[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6674676,"mediaKeyId","2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87","parentId",2372591,"title","NH Insurance Commissioner details $15.5M budget, $2.6M industry credit and proposes homeowner resiliency grants","audioSeconds",3460,"startMs",176000,"endMs",3636000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87&start=176&end=3636","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87/thumbnail_176000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6674676/New-Hampshire/NH-Insurance-Commissioner-details-155M-budget-26M-industry-credit-and-proposes-homeowner-resiliency-grants","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6674676-0e2ecb3d8d4b7e703a34e5852db4bbd5/orig.mp4?Expires=1773511181&Signature=gwC5xpdX2PiQWh~c37XrRrLfWwswNL5be2oNOXQxwMkBlDga5r7~xvA9dcLUgIHdIUrvEhg~XXKK2QSkagLl5FuSeDLDbG3uG3v6RExkoWXMT8YFzDNEf2U8Y541grEbbJIQ5hoTrmHbwDlu2FmxDw3cFkinzS4ejq0G2QoT8CRf~r3l-FtVgD~McpUcKUpHSYs8fnbcrpQ4FXPIOvpMJkdbok9V7qGqCJ2xDFtsCaAlMtX0bfDUH-GLIWz69~EfkftnHKHJXv2VAWaz0cNw1FLRs2HI5qBJDJe9qi2tKNje6AiSRaKvRTKPGd-c3qQMzyNBjCSiSYxmgw6~SLV9tA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","New Hampshire Legislature","date","2025-02-21T21:39:26.48Z","article","D.J. Betancourt, commissioner of the New Hampshire Insurance Department, told the House Finance, Division I panel that the department’s total budget request is about $15,500,000 and that the agency is entirely self‑funded by an assessment on insurance companies doing business in New Hampshire.

Betancourt said the state’s assessed funding is calculated as a pro rata share of premium written in New Hampshire and that ‘‘the total amount of premiums written’’ in the state is ‘‘over $8,000,000,000.’’ He told members that because New Hampshire represents a very small share of the national market the department seeks to work collaboratively with industry.

Why it matters: the funding and staffing choices the department makes affect both regulator capacity and the size of the annual assessment charged to insurers; Betancourt said careful budgeting produced a one‑time credit to carriers and also informed several staffing decisions.

Key budget details and vacancy practice

Betancourt said the department has 88 authorized positions and currently 8 vacancies. He told the committee that, following a request from the governor to present a budget reflecting a 4% reduction in expenditures, the department ‘‘unfunded 3 full time positions’’ (positions remain authorized but without funding). He also described last year’s end‑of‑year result as a department credit to industry: ‘‘we were able to … a rebate back to industry last year of about $2,600,000.0,’’ a credit the department applies against next year’s assessment.

The commissioner said personnel costs have risen because the department has filled positions needed for succession planning and subject‑matter expertise, and because of normal compensation and benefit trends. He noted the department’s staff include a legislative director (Jennifer Smith), an assistant commissioner (Jason Dexter), a business director (Ted Perkins) and the tax unit director (Amy Duham).

How the assessment and taxes fit together

Betancourt and tax unit director Amy Duham explained the distinction between the insurance premium tax (which they said flows to the state general fund) and the department assessment that funds the Insurance Department’s operations. Duham told the committee there are about 1,300 licensed companies that receive the assessment notice each September, and that the assessment is calculated from the estimated amount of premium that will be written in New Hampshire.

Commissioner Betancourt described the assessment mechanic this way: the department estimates a budget (for example $15,000,000), divides that by the estimated premium base (about $8 billion) and charges carriers a pro rata percentage; if the department spends less than budgeted, the unused amount is credited to carriers the following year.

House Bill 2 filings, Granite State Home Resiliency and Mitigation Fund

Betancourt described a separate policy proposal the department filed during the legislative session: the Granite State Home Resiliency and Mitigation Fund. He said legislative leadership asked his office to seek policy review in Commerce rather than include the program directly in House Bill 2; as a result the proposal currently sits with the House Commerce Committee.

