Response to My Turn
In a recent “My Turn,” Canterbury and Loudon representatives Michael Moffett, Jose Cambrils and Alvin See argued that they voted against court-ordered increases in state funding for public education because the state lacked the necessary resources. However, these same representatives have consistently supported legislation to reduce or eliminate significant sources of state revenue, including lowering the Business Profits Tax rate and eliminating the Interest and Dividends Tax.
It is difficult to reconcile the claim that the state cannot afford to fulfill its constitutional mandate to adequately fund public education while repeatedly voting to reduce the revenue needed to meet that obligation.
New Hampshire already ranks among the states with the highest property tax burdens in the nation. The policy choices of Moffett, Cambrils and See have shifted more of the cost of public education onto local property taxpayers, requiring working families and retirees to shoulder a greater share of the burden regardless of their ability to pay, while tax cuts for businesses and investment income primarily benefit higher-income households.