Marcia Hayward: Candidates run on platform of affordability, but for whom?

To The Daily Sun,

For a decade, Republican leaders in New Hampshire promoted tax cuts which, according to the NH Fiscal Policy Institute, resulted in an estimated $7.95 million to $1.7 billion in foregone state revenue. The Business Profits Tax is a major source of state revenue yet the benefits of reducing the tax do not necessarily flow to ordinary NH families but benefit wealthy corporations that lie outside the U.S.

Republicans also eliminated the Interest and Dividends Tax, which generated $182 million in its final year. Elimination of that revenue source means that the state has less money available for public services while providing a tax reduction for the wealthy.

Meanwhile, NH has continued to shift costs onto municipalities. Changes involving retirement, the Meals and Rooms Tax, educational funding and other state programs have increased financial pressure on communities. When the state reduces its contribution, the bills do not simply disappear ― they show up in local budgets.

So, when Republican candidates Mike Bordes, Sheri Minor, Cody Pfaff, and Paul Rossi run on the platform of affordability, voters have the right to ask, “When they say they want to make NH more affordable who exactly are they making it more affordable for and who is going to pay the difference?”

It is time for a change in Concord. Please consider voting a Democratic ticket on Nov. 3.

Marcia Hayward

Laconia