Under the department’s proposal the fund would be seeded with a portion of insurance premium tax receipts and grant homeowners up to $10,000 per eligible project, on a means‑tested, first‑come, first‑served basis. Projects would be designed to reduce underwriting risk (examples Betancourt gave included tree removal that presents a wind risk and partial roof repairs). He said the department had proposed retaining $1,000,000 of IPT revenue for the fund and would cap grants at $10,000 per household; he also said the program was not intended to raise taxes or assessments and would require no new staffing in the department as drafted. Betancourt said Commerce is still vetting the policy and the department is open to authorizing the program without state funding so the vehicle is ready if federal funds become available.

Committee action

During discussion on the agency budget the House Finance division moved to remove the three unfunded positions from the Insurance Department block in House Bill 1 and to record the three position numbers; the motion was seconded and approved by show of hands with a unanimous vote as recorded at the hearing. The committee directed staff to provide the specific position numbers before the end of the day.

What was not decided or remains unclear

Betancourt said the department proposed, but did not obtain in the governor’s budget, authority to retain a portion of enforcement fines to offset enforcement costs. He also said the size of any future credit to carriers will depend on actual spending and cannot be predicted in advance. Several committee members asked for additional detail on how the rebate interacts with the department’s FY‑25 numbers; staff agreed to provide further documentation of the three unfunded positions and the assessment calculation.

Ending

Betancourt closed by offering to provide additional materials and to answer follow‑up questions from the division. He emphasized the department’s objective of balancing regulatory capacity with sensitivity to the state’s insurance market.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Finance Division I (02/21/2025)","oneSentenceSummary","D.J. Betancourt, commissioner of the New Hampshire Insurance Department, told the House Finance division the agency’s budget request is about $15.5 million and that last year’s underspend produced about $2.6 million in credits applied to carriers’ next assessments.","taxTitle","Finance, House of Representatives, Committees\t, Legislative, New Hampshire","taxId",17749,"location","New Hampshire","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6674671,"Employment Security outlines staffing, trust fund health and paid family leave details",1784,3754000,5538000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87&start=3754&end=5538","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87/thumbnail_3754000.jpg","/articles/6674671/New-Hampshire/Employment-Security-outlines-staffing-trust-fund-health-and-paid-family-leave-details","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6674671-9f47c86a87861d1ed6f4e7643db6d1de/orig.mp4?Expires=1773511181&Signature=IIiKwZBNG7~wyCaVs-Jr0ZYkmiAlqfPCU2jE7NDKaaTFg4almd-nggFvB1cUP6qQ5WMggFAjmDAxN1kwjtq4joqCadaJMGR9MM8jcskNMBq4Qxhjc-0VHwNoT~AuEPJx0RIPXEncObEFMPQctdeLHdSHLXoqYpnOh1aLSBTQQaiTUtfVBKb5O9QP-rUHYKbsQveR8o5Hip4vQDPyoUgUNvzZn~1vhu37FTBVK1jun0kM93zRXaYYT7pOC3t73riGiZxmR5dPZRyG4ujRm4gvoi3wwgb-ZKwuEDWZwffFowp0sFb5-KR9daUrNvdFi4knuD1NXXNFNYRVaGDsQDYuiQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","George Cabanas, commissioner of the Department of Employment Security, briefed the committee on the agency’s funding, staffing and program work, saying the department receives no general fund support for core operations and relies primarily on federal grants and employer assessments to run unemployment insurance, employment services and labor market information.

Cabanas said the department’s full‑time staff total is 282 (the hearing included a discussion that some permanent vacancies exceed that number when temporary positions are excluded) and that the agency reached a staffing high of about 355 during the pandemic. He told the panel the department has adjusted its staffing and operations since the pandemic and is now below pre‑pandemic claim levels.

