Saturday, February 3, 2024

101 Tom Gross - Athlete, Media Star and Waterville Valley's Informal Historian

Ep 101 


Tom Gross - Athlete, Media Star and Waterville Valley's Informal Historian

Listen to the Podcast here:  

Watch on YouTube :  https://youtu.be/8lnZlRdwxL0


What began as a project to tell the story of Waterville Valley as the birthplace of Freestyle skiing quickly morphed into Waterville Valley as a crucible of cultural vision and change. In the coming weeks, we'll take you into the lives of JD Nelson and his friend Jack Sanders who took a young Wayne Wong, Floyd Wilkie and George Askevold under their wings to make sure that they were not taken advantage of as they began their journey to superstardom in the brand new world of Hotdog Skiing - soon to be called "Freestyle". 

You'll meet Frank Dubois, the first certified African American ski instructor in America, Jerry Dunfey who intersected with their lives from his perch at the Parker House Hotel in Boston and the slopes of Waterville. as well as John and Donni Hughes, Bernie Weichsel, Executive Director of the first professional Freestyle association The International Freestyle Skiers Association, and others. 

Through it all Tom Gross, trusted friend to Olympic superstar and Waterville Valley founder  Tom Cochran, was often at the center of the media storm. He was there at the beginning, announced races and competitions all over the country, and hobnobbed with celebrities (He's the only person I know who actually got Bill Russell to autograph something for him.)

Whenever I would engage someone from Waterville Valley the conversation would invariably lead to Tom Gross who has forgotten more about Waterville Valley than the rest of us know.

He's a great storyteller on top of it all. 

Tom Gross


President
Legends Productions
Waterville Valley Resort Association
  • Graduate of New England College: Tom was inducted into the New England College Athletic Hall Of Fame in 1996 for tennis with a combined four year record of 77-2 in singles and doubles, a member of three undefeated seasons, and a three year recipient of the Coach's Award.
Tom Gross Jr. - one of the well-deserved inductees WValley Hall of Fame in 2019.
Tom was hired by the great Rod Laver in 1975
77-2 record as a tennis star for New England College 

Tom's versatile career ranges from writing the creative copy 'Equal Only To Itself,' and 'Destiny Beckons,' for the Ferrari Campaign of North America, to announcing World Cup Finals.
As host of one of the most successful 'live' resort cable TV shows in the nation aired twice daily on Waterville Valley's WVTV-6, Tom and WVTV-6 became the first and only Resort Sports Network market to ever win both the morning and evening time slots during the Arbitron's.
For eight years he was the New England Ski Reporter and tennis instructional talent for NBC affiliate WBZ-TV4 in Boston, MA. As a former tennis professional for the Laver-Emerson Tennis Holiday's and National Director of Tennis for the Rod Laver Tennis Holidays, Tom has written extensively for World Tennis Magazine and Tennis Magazine in London, England. He is the owner and President of multiple businesses in Waterville Valley, NH including Legends 1291 Sports Grille, the Olde Waterville Pizza Company, the Flying Burrito's Mexican take-out, the White Mountain Athletic Club and the Waterville Valley Tennis Center which is consistently named one of the 'Top 50' Tennis resorts in America by Tennis Magazine, and one of the Top 50 tennis resorts in the world by Tennis Resorts Online. Tom was inducted into the New England College Athletic Hall Of Fame in 1996 for tennis with a combined four year record of 77-2 in singles and doubles, a member of three undefeated seasons, and a three year recipient of the Coach's Award.

