The Gold Standard

New Hampshire is a state with no income tax and no sales tax. A state where we are constantly warned that we must live within our means. For decades, the Republicans who govern our state have worked overtime to ensure that we have such limited means that we can’t ever fix anything that needs fixing, which is why 12% of our bridges are red listed for “structural impairments.” Our intentionally limited means ensure that our state parks are in desperate need of maintenance and repair. 

One might think that in a state where tourism is our number two business, we’d want to make that investment, but our limited means do not permit. Speaking of number two business, we have closed rest areas in Antrim, Epsom, and Shelburne, in places where tourists would undoubtedly like to stop. They were all closed in order to save money. Perhaps we could reopen them if the tourists signed an affidavit saying that in exchange for using the rest room, they swear they’ll buy a case of Hennessy on the way out of state? (Paying cash, of course.)

Given our constant state of poverty, I was surprised to read what Governor Sununu had to say at the annual spring luncheon for Seacoast Republican Women. From the story in Fosters:  “Despite Democratic criticism of his budget he said, “we have more money than we know what to do with.” 

If that’s the case, it seems our governor lacks imagination. I’ve tweeted suggestions to him about things we might do with all that money. Build a secure psychiatric unit that isn’t part of a prison, for treating our people who have mental illness. Eliminate the shameful wait list for developmental disability services. Fix all the red listed bridges. Open up those closed rest areas, fix the state parks…the list is endless.

He also said, “We slipped for a long time, but we’re back. New Hampshire is the gold standard. A 2017 CNBC report found that NH has the second worst infrastructure in the nation. We don’t seem to be using any of that gold to repair our roads, bridges, dams, water systems, etc. In fact, given those closed rest areas, we don’t even qualify as American Standard.

I’ve said it before (and I’ll say it again!) that NH is the seventh wealthiest state. We are intentionally starving our state, so that we can continue to fail to invest in the present and the future. 

Our politicians are proud to take The Pledge, which refers to the Mel Thomson/William Loeb pledge against the creation of a state income tax or sales tax. The Pledge became popular in the early 70’s and continues to be GOP cult dogma.

New Hampshire’s peculiar system of funding our state government through fees and property taxes results in an underfunded state government. It isn’t the fault of the folks at the DMV that you wait for hours in line or can’t get through on the phone. They are chronically understaffed on purpose. That understaffing makes you the public unhappy, and willing to buy into the first tenet of GOP gospel: government is the problem. It certainly is when they’re running it. 

It’s all a false “economy.” As the 7^thwealthiest state, NH is certainly capable of generating revenue. Our secret is that we don’t want to. One thing the Republican Party fears above all is having enough money to fix the things that were deliberately neglected for decades. The scaremongering around The Pledge is key to their continued dominance in the state. 

A recent twitter exchange was a perfect illustration. Greg Moore is the head of Americans for Prosperity NH. AFP is an arm of the Koch brothers that has managed to achieve a disproportionate amount of influence over our state finances. Greg tweeted out that NH revenues are up in May, and claimed Trump’s tax reform is driving the NH economy forward. A reply to that tweet came from Grant Bosse, who wrote, “Don’t tell them! They’ll come back to spend it!”  (He was referring to the legislature.) Grant Bosse is the editor of the Union Leader’s editorial page. Before that, he worked for the Josiah Bartlett Center, the right wing think tank funded by the Koch brothers. 

That is, of course, easily translated into “spending is bad.” A successful business that invested in itself would be lauded, particularly if that came in the form of higher wages for workers. In NH success is defined as austerity. We don’t invest in education or any real safety net. We don’t even fix what is broken. To say that NH has “more money than we know what to do with,” in the face of our state’s many desperate needs is truly an obscenity.    

Published as an op-ed in the June 8, 2018 edition of the Conway Daily Sun newspaper 

The State of the State

Last week, Governor Chris Sununu gave his State of the State Address. What he didn’t say was far more interesting than the predictable blather about no taxes and business, business, business.  

Governor Sununu didn’t mention his number one legislative priority and the very first bill he signed. It was the bill to eliminate the licensing requirement for a concealed pistol or revolver. He campaigned on that bill, which, by the way, was sponsored by Senator Jeb Bradley. Sununu signed the bill in a “private” ceremony, where he was surrounded by some of the leading gundamentalists in the NH House.

After the signing ceremony, the governor posed for photos with the two NRA representatives who were on hand for the private signing ceremony. John Hohenwarter is in charge of government relations at the NRA. His focus is working to eliminate local gun control laws. NRA director of state and local affairs, Lacey Biles was also on hand. His focus is hunting laws. The NRA is known for their generosity to their allies at campaign time, which means this will be a money trail worth following. 

