Joint news release
(Concord) House and Senate leadership issued the following statements regarding today’s passage of HB 1 and HB 2:
Statement from Speaker of the House William L. O’Brien, R-Mont Vernon:
“Promises made, promises kept. The New Hampshire House and Senate have delivered on the commitment we made last year to live within our means, not raise taxes and fees, stop borrowing and, where possible, target tax cuts to produce economic growth. We promised the voters that we would pass tax cuts to help our residents, make our state more competitive and get our economy moving again. We have done that by lowering the tax burden on small businesses to help them grow.
“Beyond this, we reduced a number of fee increases that were passed over the past four years. The legislature knows that cutting fees sends an important message that we will stop attempting to nickel and dime our way to more spending to pay for big government. The budget that the legislature produced keeps our word with our citizens that we will control spending and make our economy strong again. With this budget, New Hampshire is making clear that we are open for business and we will lead the region in job creation. However, this is merely a down payment on our commitment. This budget is a historic achievement, but we know that there remains much more work to do. This is only the beginning.”
Statement from Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro:
“This is a budget of tough choices that establishes spending priorities and reforms state government to make it more cost effective. It reflects a much different philosophy versus the budgets of the last four years. We are not borrowing for operating expenses. We are not inflating revenues to match our spending desires. We are definitely not relying on Washington bailouts.
“We are eliminating the state’s $800 million budget deficit through sound management and responsible spending reductions in same the way working families and small businesses have made tough choices. With the prospect of better fiscal management, small businesses have invested in our state and 6,000 Granite Staters have returned to work since December. By doing our job today and passing a responsible spending blueprint and not raising taxes on small business owners and working families, our economy will grow.”
###