As a photographic design artist for his company Legends Productions, Tom recently designed The Boston Garden It's Magic... It's Memories 1928-1995, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, and the 10th Anniversary collage poster of the New Hampshire International Speedway, three posters currently being marketed throughout the country. Currently he is working on the history of the Boston Red Sox and Fenway Park.
Tom has announced over 850 athletic events throughout the country including seven World Cup ski races and the 1991 World Cup Finals.
He has been an announcer, an emcee and a auctioneer at a variety of prestigious events, including the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Golf Tournament in Hyannis Port, MA; George Bush's Cape Arundel Golf Classic in Kennebunkport, ME, Lance Armstrong's Foundation Gala in Austin, TX, Andre Agassi's Grand Slam For Children in Las Vegas NV; Michael Bolton Charitable Gala in Stamford, CT, American Airlines Celebrity Golf event in Newport Beach, CA; Keyshawn Johnson's Celebrity Golf Classic in Dallas, TX, the Academy of Country Music Charitable Foundation in Las Vegas, NV, The Merrill Lynch Celebrity Ski Classic in Deer Valley, Utah, The Fidelity Investment Legends Cup in Telluride, CO, 'Sizzlin' Country in Las Vegas, NV, Shine On Miami in Miami, FL, Country In The Rockies in Crested Butte, CO and the American Airlines Celebrity Ski event in Vail, Colorado.
In 2001 Tom signed with BMI as a songwriter. He has co-written the Celebrity Cruise song 'Fueled By Moonlight Dust,' and currently has 'You Fit Me,' 'Southern Gates of Heaven,' 'Raiders of the Heart,' 'Come On America,' 'We're Already There,' 'The Key's Under the Conch Shell,' 'Build A Wall' and 'Shine On' being pitched in Nashville and throughout the music industry.
For 25 years Tom has donated his time to help raise more than $85 million for organizations involved with human rights, cystic fibrosis, women and children at risk, education, cancer, 9/11, angel flight, birth defects and adoption.

Tom's civic duty in the Town of Waterville Valley, NH includes being Chairman of the Board of Adjustment, Chairman of the Waterville Valley Electric Advisory Committee, Vice President of the Waterville Valley Resort Association, and served 10 years as a volunteer fire fighter.

Into White


Cloud Forms Over the Continental Divide


Spring Passion


Watching the Sunset from Mt Monroe





Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Senator David Watters - Renaissance Man of the Senate

 

Dr. David Watters, NH State Senator District 4


Senator David Watters - Renaissance Man of the Senate

David Watters laughs off the moniker of Renaissance man of the Senate but there's a lot of truth to it. A mutual friend wrote me with the following:

"David is an expert on all kinds of things: New England graveyards, the New England Primer, hornbooks of New England, clown history, Shaker history (particularly African American Shakers), African American history and literature, slavery in New Hampshire, New Hampshire African American history, Grace Metalious, Robert Frost, human rights (he was active in a local chapter of Amnesty International and I think headed that chapter) and more.  He also is interested in Native American history and has sponsored legislation on behalf of Natives in this state." 

This podcast focuses on his work in the Senate but I suspect we will do a future podcast where we explore some of these other passions of this very interesting fellow.

Listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/senator-david-watters-renaissance-man-of-the-senate/id1448601053?i=1000643586179

Watch on YouTube here:  https://youtu.be/6Il7KXRYfvU

Show Notes: https://nhsecrets.blogspot.com/2024/01/senator-david-watters-renaissance-man.html

Years Served in the Senate: Serving his 6th term in the NH Senate 
Watters earned a B.A. in English from Dartmouth College and a Ph.D. in English from Brown University. His professional experience includes working as a professor at the University of New Hampshire.

Committee assignments

2023-2024

Watters was assigned to the following committees:


Links

https://ballotpedia.org/David_Watters

https://www.nhsenatedems.org/senators


Twitter: Senator David Watters (@SenDavidWatters) · X


David Watters
Member of the New Hampshire Senate
from the 4th district
Assumed office
December 5, 2012
Preceded byJim Forsythe (redistricting)
Member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
from the Strafford 4th district
In office
December 2008 – December 2012
Preceded byMulti-member district
Succeeded byMulti-member district
Personal details
Born
David H. Watters

December 28, 1950 (age 73)[1]
Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseJan Alberghene
Children1
Residence(s)Dover, New Hampshire, U.S.
EducationDartmouth College (BA)
Brown University (PhD)
ProfessionProfessor
WebsiteCampaign website
Official website
 
Related podcasts from Anamaki Productions:

Ranked Choice Voting

Who Owns the Wind ? - A Conversation with David McDermott Hughes




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Wednesday, January 10, 2024

EP 99. Peter Powell: With Community at his Core

 

Peter Powell



New Hampshire Secrets, Legends & Lore Podcast

Peter Powell: A Life With Community at its Core

Podcast: https://feeds.podetize.com/7CASaR71n.mp3

YouTube: https://youtu.be/-m2l9I00Rrs

Peter Powell has been in the Real Estate business in Lancaster NH for 50 years now and he's very well respected and talented at it. But ask him what he lives for and he will begin to spin stories of family, New Hampshire, and his community, both local and in the broader sense NH and the US,  long before he gets to his business career.

