WMUR:
Democrats in State House hope to influence budget while in minority, 1/7/2025
"Governor (Kelly) Ayotte will own this year's budget and the agency cuts that will hurt the services all Granite Staters rely on," said House Democratic Leader Alexis Simpson. Democrats are accusing Republicans of being reckless by repealing the Interest and Dividends Tax, which was a tax on personal income from investments.
On the spending side, they plan to fight the expansion of access to education freedom accounts. "We will do everything we can to rein in the irresponsible EFA voucher spending," said state Rep. Laura Telerski, D-Nashua.
Democrats said there will be opportunities for bipartisan cooperation on the issue of affordable housing with legislation to expand the Housing Champions Program. "It's actually a chance for cities and towns to take actions that support housing, and we give them back real dollars in return for that," said Senate Democratic Leader Rebecca Perkins Kwoka.
NHPR:
Republicans return to Concord in firm control — and facing steep budget challenges,1/7/2025
"At a press conference Tuesday, Democratic lawmakers stressed they are not proposing increasing taxes or revisiting the repeal of the state’s tax on interest and dividends income, which was finalized Jan. 1. But they were adamant in stressing their desire to hold Republicans accountable for any service cuts or increased local tax burden stemming from the next state budget. 'We are here as Democrats, to make sure that Republicans don't just pass the costs of critical services on to you and your property taxes, because make no mistake, that’s what they’ll do,' said Sen. Cindy Rosenwald of Nashua."
Union Leader:
NH House-Senate Dems vow to hold GOP accountable, 1/7/2025
“Simpson pointed out while in the minority for the past two years, Democrats worked to achieve landmark successes to address the affordable housing and child care crises along with increasing the capacity for treating those with mental health challenges.”
“Simpson said there will be areas of bipartisan compromise this year on further steps to reduce contamination from PFAS or forever chemicals, legalizing cannabis use by adults and a bill to expand the housing “champions” program.”
InDepthNH:
Expecting a Contentious Two Years, Democrats in the Minority Laying Out Their Plans, 1/7/2025
We heard from the Director of Fish and Game who warned that the agency will have to make cuts that will negatively impact public safety, our environment and the economy. We heard from leaders in the tourism industry who made clear that budget cuts would weaken the tourism sector and result in the loss of an estimated $68 million in state revenue and we heard from education leaders who warned that reduced state aid could burden local districts leading to higher property taxes and significantly scaling back vital services for special education services,” Telerski said.