Perhaps, given the slaughter at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the governor decided it might be in poor taste to remind us all of his first legislative priority and triumph. Or perhaps, given the slaughter, he’d just as soon not remind us that of all the things he could have prioritized, he chose to make our gun laws weaker.

Instead, Sununu spoke mostly of economics. Old people were mentioned only as “contributing immensely to the economy.” That’s certainly an artful way of saying that a lot of old people can’t afford to retire because their property taxes are so high.

There was no mention of the arts or culture. No mention of tourism. No mention of our parks or mountains. No mention of the impact of climate change on our state, or the need to plan for the future of rising sea levels.

The most glaring omission in his speech was any mention of the North Country. What has Sununu done for the north? He pardoned some nuisance bears – and he’s been outspoken in his opposition to the decision made by the SEC regarding Northern Pass. Just as he knew better than Fish and Game about those bears, he knows better than the SEC about an issue he’s had no involvement in.

Whenever you ask someone where their favorite part of the state to visit is, they always say either the lakes region or the mountains. No one ever says they’re eager to vacation in Epping, yet everyone’s favorite part of the state is ignored by our state government. How many times has Sununu been to Coos since he was elected by busloads of people from Massachusetts? Don’t worry, Coos. He’ll be coming around looking for your votes and your money for his reelection soon enough. Just don’t expect any return on your investment.

Speaking of those busloads, Sununu made no mention of fauxter fraud or the ongoing attempt by the majority party to enact voter suppression legislation. 

The governor did give himself a big pat on the back for sending $30 million back to cities and towns for infrastructure projects. Surely that $1800 made a big dent in Hart’s Location’s infrastructure needs.   

Sununu made a big point of telling us that he’s a product of the public school system – a system he’s working hard to dismantle. Putting Frank Edelblut, a man with zero qualifications for the job in charge of the Dept. of Education was the first step. The majority party is working on a voucher program that would funnel tax dollars for public schools to private schools, religious schools, and home schools. In addition to taking money out of the schools, the accountability piece of the voucher bill is murky at best. Whenever taxpayer funds are spent, there must be accountability.

It was a disappointing speech. When we elect people who believe government is essentially a business, we get a government that is only interested in representing business interests – and only some business interests at that.  The businesses of the North Country would benefit from investment in our state parks, but that isn’t ever a consideration. If our state really were a business, no one would look twice at the peeling, unlit outside sign, never mind walk up the broken steps to knock on the unpainted front door.

The northern part of the state exists as a sort of Brigadoon, a place where Republicans can wax nostalgic about the Old Man, and Mel Thomson – and ignore the rest.

The lack of content wasn’t met with dismay. Governor Sununu is affable and always willing to jump in front of a camera. His informal style plays well with the media, who have little interest in holding him accountable. Hopefully voters will.  

Published as an op-ed in the February 23, 2018 edition of the Conway Daily Sun newspaper

Fauxbertarians

                                    cartoon by Kirk Anderson

On September 11, 2001, contrary to popular belief, the terrorists really did win. Since that day, the US has been obsessed with internal security, as if harassing US citizens would protect the nation from another terrorist attack.

We learned nothing from 9/11. No national humility crept in; we were too busy waving flags, beating our chests, and bellowing USA! USA! USA!

Since then, however, we’ve cracked down upon the enemy, and apparently the enemy is us. The Patriot Act was pushed through even though hardly anyone had read it. It gave law enforcement the authority to search homes and businesses without the owner’s consent or knowledge. It gave the FBI the authority to search telephone, email, and financial records, without a court order.

A few years later, the REAL ID Act was passed. To get it passed, it was attached to a military spending bill. In 2005, few would dare vote against a military spending bill. REAL ID was sold as a way to “set standards” for the issuance of identification – such as driver’s licenses. It made sense for a nation fearful of another foreign terrorist attack to create standards for driver’s licenses as a means of prevention. It wasn’t quite as brilliant as having air passengers remove their shoes, but close.

Privacy advocates were howling in outrage at the thought of a “national ID card.” It proved so unpopular that the date for compliance was put off several times. In 2007, it was announced that compliance by states would be put off till 2009. In 2008 the deadline was extended to 2011. NH was one of the states that fought hard against REAL ID. That opposition was in character with the “live free or die” philosophy we’re supposed to be famous for embracing. It was in character with our reputation as a libertarian leaning state.