I think it's that focus on community that allows Peter to have been the choice of both Republican and Democratic leaders in the US and in NH as a leader they can count on to build bridges. . . and if there is anything we need desperately these days its a restoration of a sense of community. From his heartfelt call to the legendary US Senate Republican Leader Mark Hatfield at one of the most trying points of his life to simply say, I'm proud of you. Keep on." To the moment that Democratic candidate for President Fritz Hollings poked his head into a latenight bull session at a local store in Lancaster and asked "Anyone here know Peter Powell? Tell him Fritz Hollings says hello!" There followed appointments to prestigious state panels in the humanities, the Trust for NH Lands, The NH Charitable Fund and so many other state honors that it would take too much time to mention.

Peter spent a few years working in Washington after college, working for Norris Cotton and the Senate Commerce Committee as well as congressman Louis Wyman before deciding he wanted the country life and making the move to Lancaster. His father Wes Powell was governor of NH for two terms and of course that invites hundreds of stories into the conversation so we are going to schedule another podcast in a month or two so we can get in a few more of those. Wes was from the rough and tumble area of Puddledock in Portsmouth which seems to play prominently into many of those stories.

With an always ready and genuine smile, and a spirit ready to reach out in every direction to find common ground, Peter Powell is the sort of citizens who moves mountains, whether he means to or not. Our world could use a lot more people like him.

Powell Real Estate

Peter Powell - Broker in Lancaster, New Hampshire
Peter Powell. Peter W. Powell Real Estate. Phone 603-788-4848. Email peter@pwpre.com.

This Podcast is funded through the sale of images in the gallery rather than running ads. 


The Rocker at Eagle Pond Farm
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Spirit Bull in Painted Forest
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Moonrise Over Newfound Lake
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Wonalancet Mindscape
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Finding Our Way
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Beyond the Hedge at Ms Rumphius' House
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Spirit Boulder at Livermore
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Wednesday, December 13, 2023

EP 98. 2024 YOUTH FORUM ON CLIMATE ACTION AND CLEAN ENERGY - THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 2024




Listen to the Podcast here:  https://feeds.podetize.com/54-22U9qr.mp3

Watch on YouTube here:  https://youtu.be/t57YLi3noys


HOSTED BY THE EMERGING CLIMATE LEADERS’ COLLABORATIVE

SAVE THE DATE: THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 2024


IN THE RAMP-UP TO THE 2024 NEW HAMPSHIRE PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY, STUDENTS AND PUBLIC FIGURES WILL EXPLORE POLICIES AND SOLUTIONS FOR BUILDING A ROBUST AND RESILIENT CLIMATE ECONOMY WHILE HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANCE OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND VOTING


There's no two ways about it, no generation of Americans face bigger challenges related to the environmental issues and the continuing march of global climate change than youngest members of our population. That's precisely why the League of Conservation Voters of NH, Hubbard Brook Research Foundation and the Irving Institute for Energy & Society at Dartmouth College have joined together to sponsor the  2024 YOUTH FORUM ON CLIMATE ACTION AND CLEAN ENERGY - THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 2024. The gathering is a youth-focused forum at the intersection of public policy, climate action, and the clean energy economy. Through this public in-person event, NH students will have the opportunity to engage with policy and corporate leaders, celebrated authors and actors, philanthropists, and entrepreneurs to explore opportunities for building an economically strong and environmentally secure future.

Hosted by: Hubbard Brook Research Foundation, the League of Conservation Voters, and the Irving Institute for Energy & Society at Dartmouth College will host a youth forum at the intersection of public policy, climate action, and the clean energy economy. Through this public in-person event, NH students will engage with policy and corporate leaders, celebrated authors and actors, philanthropists, and entrepreneurs to explore opportunities for building an economically strong and environmentally secure future.

Goal: Providing a non-partisan platform for young business and environmental leaders at a crucial decision point in the presidential electoral process

Date: Thursday, January 18th, 2024 – 8:30 AM to 1:00 PM

Location: Bank of NH Stage, 16 S. Main St., Concord, NH 03301

Featured Presenters: NH student panelists, public figures of state & national significance.

Hosts: Hubbard Brook Research Foundation, League of Conservation Voters, Irving Institute for Energy & Society at Dartmouth College.


