Cloudy
51°
Cloudy
Hi 76° | Lo 50°
Capital Beat

Senate panel: N.H. shouldn’t tax businesses for employees’ tips

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

The Senate will decide next week whether to try to block the state from taxing restaurants and other businesses for the tips collected by their employees. The Department of Revenue Administration says cash tips totaling more than $20 a month have been part of the statutory definition of employee compensation under the Business Enterprise Tax since it was created in 1993. But from 1994 to 2008, the related administrative rule … 0

Gov. John King (center) stands in a state liquor store advertising the 1968 sweepstakes. Concord Monitor file

Capital Beat: 50 years later, state lottery fight echoes in N.H. casino debate

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Critics said it would promote immorality and lead to increased crime and corruption. Supporters called it a personal choice and said it would bring in much-needed revenue for the state government. If the arguments sound familiar, they should. On Wednesday, when the House takes up a bill that would allow a single casino … 0

Coming Sunday: the great lottery debate of 1963

Friday, May 17, 2013

With the House set to vote Wednesday on the casino bill, this Sunday’s Capital Beat column will look at another debate over expanded gambling in New Hampshire: the 1963 law that established the first modern state lottery in the United States. In many ways, the parallels between the debate 50 years ago over what was called the “sweepstakes” and the fight this year … 1

Town By Town »
Read our local coverage for
a specific town
Local Photography »
A place setting announces Kentucky senator Rand Paul and GOP Chairman Reince Priebus as speakers for a fund-raising dinner for the New Hampshire Republican Party at the Grappone Center in Concord; Monday, May 20, 2013. ALEXANDER COHN / Monitor staff In Concord, Rand Paul raises cash for N.H. GOP and stokes 2016 speculation
Concord family scours the state in search of covered bridges
A salmon waits in a bucket waiting to be measured and weighed. Winni Derby instates lie detectors for winners. Dakota Wright, 17, of Laconia, a Bishop Brady student, skipped prom to fish the derby with his father Mark and won in the overall salmon category. He will have to take a lie detector test at some point to verify that he caught it in Lake Winnipesaukee. (ANDREA MORALES / Monitor staff) Fishermen subject to scrutiny at annual Winni Derby
Other Local News
N.H. News Roundup: Happy 100th N.H. primary; Ellen DeGeneres reunites military family
From News »
Monitor Minute: May 21, 2013
From News »
Senate panel: N.H. shouldn’t tax businesses for employees’ tips
From News »
Gates, Pembroke baseball get past Merrimack Valley, 4-1
From Sports »
High Schools: Winnisquam softball goes extra innings to beat Laconia
From Sports »
Dunn homers as White Sox beat Lester, Red Sox, 6-4
From Sports »
Editorial: Think local, vote ‘no’ on casino
From Opinion »
Report to Readers: Among free weekly papers, ‘The Concord Insider’ is tops
From Opinion »
Letter: Where are the elderly, where are the desperate?
From Opinion »
The Insiders: The Cappies tradition and New England’s tiny treasures
From Do See Taste »
Ferris wheel ride world record broken in Chicago
From Do See Taste »
Old rules don’t mean much to broadcasters
From Do See Taste »

Morse: N.H. House’s $11 billion budget has a $300 million hole for Senate to fill

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee says the two-year, $11 billion budget passed by the Democratic-led House last month has a $300 million hole in it. Some $250 million of the estimated $300 million shortfall in total funds comes from overly high estimates for revenue from the … 1

Kuster wants to close at least some of the federal government’s empty bank accounts

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Apparently, this is the sort of thing that requires an act of Congress: U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster wants to close at least some of the thousands of federal bank accounts that have no money in them. The federal government is paying service fees for 13,712 bank accounts that … 1

Gas tax, Medicaid, marijuana on tap today for N.H. Senate committees

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

The state Senate’s committees will be busy today as they tackle some hot-button issues. The Senate Ways and Means Committee will hold a public hearing this morning at 10 on House Bill 617, the 12 cent increase in the gas tax passed by the Democratic-led House in March. … 0

N.H.’s not alone in seeking to spruce up its state capitol

Monday, May 6, 2013

New Hampshire isn’t the only state looking to spruce up its State House this year. That’s according to Stateline, which reports officials are seeking money for capitol repairs in a number of states, including Alaska, Colorado, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wyoming. “This … 0

Capital Beat: Norelli’s other gavel a target in fight over internet sales tax

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Terie Norelli is juggling two gavels this year: speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives and president of the National Conference of State Legislatures. “It’s a great opportunity for me personally, to get to meet with and … 2

Capital Beat: Ayotte takes heat for background-checks vote, but 2016’s a long way away

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Is U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte taking heat for her vote this month against expanded background checks? Absolutely. The Republican has been targeted by an avalanche of letters to the editor and newspapers editorials (including from the Monitor). A … 0

Capital Beat: House looks to replace its voting system, with $560k price tag

Sunday, April 21, 2013

The House’s electronic voting system was a state-of-the-art solution to the time-consuming problem of calling a roll call for 400 people. But that was in 1975. The system has had repairs and upgrades over the years, but it’s definitely showing its age. “Almost every session day there are … 5

Capital Beat: House repeal bills set to hit GOP’s Senate ‘firewall’

Sunday, April 14, 2013

When Democrats took back the House last fall, they saw it as a chance to undo the work of the Republican-dominated Legislature of the previous two years. There was just one hitch: Republicans lost seats in the Senate, but held onto a slim majority there. Senate President Peter … 1

Capital Beat: History not on Scott Brown’s side for possible Senate run in N.H.

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Scott Brown, U.S. senator from New Hampshire? Maybe, maybe not. But the Republican and former senator – from Massachusetts – certainly got people talking when, asked Thursday night about a potential 2014 run against Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, he said he wasn’t ruling anything out. “It’s hard to … 0

Capital Beat: Amid state-budget squabbles, deficit looms for current fiscal year

Sunday, March 31, 2013

All eyes are on the House this week as puts its stamp on the state budget, with about $11 billion in state spending proposed over the next two years. Getting less attention is the question of just how the state plans to scrape together a balanced budget for … 6

Capital Beat: Renewed push at State House for a moratorium on wind farms

Sunday, March 24, 2013

In both the House and the Senate, legislators are making a new push for a statewide moratorium on wind farms – including one proposal that would also block projects like the Northern Pass. “All of the people in … 0

Capital Beat: Senate is venue for showdown between automakers, auto dealers

Sunday, March 17, 2013

The New Hampshire Senate is stepping into the middle of a fight between auto dealers and automakers. The Senate on Thursday will vote on legislation granting new legal protections to auto dealerships by strengthening an existing state law known as the Dealer Bill of Rights. Similar laws are … 1

Don't Miss This