST PLEASED THE COALITION COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN THE AUDIENCE, CAME FROM LIBERTARIAN JOHN BABIARZ. MODERATOR ROGER WOOD POSED THE QUESTION.
TAPE ROGER WOOD as governor, would you support and sign legislation that would sunset the state property tax as of april first, 2004?
TAPE BABIARZ yes. [PAUSE :02. LAUGHTER & APPLAUSE]
TAPE WOOD well. you didn?t give me time to re-set the timer, sir. [FADE OUT] :19
FOR N-H-P-R NEWS, I?M DOUG MACPHERSON.
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