Sign up to participate here.




Rob Werner


Kate Burgess



Monday, December 11, 2023

EP 97 Skiing Legend Dan Egan takes Over at Tenney Mountain



Extreme Skiing Legend Dan Egan Takes the Reins as General Manager Of a "Reimagined" Tenney Mountain


Show notes:



https://www.skitenney.com/story

Many people from the central New Hampshire area will speak fondly, often wistfully, of Tenney Mountain.  As if it's time had passed. Yet, there is a reason why Tenney has been resurrected time and again over the years. It is because many of the fundamentals of a great family ski area are there, it's just that the formula for its resurrection have not been quite right.

Today, a lot of folks believe that formula may finally have been found and - once again - optimism is bubbling up in the heart of New Hampshire. A combination of local knowledge, ski industry savvy and the financial "juice" needed to confront the dual challenges of restoring Tenney's infrastructure and dreaming big about its future seems to have coalesced with the team of Dan Egan and Steven Kelley - two folks with "just enough crazy in them" to make it happen.

Founded by NH icon Sam Hall - a veteran of the famed 10th Mountain Division during WWII (and division mate with his friend Senator Bob Dole), Sam founded Tenney on a wing and a prayer beginning when he was a Timber Cruiser for the Draper Corporation. The story of those early days are the stuff of legend.  Luckily for us, those early days are preserved in an interview with his two sons by the Plymouth Historical Society.

Memories of Plymouth - The History of Tenney Mountain

Steven Kelley, who purchased Tenney Mountain, is not a skier. Some would see that as a disadvantage but not Kelley, and not Dan Egan

They point to Kelley's successful track record as a builder of high-tech centers along the Rte 128 corridor in Massachusetts and his expertise in the development of cell towers, throughout the region, as evidence that Kelley has the financial wherewithal and the vision to create something very special here, just seven short minutes from I93.

His selection of Egan to serve as General Manager is the proof of his serious-minded approach to the challenge. Likewise, Dan Egan has reached deep into the community to build a team with unmatched institutional memory. And they are hitting the ground running heading into the 23-24 season. The chairlifts will be fully operational, 80 new fan tower guns will provide substantial snowmaking and inspirational innovations like guided headlamp night skiing promise to capture the imagination of skiers from all over the northeast. Looking ahead, Egan discusses other plans like a recently approved preliminary plan for a new  $30 million dollar base lodge.

Additionally, Dan has developed a relationship with  world-renowned mountain biking company Gravity 
Magic of Whistler BC. , and plans are underway for lift-access Mountain biking adventures soon.  Summer activities that are planned in the future include disc golf(expected to be introduced this fall), mountain biking, and ziplining.

Dan Egan’s list of accomplishments reads like that of three or more powerhouses combined into one. Inducted into the US Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2016, The Pioneer of Extreme Skiing has appeared in thirteen Warren Miller films over the years. He’s also an author and producer. He authored All-Terrain Skiing I & II and co-authored " 30 Years In A White Haze"  with Eric Wilbur.

As a producer he’s helped create sports films and not all of them are about skiing. His most recent endeavor in filmmaking is "Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story"  a documentary currently in production, analyzing racism in soccer.




As a ski ambassador, coach, and guide, Dan Egan can also be found on the snow at Big Sky, Montana, Valle Nevado, Chile and Val D Isere, France, sharing his knowledge and passion for the sport. He is sponsored by Leki, Big Sky, Elan, and Alps & Meters.



Gravity Logic

Gravity Logic was created in 2007 by the team who helped build the Whistler Mountain Bike Park – the World’s #1 Bike Park. Ever since, GL’s team has assisted other resorts and organizations with creating unique bike park experiences by building trails and infrastructure that attracts riders of all ages, skills, and interests. More info.



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Sunday, October 8, 2023

Ep 96 : The Economic Impacts of Public Investment vs. Tax Cuts Michael Kitch & Garry Rayno

 





Garry Rayno and Michael Kitch have been keen observers of public policy in NH for several generations, and especially the impacts of policies on the economy. Garry has been a lifelong journalist in New Hampshire and Michael began his NH career as a journalist, specializing in business issues, and served in the early 90s as the State Senate Policy specialist on the budget and economic policy. In this podcast we discuss a recent study from Phil Sletten of the New Hampshire Policy Institute on the value and impact of public expenditures and tax reductions highlighted by Garry in an article at InDepthNH.org's news website (below). The study shows a substantial public benefit and return to the economy from public expenditures like the SNAP program and relatively low value to the economy from tax cuts.


