THE SOAPBOX

New Hampshire Municipal Association
[email protected]//www.nhmunicipal.org
25 Triangle Park Drive PO Box 617
Concord NH 03302-0617
1-800-852-3358

TO: Key Municipal Officials

FROM: Maura Carroll, General Counsel
Judy A. Silva, Government Affairs Counsel

RE: Budget Veto Override

DATE: June 26, 2003

WE NEED YOUR HELP ONE MORE TIME!

If the Governor vetoes the state budget and the legislature upholds the
veto, municipalities are at great risk of losing some of the state aid that
is currently fully funded in the budget.

With the help of your phone calls, we were able to maintain full funding of
state aid through the budget committee of conference process. But cutting
state aid to municipalities was on the table at the committee of conference
and was discussed in the Senate Finance Committee.

Cutting state aid to municipalities will therefore likely be at the top of
the list of cuts to make if the budget is vetoed and further cuts are made.
From the municipal perspective, we only stand to lose. Revenue sharing, the
meals and rooms distribution, and the state share of municipal employer
retirement costs are at risk. If these aid programs are reduced or
eliminated, property tax increases will be the only way to make up the
difference.

Please call your legislators, especially your Representatives, and ask them
to vote on Monday to OVERRIDE the budget veto and not to downshift state
costs to the municipal tax rate.

Please call today and keep trying until you get through. Representatives
are getting lobbied very heavily from both sides and they are looking for
input from "actual voters." That means you!

Please call the Government Affairs Office if you need more information.