Somewhere along the way we stopped fighting REAL ID and meekly submitted. Sixteen years of indoctrination – a combination of fear based agitprop and training to submit to authority, changed our tune from Just Say No to We Have to do this for National Security. REAL ID means that the state maintains a database of information on people, including Social Security numbers and photos. This database can be accessed by federal authorities, and will be all fun and games until the identity theft begins, and it will.

Let’s do a quick summary: The US experienced a big terrorist attack. We became afraid. Rather than evaluate US behavior in the world, we chose to suspect ourselves. We were programmed to submit to measures that invaded our privacy in the name of safety and security. We were trained (by means of constant drumbeat) to fear terrorists, especially at the airport. Apparently terrorists were just waiting to pounce on suitcases full of dirty underwear, and use them for nefarious purposes. FYI, you’re far more likely to be killed by a white, male, domestic terrorist. We ignore that reality – it’s not a money maker, and it doesn’t appeal to authoritarians.

Last week I was driving north on I-93, when I passed a pop up Border Patrol Inspection near Lincoln.  Cars heading south were being stopped and quizzed about their citizenship by Border Patrol agents, who may also have had drug-sniffing dogs. Not much shocks me anymore – but that did. After all, the border crossing is in Pittsburg, which is 2 hours away. It turns out that the Border Patrol can operate immigration checkpoints within 100 miles of an international or coastal border, which is pretty much anywhere in New England.

New Hampshire’s second largest industry is tourism. Nothing says welcome to NH like, “show us your papers.” NH is loath to pay for highway rest stops (or maintain the few still in existence) so instead - we’re going to give them an adventure! The possibility of being detained by US Customs and Border Protection will enliven a dull highway journey, especially for those of a duskier hue, which is what this is really all about.

This pop-up checkpoint had been an annual event in NH. Vermont’s Congressional delegation fought hard against them, and so they’d mostly stopped in Vermont. On I-95 in Maine they appear, generally in the Houlton area.  About five years ago, the NH checkpoint had stopped. According to an NHPR story, US Customs and Border Protection has been newly empowered by the Trump administration to resume this checkpoint and more of them can be expected.

There hasn’t been a peep out of the liberty and freedumb crowd about this. Not a word from the allegedly liberty loving Free Staters. The folks who do the wailin’ about gummint encroachment on our lives are strangely silent when it comes to “show us your papers” stops. Their interest in gummint interference extends to deregulation and tax cuts. Actual violations of privacy and civil liberties don’t interest them in the slightest. 

Live Free or Die has become Roll Over and Submit.

Published as an op-ed in the September 1, 2017 edition of the Conway Daily Sun newspaper 

Deliberately Decreasing Our Means

Every biennium the legislature creates a new state budget. This budget is required to be balanced every year. This happens no matter what party currently holds the majority in the House, the Senate, or the Governor’s office. Right now the legislature is winding down. The Committee of Conference reports will have been voted on by the time you read this.

As always, the most interesting item to watch is the budget wrangling. The House got started a bit late this year; probably because the O’Brienistas created so many diversions that everything was late. On days when the House is session, bills that will be coming up for a vote fall into two categories in the calendar: Consent and Regular. The Consent Calendar is comprised of bills that come out of committee with a unanimous vote to either pass or kill. They’re generally non-controversial, and are easily dispatched with voice votes. O’Brienistas made it a “thing” this session to yank as many bills off the consent calendar as possible, just to gum up the works and create delay.

Rep. Neal Kurk chairs the House Finance Committee. Kurk has long been a fiscal conservative, but generally someone who could be sensible when the situation called for it. This biennium apparently Kurk was so giddy at GOP control of both houses that he’s thrown caution and good sense out the window in favor of ideology. He partnered up with Free Stater Dan McGuire to create a hastily written budget that was guaranteed to ensure that NH would continue lose ground economically and hurt a lot of people along the way.

The original version included $88 million in DOT cuts, which meant rest areas and some bridges would be closed. Half the workforce would be eliminated. Federal funds would be lost, the widening of I-93 would be jeopardized, and some 2500 miles of roads and 1000 bridges would have been turned over to cities and towns to pay for. Apparently Meals on Wheels was a socialist program that needed to be cut, and Service Link was completely de-funded. Dan McGuire proposed $2 million in cuts to the NH Veteran’s Home, which would have resulted in 25 veterans losing their place to live. Some changes (the proposed cuts to the Veteran’s Home were too much for even the most rabid members of the right) were made, and eventually the budget found its way to the Senate. The Senate made some cosmetic changes and added business tax cuts. Because when you claim that there isn’t enough money to adequately fund the needs of the state, the only thing to do is cut revenue! 

