Elections have consequences. We saw that in the last few weeks, when Republicans finally found their voice and set about to dismantle what our bipartisan legislature had worked hard to achieve over the past two years.

The Finance Committee voted to cut $68 million from the Department of Transportation (DOT), mostly in personnel cuts which would result in about 700 jobs eliminated, about half of the workforce. The same committee also cut $20 million for summer and winter maintenance from the DOT. Towns would have to pick up the slack, and that would mean a hefty increase in local property taxes.

On March 15, the Finance Committee, Division 3, voted to end Medicaid expansion by 2016 on a partisan vote. The Senate had previously decided to delay any decision until next year. Rumors have it that Senators Morse and Bradley are still considering renewing Medicaid expansion. As for Health and Human Services, the cuts would probably amount to a total of $300 million, including federal matching funds.

Of course, these proposals have a long way to go before taking effect. Any bills, whether budget related or not, must first pass the House, then go to the Senate, be reconciled in conference committees, and approved by the Governor signing them or not vetoing them. A long way to go.

I personally hope that wiser heads will prevail, but given the mood in the House, I won’t hold my breath. I believe it is possible that the various parties – the House, the Senate, and the Governor – may not be able to agree on a budget and that a continuing resolution (ie, last biennium’s budget) may have to be adopted.

Our March 4 House session went smoothly. HB 437 and HB 438 were both defeated. They would have exempted proprietorships from the business enterprise tax and would have resulted in the loss of $17 million in revenues for 2016 and forward.

CACR 1 would have required a three-fifths vote of the legislature to pass new taxes or fees. It was defeated by a 226 to 128 bipartisan vote.

HB 116 would have reduced the amount of time required  to renominate teachers from five years to three. It failed on a 218 to 145 partisan vote.

HB 283 would allowed parents or guardians to observe classes: defeated on a voice vote.

HB 136, prohibiting tanning facilities from tanning underage persons, passed 199 to 162.

HB 476 added some medical conditions for therapeutic marijuana.

HB 151, a committee to study end-of-life decisions, was approved 189 to 161.

HB 192 would not allow the DRA assessment  of utility property to be the only valuation in case of conflict with a municipality. Passed by a voice vote.

Our March 11 session started calmly enough, with many bills on the consent calendar, including HB 139, which would have allowed part-time retired employees on the New Hampshir retirement system (police, firefighters, and first responders) to exceed the 32-hour weekly limit in case of emergencies. This is a bill I sponsored, but with a 14-to-0 recommendation from the Executive Departments Committee to kill the bill, it was too hard to overcome, and it failed on a voice vote.

HB 473, allowing residents at a veterans home to continue smoking, was adopted in the consent calendar. So was HB 423, establishing the bobcat as the state wildcat. HB 452 would have removed the governor’s authority to declare an emergency, leaving this to the legislature. It failed in the consent calendar.

Public Works and Highways’ HB 460 was approved in consent, establishing a commission to study revenue alternatives to the road toll.

HB 547 came out of Ways and Means with a recommendation to pass, and pass it did, on a 205 to 162 partisan vote. It called for the reestablishing of the exemption from property taxation for telecommunications poles and conduits. Considering that municipalities are fighting the utilities in court on this very subject, it was a low blow for the towns and a boon for the utilities.

HB 551, which would have prevented businesses from taking advantage of foreign tax havens and not pay any taxes, was tabled on a voice vote.

HB 681 increased marriage license fees by $5, the extra revenue going to domestic abuse prevention and temporary shelters.

HB 220, establishing licensing requirements for condo property managers, failed 239 to 117. HB 570, establishing a condo dispute resolution board, also failed 219 to 132.

HB 150, a committee to study legalization of marijuana, passed on a voice vote. HB 560, having to do with fetal homicide, not unexpectedly passed on a very partisan 208 to 155 vote. While proponents argued that it did not affect a woman’s right to choose, others saw this as a slippery slope toward banning abortion.

HB 650, requiring background checks for commercial firearms sales, predictably failed on a 236 and 124 vote.

HB 685, prohibiting state or local officials to  assist federal officials in anything involving the use of firearms. Wiser heads prevailed, and the bill was voted down 234 to 119.

HB 276, providing that the school districts not be required to adopt Common Core Standards. While the bill passed 225 t0 130, it is fair to note that each school district is already allowed to either accept or refuse Common Core Standards.

HB 373, establishing the red-tailed hawk as the state raptor, failed 160 to 133. HB 609, prohibiting hydraulic fracking in New Hampshire, failed 254 to 81.

CACR 10, changing the governor’s term of office from two to four years, a bill I sponsored, failed miserably, 208 to 78.

HB 325, similar to a bill vetoed by the governor last year, allowing lottery winners to remain anonymous, failed on a voice vote.

HB 448, establishing February 6 as Ronald Reagan day, failed 196 to 103. HB 563, which engendered many e-mails relative to charter school funding, passed 222 to 116.

HB 593, allowing qualifying patients and registered caregivers to grow their own marijuana for therapeutic purposes, passed 208 to 132.

HB 403, repealing the establishment of a buffer zone around reproductive healthcare facilities, passed by a close 170 to 159.

HB 446, allowing terminally ill patients access to experimental drugs, was tabled on a voice vote, as was HB 461, prohibiting the use of foreign laws in state court. (There could be many unintended consequences with such a law, especially in the area of commercial trade.)

HB 595, banning abortion after  fetus viability, was tabled. So was HB 646, a controversial bill allowing state or local agencies to charge a fee to retrieve public documents. While some argued that people sometimes abuse their right to know request, others did not want to interfere with this fundamental right.

HB267, asking employers to verify employees legal status, was defeated on a 271 to 64 vote. HB 658, a right to work bill, passed by a slender 149 to 144 vote.

HB 684, establishing a state minimum wage (one of three bills on the same subject), failed on a partisan vote of 198 to 145.

HB 391, applying the 911 surcharge to prepaid cellular telephones, passed 167 to 152.

HB 431, a bill to use public rights of way and bury transmission lines, failed on a partisan vote of 213 to 131.

And finally, HB574, a bill to distribute Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) allowances to commercial entities instead of residential taxpayers, failed 179 to 129. It is worth noting that a similar bill, to redistribute RGGI funds to residential ratepayers, passed last month. It would take money away from residential winterizing and energy efficient projects and give us about $2 back per year instead.

We have been extremely busy in the last weeks. The atmosphere in the House has taken a turn for the worse. It seems to me that the cuts contemplated by the Republican leadership, especially in Finance, which deals with the budget, mean that downshifting costs to the towns is again in the cards. The cuts in DOT, if implemented, will deal a near-fatal blow to the department, and state matching funds for municipal roads and bridges are bound to be severely and adversely impacted.

Elections do have consequences.

I am always available at 735-5440 or at MarioRatzki@nullgmail.com.