The Fiscal Committee voted to increase state retirees’ prescription costs by $5. This new rule, designed to save the state $2 million, was approved by a seven to three vote. This will affect all state retirees, including those over 65.

Retirees under 65 may also see an increase in their health insurance premiums, from 12.5% to 15%, as well as raising the deductible, although this has not come to pass as of this writing.

Governor Hassan would like to use some of the rainy day fund to plug the $10.6 million hole in the retirement budget.

House committees have been meeting to clear the deck of retained bills, many of which will probably be killed. Some will require further study, and all will be voted on by the full House in January.

One bill, HB 231, is attempting to increase school building aid. This is a bill that I support. As of now, it looks like it may find some support in committee from both sides of the aisle.

HB 672 would establish a state bank. This is also a bill that I support.

The state bank would be the repository of both state and federal revenues. It would eventually allow the state to go to the state bank to borrow money at lower rates than in the commercial bond market, resulting in millions of dollars in savings. The state bank could also lend money to municipalities at a lower rate as well.

North Dakota has had a state bank since 1919, and it has been very successful in mitigating the worst effects of the great recession in that state. The state bank would not be a retail bank.

HB 617 and HB 583 would both require law enforcement officers to wear a camera. I went along with HB 617, because I believe that a camera would be useful for both law enforcement and alleged perpetrators in establishing the truth. Both bills may be combined into a study committee.

I co-signed three bills which deal with broadband expansion, especially in rural areas. One would have broadband providers like Fairpoint get tax credits to wire unserved and underserved areas with at least 1 Gbps of download speed. It would cost the state $2 million.

Another broadband bill would allow municipalities to issue bonds and create their own broadband capabilities. Yet another bill would set up a study committee to develop a broadband expansion plan for the state.

I would like to take the opportunity to remind everyone (especially parents) that the House has a page (as in “Congressional page”) program whereby high school students can spend a day at the State House as pages. Please get in touch with me to find out more.

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