Issue Position: Fiscal Responsibility

Issue Position

Mel Thomson was right when he said, "Low taxes are the result of low spending." But throughout the Lynch years, state spending has spiraled out of control -- up 24% in the last two budgets. This spending spree is not explained by inflation or population growth. It is solely the inability of Governor Lynch to make tough spending decisions.

To pay for such massive spending increases, the Governor Lynch and his administration has raised over 80 taxes and fees. Even after raising the cost of living in New Hampshire to all-time highs, we are still facing a $250 million deficit this year and a $650 million deficit for the next budget. New Hampshire does not have a revenue problem. It has a spending problem. We must return to the fiscal responsibility that has been the bedrock of the Granite State for so many years. My record here is clear.

* As Commissioner of Health and Human Services, I kept spending flat and returned money to the taxpayers every year. We returned $143 million to the state through improving efficiency, streamlining services, and doing more with less

* As a private consultant on state government budgets, I helped both Democrat and Republican Governors cut spending and return value to taxpayers. I helped deliver over $2 billion in efficiency ideas for the State of Illinois and identified over $1.2 billion in savings for the State of South Carolina, while assisting the state in reorganizing and streamlining the department responsible for helping people get back to work

* At the Stop the Spending summit in Concord during the fall of 2009, I delivered hundreds of millions in savings ideas just waiting to be enacted in New Hampshire

* I have repeatedly called for amending the "maintenance budget" law to allow state departments to submit smaller annual budgets than the year before Finding ways to reduce government spending responsibly is what I've done for a living, both in the public and private sector.

I will also improve the transparency of the budgeting process and bring new ideas to open the state budget to the public. We will solicit new and innovative ideas from our own gifted and talented people. The state budget belongs to the people of this great state, much the same as the office of any elected official, including the Governor.

Someone who will rein in spending while improving the efficiency of the services we offer is exactly what New Hampshire needs in our next Governor. While New Hampshire's deficit looks daunting, I've worked with states with much larger budget holes and delivered successful results.

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