NH House Freedom Caucus
For Immediate Release
May 22, 2018
Contact: Rep. JR Hoell, 603-315-9002
CONCORD – The New Hampshire House Freedom Caucus (NHHFC) today blasted the massive, $120 million state spending spree in new spending outside of a state budget year in bills coming before the House tomorrow. In particular, the NHHFC focused on the $102.3 million omnibus spending bill (HB 1817), legislation that never saw a public hearing in the House for any of the appropriations included within it.
“The Legislature abandoned its fiscal responsibility by approving this off-budget spending, and the committee of conference made this terrible mistake even worse. At a time when we are already overtaxing Granite Staters, the solution isn’t more spending; it should be to return the money back to the hard-working taxpayers who earned it. Instead, we have members in both chambers who spend first, ask questions later,” said Rep. Elizabeth Ferreira (R-Nashua).
“This drunken sailor spending binge is Washington politics at its worst. This omnibus spending bill never received a public hearing in the House while burning through over $100 million in taxpayer money, with no thought about any other priorities or asking the public to weigh in. Then, just four House members decided to add even more spending to this outrageous monster without discussing it with the rest of the House. On Wednesday, we’ll be asked to ‘pass this bill so we can find out what’s in it.’ That might be fine for Washington, but it’s truly disgusting to see that happen here in New Hampshire,” added Rep. Glen Aldrich (R-Gilford).
“Fiscal responsibility and lowering tax burdens are precisely why we are seeing New Hampshire’s economy expand. However, instead of returning excess revenues directly to the taxpayers, Legislative members are looking for places to spend it. This transparent attempt to try to buy votes in an election year with taxpayers’ money is exactly what turns people off. The people of New Hampshire deserve better,” concluded Rep. Len Turcotte (R-Barrington).
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The New Hampshire House Freedom Caucus is a grassroots organization consisting of legislators and private citizens, who believe in personal liberty and the traditional conservative “Yankee” values that made New Hampshire a great place to live.