House Speaker Doug Scamman says he now supports a key provision of Governor Lynch's proposed budget -- a 28 cent per pack increase to the cigarette tax. Scamman's announcement comes as lawmakers continue working to balance the state's next two year spending plan
The legislature's top republican had long held out hope the house could craft a budget without tax increases…….Scamman now concedes that goal is no longer feasible.
"The day I got elected I told everyone I was not in favor of any taxes…I said if there ever is any tax that passed It hasn’t been in the press much but I said if there is a tax that passed it would be the tobacco tax and it would only be used to fund education."
Scamman says the increase would raise about 87 million dollars……If adopted, as much would surely help lawmakers fund the school aid plan the house adopted last week……For now, that plan and the rest of the house budget proposal, remains a work in progress…..
"Where that leaves us is the 9 million dollars you've got on your chart from this morning -- 9.3, I think."
That's Liz Hager, vice chair of the house finance committee…running down the house's latest revenue enhancements.
"We're going to give them their auditors -- that's supposed to gain us 19 million from going out and getting taxes. Last I heard they are looking at fines and fees and that I heard will be as much as ten million.19 and 35 and 10 and 9 starts getting us the kind of money we needed."
Hager says she's pleased by Speaker Scamman's newfound support for increasing the cigarette tax. But her point of view isn't shared by all Republicans.
"It's a drop in the bucket it doesn’t really solve anything."
John Hunt of Rindge has voted to increase tobacco taxes to pay for schools before and says he'll likely do the same this year….But Hunt says lawmakers need to take a more vigourous approach in terms of both cutting spending and considering further taxes to get the job done.
"I mean, ok so we found 29 here and 15 there by tweaking the numbers, but I thought we were at a 200 million dollar hole."
Thus far the only lawmaker openly pitching a proposal to raise that kind of money is Manchester Republican Steve Vaillaincourt. Among other things, he's proposing resistating an inheritance tax for large estates,…rasing the rooms and meals levy, repealing the property tax exemption for poles and conduits….and modyfyinbg the state beer tax……He says such changes could net some 170 million dollars.
"I mean I'm quite conservative but I realize that when you lose 200 million dollars in federal funds you've got to raise some taxes….And my platform is to try and do the least onerous taxes possible."
Few in the house expect, the GOP majority to give such a proposal serious consideration……But House Democratic Leader Jim Craig says given the current gulf between revenue and spending, lawmakers will ultimately have to give- most taxes a serious look.
"I haven't heared any specific kind of tax yet. Is it a Freudian thing to not think about something until they have to…..And I don't think they think they have to yet. That may be wrong but I think that's what's going on."
The house finance committee is expected to continue it’s work on the budget through next week…..The full house must vote on a spending plan by April 20th.