Listen here: https://feeds.podetize.com/UOfqub1CY.mp3

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dGusplGp9uo



NH Business Tax Cuts Are Just Trickle Down Economics

ByAugust 5, 2023

https://indepthnh.org/2023/08/05/nh-business-tax-cuts-are-just-trickle-down-economics/

Nancy West photo

Garry Rayno is InDepthNH.org's State House Bureau Chief. He is pictured in the press room at the State House in Concord.

New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute data
By GARRY RAYNO, InDepthNH.org

CONCORD — Despite politicians’ claims of business tax rate cuts spurring the state’s economy, a recent study indicates the state’s economy would grow faster by putting additional money in the hands of low- to moderate-income residents.

The Highlander of Benton Heights
Original Signed Art       Open edition 
Theissue briefby the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute proposes that business tax rate cuts cost the state between $496 million and $729 million in revenue since they began in 2015.

The brief contends that money would have provided a greater boost to job creation and economic growth by providing services and benefits to low- and moderate-income residents who will spend the money locally.




With the small rate reductions for businesses, particularly large multinational corporations who pay the largest share of the state’s Business Profits Tax, the study shows, a large share of the saved money flows out of state and out of the country as dividends and higher salaries to employees already at the top of the pay scale.

New Hampshire depends on business taxes more than any other state to fund general government operations at 31 percent of all revenues, consequently business tax revenues are critical in paying for state services, according to the brief.


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New Jersey is second with 14 percent.

Since 2015, the business profits tax rate has dropped from 8.5 percent to 7.5 percent and the business enterprise tax rate has dropped from .75 percent to .55 percent.

New Hampshire, like most other states in the country, has seen its business tax revenue expand significantly since the middle of the last decade and the policy institute sought to determine if the increase was tied to the rate reductions or if it was due to other factors.



“This Issue Brief assesses the extent to which revenue was gained, or lost, by the reductions in the BPT and BET rates. It includes a review of relevant national and multi-state research, a review of factors likely generating the three recent increases in business tax receipts between 2015 and 2022, an assessment of the interaction between the business tax rates and the economy in New Hampshire, and an evaluation of the revenue impacts of the BPT and BET rate reductions between 2015 and 2022,” according to Phil Sletten, Research Director of the institute.

State tax policy since 2015 has been to reduce business tax rates to be more competitive with rates in surrounding states and more recently to eliminate the interest and dividends tax. Republicans claim the two actions will spur the economy, create jobs and produce greater revenue in the future or what is known as trickle down economics, which to date has proven to be an accelerator of pushing wealth to the top tiers while creating greater income disparity.

Sletten cites a number of national studies that argue reducing business tax rates has little effect on the economy except in specific instances like a recession.

Moody Analytics in a 2021 study found a dollar invested in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) would boost the size of the overall economy by $1.61, as individuals would spend their benefit on food in the local economy. Unemployment insurance would boost the economy by $1.49 per dollar invested over the same time period, because the money would be used quickly in the local economy.



Moonlight on the Stonehouse
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On the other hand, Moody Analytics estimated a dividend and capital gain tax rate reduction would generate 38 cents for each dollar of revenue, while a corporate tax rate reduction would generate 32 cents, and a business net operating loss tax offset would return 24 cents on the dollar.

“These estimates are similar to Moody’s analyses of the economic impacts of similar policies for 2009 and 2015, when federal corporate tax rate reductions were estimated to generate 32 cents and 30 cents, respectively, per dollar invested,” Sletten writes.

Similarly, the U.S. Congressional Research Service examined top federal income and capital gains tax rates between 1945 and 2010 and found little or no relationship between savings, investments, and growth in productivity, but did identify that the national share of income accruing to labor, rather than capital, decreased with lower maximum tax rates.

The research service also found more income was concentrated for the highest-income households in environments with lower maximum income and capital gains tax rates.

The Tax Foundation in 2013 noted tax reforms in some situations can lead to higher revenues even when individual rate reductions are included, but also said “Can a tax cut pay for itself? Most economists would probably agree that the answer is generally ‘rarely, but usually not.’”