A recent op-ed in the Laconia Sun penned by Senators Jeb Bradley and Jeanne Forrester claimed that the Senate decided to reduce business taxes at the end of the budget process. On January 8, Senator Bradley introduced a bill to lower the business profits tax (BPT). On January 8, a bill Bradley co-sponsored was introduced to lower the business enterprise tax. (BET).  Those bills were both passed by the Senate and Bradley tabled both. The intent from the very beginning of the session was to lower business taxes. To pretend otherwise is disingenuous at best. They’re telling us on the one hand that we must live our means while the other hand is slashing the means we live on.

The lowering of the BET and the BPT are touted as the way to bring business to our state. The fact that businesses actually want good infrastructure, lower utility costs, and an educated work force is lost on our representative ideologues, who are firmly steeped in the kind of economic policies that have failed to work since the Reagan administration. NH is a wealthy state, yet we refuse to raise sufficient revenues to fix the things that need fixing and invest in the future. As a result, we have the 11^th worth infrastructure in the United States. Award winning NH civil engineer Darren Benoit tells us that if we start right now, it will cost us $1.5 billion to fix everything. NH also ranks at about 100^th place out of the 50 states for state funding of our university system. We want an educated workforce, but we do not want to pay for it. If a budget is a statement of our values, than it’s painfully clear that the budget writers don’t value our state or its people.

The budget for tourism, the second largest industry in our state was level funded in this budget. This will not hurt the southern part of the state. It is likely to impact the North Country. Be sure to thank your GOP representatives for voting against the best interests of our area. It’s also worth pointing out that this budget fails to invest in repairing our state parks, something that would also benefit the tourist economy.  

A variety of self-congratulatory legislators are boasting that the substance abuse treatment budget was increased. It was but the Senate added those increases. They were not in the original House budget. The increases came about because even the most rabid ideologues couldn’t pretend that there aren’t significant numbers of young people dying from heroin overdoses.

Another aspect of all of this that goes unmentioned by our budgeteers is the downshifting of costs. Items the state doesn’t adequately fund (like infrastructure) get passed on to the counties and municipalities, which will likely be passed on to you, in the form of an increase in your property taxes.  

As I write this, the Governor has stated her intent to veto the budget unless changes are made. The NH GOP is wailing about the need to compromise. Their definition of “compromise” appears to mean that the House Republicans get to write the budget; the Senate Republicans get to change it, and the Republicans of both bodies compromise with each other in the Committee of Conference. The CoC process included the compromise of closed door meetings with Greg Moore of the Koch funded Americans for Prosperity. After all that internal GOP compromise (with a dash of Koch-promise) the Governor is expected to meekly sign it, displaying her willingness to compromise.

This budget fails to address the needs of our state and blows a big hole in future budgets by cutting business taxes. It guarantees that nothing will ever get fixed properly, because we will have to live within our deliberately decreased means.

Published as an op-ed in the June 26 edition of the Conway Daily Sun newspaper. 

Not Very Welcoming Is It?

That's the sign on the front door of the rest area on Route 2 in Shelburne, NH. Apparently winter lasted longer than anyone could have predicted. 

The building appears to be in good repair.  

There are plenty of picnic tables and what look like pits for grilling. 

While I was there, a woman out for a hike came by and asked me what this place was. I explained that it was a rest area. She said, "It's not very welcoming is it?"

Rosalind is visiting from New Zealand, staying at a hostel up the road. A tourist. A delightful tourist. A delightful tourist who would have availed herself of maps, information, and probably the bathroom. Instead, she got this. 

There was a lot of traffic on Rt. 2 today.  Tourism is NH's second largest industry. 

Nothing says Welcome to NH quite like this. 

Tourists Treated Like #2 in NH

This is the Sanbornton rest area, heading south on I-93. Note the rust around the bottom of the door, the mold growing on the outside of the rather shabby building. The rest area is only open from 8 am to 8 pm, to accomodate your peeing needs:

Classy!

Scenes from the ladies room

At least the ventilation system is working. 

Tourism - NH's second largest industry. The parking lot at this rest stop was filled with out of state cars, who will take this memory home with them to cherish.  

Tourism is our #2 business - and apparently treating our tourists like #2 is the way we roll. 

Live Free But Don't Stop to Pee

                                 Inside the West Gardiner, ME rest area on the Maine Turnpike.

Circumstances beyond my control led to a trip north on the Maine turnpike. It had been years since I’d even been on it. Every Maine pilgrimage I’ve undertaken in the last decade was accomplished without the aid of the interstate.

