Created in the aftermath of the “LLC tax” controversy, the Commission to Study Business Taxes is due to issue an interim report on Dec. 1.
The 12-member commission will hold two public meetings in Concord in the next week — later today and then on Thursday, Oct. 28. The commission is looking at the current system of business taxation in the state with the business enterprise tax, the business profits tax and the interest and dividends tax.
In his 14 years as a New Hampshire legislator, Rep. David Bickford (R-New Durham) has seen efforts to re-calculate child support come and go. Many—about a dozen each year—make their way through the House or the Senate, but few succeed.
“We’re just Johnny-come-lately to make a change,” Bickford says. “We hire people, they work like dogs and come out with good reports, and the legislators say, ‘It’s over my head. We’ll study it and then get back to it maybe,’ and then we don’t. … I’ve just never seen anything move so slow.”
Bickford sponsored six of the 11 bills relating to child support this year, including House Bill 1474, which passed the House March 17. It would create a commission to move child support guidelines toward an “income shares” model. Other bills that have passed the House would tweak the support formula for multiple children and for shared custody.
March 25 this year marks Crossover, the deadline for the N.H. House and Senate to vote on all bills that originated in those respective chambers.
Bills must pass the chamber in which they’re introduced before “crossing over” to the opposite chamber. Legislation that’s still alive after Crossover receives a second public hearing and potential floor debate before the second deadline in mid-May.
And some notable legislation is either still up for its first vote, or on its way to the other side.
Meeting for only the second time since it took summer recess in June, House Speaker Terie Norelli (D-Portsmouth) had to remind the 400-member chamber to behave on several occasions when collective boos, cheers and jeers followed various speeches and votes.
This may help explain why lots of activity resulted in definitive votes on only 11 pieces of legislation, by her count. The remainder will be taken up in subsequent weeks.
It was a landmark year for New Hampshire government in 2009—not only for the size of its budget deficit ($250 million) and the number of state layoffs it induced (200), but also for legislative action on some controversial social issues, like gay marriage, the death penalty and medical marijuana.
But these scores are far from settled, as evidenced in the new round of bills up for debate in Concord’s 2010 legislative session, which officially kicks off on Wednesday, Jan. 6
In two separate cases, courts last week temporarily froze $119 million critical to the state’s brand new budget. This won’t leave the Granite State to issue IOUs like California has resorted to. But, it could mean a summer session for the Legislature.
And that could mean a second chance for gambling, another go at business and other taxes, or deeper cuts to services.