Looking at the impact of rate cuts on the local state economy, the institute’s study cites a National Tax Journal article saying several studies show “no statistically significant negative effects of corporate tax rates on economic growth, while some research suggests higher property taxes have negative impacts.”

Sletten notes the Council on State Taxation, says about half (49.7 percent) of all state and local tax dollars paid by New Hampshire businesses during fiscal year 2021 were property taxes, while just over a quarter (26.0 percent) were paid to the BPT and the BET.

The report gives three reasons for the growth in business tax revenues, the first is from pent up economic activity following the great recession at the beginning of the last decade.

Sletten notes the state had slow economic growth between 2011 and 2013, but began to pick up in 2014 adding jobs which peaked at the beginning of 2016.

“This increase in economic activity, and the timing of other tax receipts, suggest economic growth spurring a rise in business tax revenues preceded the rate reductions that took effect in Tax Year 2016, rather than being enabled by more resources available to businesses after they took effect,” Sletten writes.

The second reason for significant growth in the business tax revenues was a change in federal corporate taxes in 2017 under the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that encouraged multinational corporations to return assets to U.S. affiliate companies, rather than hold them overseas.

Business tax revenue in New Hampshire between fiscal years 2017 and 2019 grew 26 percent, while federal data shows combined state corporate tax revenues increased nationwide by 34 percent.

Neighboring states also had similar revenue growth rising 44 percent in Maine, 34 percent in Massachusetts, and 35 percent in Vermont, according to the brief.

The third reason for the increase in business tax revenue according to Sletten was the economic rebound from the pandemic due to federal stimulus money to states and individuals and skyrocketing corporate profits.





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But the brief notes the reductions to rates are not enough on their own to drive job growth, as a corporation owing $1 million in business taxes would see a reduction of about $33,000, not enough to pay for a new employee.

“Controlling for economic growth in New England shows there is no statistically significant relationship between the BPT rate and overall economic growth in New Hampshire relative to New England,” Sletten writes. “The BPT rates between 1970 and 1997 only appear to explain 0.7 percent of the variation in the difference between New Hampshire’s economic growth and overall economic growth in New England, and there is not a statistically significant relationship between BPT rates and economic growth.”

Sletten said their analysis indicates the rate reductions at a minimum prevented the state from collecting $496 million and a maximum $729 million, noting the entire mental health budget for the Department of Health and Human Services during the same time period was $517.5 million.



The additional “revenue could have eliminated the Statewide Education Property Tax in its current form for one or two years, which may have provided more effective economic stimulus for the New Hampshire economy than corporate tax rate reductions,” he said. “Alternatively, the state could have doubled the state budget contribution to the University System each year as early as 2019, or doubled the current budget of the Veterans’ Home starting as early as 2018, with additional funds remaining in future years relative to the growing impacts of the tax rate reductions over time.”

The governor, like others before him, likes to take credit for cutting taxes and growing the economy, but the study done by the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute indicates there are far better ways to spur growth and create jobs.

Programs for the poor and middle-class residents would produce much more economic activity as would making serious reductions in property taxes including those for businesses with half their state tax burden property taxes.

But that has not been the “New Hampshire Advantage,” which these days appears to be an advantage to a very small percentage of the state’s residents who really don’t need any help from the state’s taxpayers.

Garry Rayno may be reached at garry.rayno@yahoo.com.

Distant Dome by veteran journalist Garry Rayno explores a broader perspective on the State House and state happenings for InDepthNH.org. Over his three-decade career, Rayno covered the NH State House for the New Hampshire Union Leader and Foster’s Daily Democrat. During his career, his coverage spanned the news spectrum, from local planning, school and select boards, to national issues such as electric industry deregulation and Presidential primaries. Rayno lives with his wife Carolyn in New London.



Phil Sletten
Research Director
New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute

Phil Sletten is research director at the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute, where he conducts research and analysis on the State Budget, State revenues and expenditures, the economy, and the economic security of Granite Staters, with a focus on those with low and moderate incomes. He previously served as a performance auditor for the NewHampshire Office of Legislative Budget Assistant. Phil earned a Bachelor’s degree from Grinnell College in Iowa and holds a Master of Public Affairs from the University of Wisconsin, and is also a graduate of Leadership New Hampshire. He joined the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute in 2016.



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Our Time Comes
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Wind on the Floodplain Forest Floor
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