Maine was green and blooming, Jethro Tull was in the CD player, and hot coffee was my best friend after a short night’s sleep. Coffee drinking result in rest stops. My first turnpike stop was at the Gray Service Plaza. Maine rest areas are very different from those we encounter in New Hampshire. There were gas pumps. There wasn’t a liquor store. The building was fairly new and attractive.  The bathrooms were clean, shiny, and smelled nice! They had free WiFi! It was glorious. In West Gardiner I stopped again, and found another new building with an octagonal roof. Inside was a fabulous exhibit of Maine artists and crafters. There was a Starbucks and a few other fast food vendors, as well as a small convenience store. The bathroom was large, well lit, well ventilated, and smelled clean. These plazas made an unhappy trip far more pleasant.

The Hampton, NH  rest area on I-95. 

A few days later I headed south to visit the family plot in Massachusetts. I stopped at the rest area on I-95 in Hampton. It was Memorial Day, and all the weekend travelers were heading home. The siren song of the giant highway liquor outlet beguiled many a weary holiday traveler with the promise of cheap booze for the trip home. That’s what there is at the Hampton rest area; a giant liquor store and a smaller store selling goods made in NH. Sandwiched in between are some ancient, dank, rest rooms, painted evil shades of tan and yellow, poorly (if at all) ventilated, and reeking of 10,000 years of flatulence. One stall had sodden bathroom tissue on the wet floor that featured a large puddle of liquid right inside the door.

There were no gas pumps. No coffee. No art exhibit. No WiFi. No sparkly clean, well-ventilated, pleasant smelling bathrooms.

                         The Southern Vermont Welcome Center on I-91.

Our neighbors in Vermont also have numerous attractive rest areas on their interstates. They all offer FREE coffee for travelers. All have free WiFi. The rest area in Sharon (north) has a Vietnam War memorial, and a hydroponic botanical garden. The Hartford (south) rest stop features displays of various aspects of VT culture, including agriculture. They want you to love Vermont so much that you’ll come back, maybe even permanently.

                                        The Sharon, VT rest area

The number 2 industry in New Hampshire is tourism. The top half of the state is almost totally reliant on the tourist industry. One would never guess that from our highway rest areas. They do not say, “welcome.” They do not say, “Thank you, and come back again.” Our idea of a cultural display is an alcohol outlet and some stinky bathrooms. Thanks for visiting NH! Do your kids like Jack Daniels? We’ve got fun for the whole family!!

Competition for tourist dollars is fierce in northern New England. Our neighbor states have chosen to make investments that enhance the travel experience of their tourists. Here in NH, we seem to think that folks are dying to come here to experience our failing infrastructure and buy booze. We refuse to invest in our state parks, our roads, our bridges, and our rest areas. We seem to think that some nice mountains, lakes, and rivers combined with minimal upkeep and deferred maintenance in our parks will keep ‘em coming back for more.

That, too, is emblematic of NH culture. Kick the can down the road, and when it lands in a pothole, pay the pound of cure.

The US infrastructure ranks 25^th in the world. In 2002 we were in 5^th place. Switzerland is #1. I’ll spare you the whole list, but it is worth noting that Barbados has a higher ranked infrastructure than the United States. Barbados spends 0.8% of its GDP on the military. The US spends 4.35% of our GDP on offense. This is why we can’t have nice things.

According to Top States for Business, 2013, the #1 state for infrastructure is Texas. NH is in 45^th place. According to that same study, NH ranks 40^th for cost of living, 13^th for business friendliness, and 18^th for the cost of doing business. Since the recession, Texas has invested heavily in infrastructure and education. The states that have made those sorts of investments are recovering jobs faster than the states that did not.

Job growth over the last 12 months has increased by 1.54% in Massachusetts, the fastest growing state economy in New England. Maine isn’t far behind, at 1.35%. Rhode Island comes in at 1.32% (they rank 21^st in the nation in manufacturing), Vermont at 1.29%, NH at 0.83%, and CT at .05%. We’ve always been able to count on being a state that rebounds quickly. The NH economy has always been one of the fastest growing in New England. Those days appear to be over. We’re lagging behind states that we are usually ahead of, like Maine and Vermont.

I’m not suggesting that Vermont’s economic growth is a result of having attractive highway rest areas – but they are an indicator of what VT is doing that NH is not. Vermont is investing in both its people (education, health care, increased minimum wage) and its infrastructure (roads, bridges, telecommunications). States that are investing are thriving. NH is doing the opposite.

We all know that New Hampshire is a pretty great place to be, but that isn’t the message we’re broadcasting to the visitors who come to our state. This is something we can control. “Live Free But Don’t Stop to Pee” should not be a contender for our new state motto.

© sbruce 2014
Published in the May 30 edition of the Conway Daily Sun newspaper.