Politics & Government

Democratic Gubernatorial Candidates Debate 'The Pledge'

Maggie Hassan, Jackie Cilley and Bill Kennedy outline their differing views on whether the state should adopt a sales tax or state income tax.

New Hampshire Democratic Gubernatorial candidates sparred over taxes, job creation, the Northern Pass and many other issues during a Portsmouth Democratic Committee forum Monday night at the Portsmouth Public Library.

With three weeks to go before the September 11 primary, the first question all three candidates were asked was where they stand on The Pledge to not support any broad based taxes.

Jackie Cilley said she has refused to take The Pledge that was created by former Gov. Meldrim Thompson in the 1970s because ”424 legislators should feel like their Governor listens to them.”

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“It is all on the table, all of it,” said Cilley when it comes to finding the best solutions to dealing with New Hampshire’s financial challenges.

Maggie Hassan said she would veto any such attempt to pass a broad based sales tax or state income tax if it came to her desk as governor.

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“By and large, they (voters) oppose it for different reasons,” she said. “It behooves us to listen to the parameters that the voters have set for us.”

Bill Kennedy said he doesn't support The Pledge because he is hearing reasonable support for some kind of income tax. “I think the wave is increasing in support of an income tax,” he said.

“The caveat borders on a reduction of property taxes,” Kennedy added. He described the current property tax disparity as “criminal” because it has forced people out of their homes.

When asked how they would fund programs such as education and health and human services in the face of declining state revenues, the candidates were mostly in agreement.

“Focus on growing the economy,” said Hassan. She said the state’s current budget problem is linked to the failure to grow revenues since 2008.

“We focus on workforce development so we can attractive innovative businesses here so our economy can grow,” Hassan said.

Cilley said she is in absolute agreement with Hassan that New Hampshire needs to grow its economy with better jobs.

“We know that we need to restore the funding to the university,” she said. “We know that we need to reinvest in our roads and bridges,” Cilley said.

Kennedy said the state needs to consider a broad based income tax to provide enough funding to support public education, health and human services and other vital programs.

When asked by moderator Norm Patenaude what is the single most important thing that could be done to create decent jobs with decent wages, the candidates also found common ground.

Cilley said businesses have told us they want a well-education workforce, good bridges and transportation and communication.

“Businesses don’t go to places where they can’t communicate. Businesses don’t go to places where they can’t ship their product,” Cilley said. “We already know what the formula is. We have just refused to invest in it."

She said New Hampshire is also losing our young people and is not attracting enough young workers from out of state. “We know how to fix it, we just have to have the backbone to do it.”

Bill Kennedy said state needs reasonable property taxes, transportation and utility costs and the workforce. He said 18 percent of New Hampshire’s workforce goes out of state and state needs to pull those people back. “You take care of the infrastructure, you take care of the taxes,” he said.

Hassan said that while she served in the State Senate, she pushed for a bill to create a statewide economic development advisory council. She said state needs to bolster its university system to improve the workforce education to meet business needs.

On Right to Work bill supported by Republicans and House Speaker Bill O’Brien, all three Democratic Gubernatorial candidates said they support collective bargaining.

“Why we would want to attract businesses to this state that would pay people less is beyond me,” Hassan said.

Cilley, who grew up in Berlin and was raised by a working class family, said the Right to Work bill "is absolutely anti-free market.

Kennedy said he is also a big advocate for collective bargaining. But the state needs to generate more revenue to make it work effectively.

When asked if they support a Constitutional amendment to remove the courts from the public education funding issue, the candidates said they didn't support it because it would give the legislature too much power and the issue would become politicized.

“Education should not be an accident of geography in New Hampshire,” Cilley said. “An educational funding formula is not the answer in New Hampshire.”

Kennedy said he agreed with Cilley because it would give Legislature too much power to decide which communities get more ed funding that others. “If the state funds education, property taxes will come down,” he said.

Hassan said she agrees the state has a Constitutional obligation to adequately fund education for New Hampshire’s students. “The courts should always have oversight over fundamental rights,” she said.

“Our kids and their education should not be subject to politics,” Hassan said.


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