CONCORD – Today House Republican Leader Gene Chandler (R-Bartlett) and House Republican Policy Leader Laurie Sanborn (R-Bedford) offered the following comments in reaction to the passage of HB617, a bill that would raise the gas tax 15 cents over the next 4 years. The bill passed by a vote of 207-163.
House Republican Leader Gene Chandler (R-Bartlett)
“Our roads and bridges do need attention, but this is the wrong bill at the wrong time. Our working families can’t afford another tax increase of any kind. Our economy is still fragile and taking hundreds of millions of dollars out of the pockets of New Hampshire consumers is not the solution to the problem.”
“In addition, before we start imposing massive tax increases we need to make sure we are complying with all the laws and the Constitution to assure that all highway fund monies are actually going to fix our highways. ”
House Republican Policy Leader Laurie Sanborn (R-Bedford)
“Raising this tax hurts the hard working and lower income families in our state who are already struggling to make ends meet. Now is not the time to raise this tax and make our citizens choose between a gallon of milk and a gallon of gas. Nor should we be making our state’s employers choose between investing in new equipment or creating new jobs while seeing their fuel costs sky rocket. We should focus on finding new and innovative ways to address the problem and not place the burden on our already overburdened taxpayers.”