Unemployment trust fund and employer tax details

The commissioner said the unemployment trust fund balance is about $388,500,000 and that the state received $109,000,000 in CARES Act pandemic funding to shore up reserves during the COVID‑19 emergency. He described New Hampshire’s private‑sector average unemployment tax rate as about 0.61% on the first $14,000 in wages (roughly $85 per employee), a figure he said is ‘‘less than a third’’ of what employers pay in neighboring Massachusetts.

Cabanas and his team described how federal administrative grants fund much of core work, and how a 0.2% employer set‑aside of state unemployment taxes supports the Job Training Fund (about $6,000,000 annually) and helps sustain New Hampshire Works offices around the state.

Job training and reemployment activities

The department reported 65 job fairs in the prior year (both in‑person and virtual) and described three workforce programs: Work Invest (employer training grants), Work Now New Hampshire (job readiness and placement assistance) and Work Ready New Hampshire (community college job readiness). Since 2019 the department said it administered roughly $6.8 million in Work Invest grants, $6.2 million for Work Now programming and $3.6 million for Work Ready New Hampshire delivered by the community college system.

Paid Family and Medical Leave program

Cabanas described the state’s paid family and medical leave (PFML) program, noting that MetLife is the current vendor through a competitive procurement that runs through 2029 and that the program covers roughly 24,000 workers, including state employees. He said approximately 1,800 workers had enrolled through individual purchase channels and that open enrollment for individuals runs December 1 through January 29 each year. The department reported roughly 80% of individual claimants used the program to bond with newborn children and that about 75% of individual enrollees were women.

Technology modernization and cloud migration

The department said roughly 12% of its budget supports DOIT and 23.2 DOIT full‑time positions embedded in NHDES systems; it also told the committee it plans to migrate the unemployment insurance system to the cloud using federal modernization funds awarded competitively through the U.S. Department of Labor. The commissioner said cloud migration is planned during the calendar year and will be paid largely by one‑time federal modernization dollars; the department expects that migration to reduce on‑premises data center footprint and associated staffing needs over time.

Enrollment, processing and appeals

Cabanas told the committee the department paid more than $2 billion in federal and state unemployment benefits to roughly 175,000 workers during the pandemic and said current claim volumes are below pre‑pandemic levels. He said administrative overtime and 24/7 staffing pressures have eased but that some temporary positions and volunteers were critical during the emergency response.

Ending

Cabanas offered to return with additional details and said the agency will continue to monitor staffing, federal funding and modernization timelines. Committee members asked for follow‑up details on vacancies, expenditures and interest credited to the trust fund; the department said it will provide further documentation on requests.","George Cabanas, commissioner of the Department of Employment Security, said the agency operates with no state general funds for core programs, manages a $388.5 million unemployment trust fund and administers job training and paid‑leave programs.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6674667,"Judicial Council warns public defender shortages, caseload strain and seeks higher budget to avoid service gaps",668,5738000,6406000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87&start=5738&end=6406","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2372591-0abe0e24e9bffbe926d959c95eccab87/thumbnail_5738000.jpg","/articles/6674667/New-Hampshire/Judicial-Council-warns-public-defender-shortages-caseload-strain-and-seeks-higher-budget-to-avoid-service-gaps","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6674667-4497d01e35d15d3a95346e060b125cc5/orig.mp4?Expires=1773511181&Signature=LcWzC~~u~F7BbjiIOoIdcSbEtdOIhVhvUwQj54LJboxPklVXO2nAcaSf7GEEV0pCMy~MvpCj2TLofiRkOlF3Fby5Zq7FIFXj9edzlPqC5nvPpRxW37vtQmt3xWgEIY5lCHJHLyBB7v2ZKxvO-by2hp73M7w3oijebtf5IfVCWsNaVApRaHHdwjRJQbglwE0BeECy~Vfc6ltYmNzyB-8kpXaOA~o7B4p~WKKAY3bT-m25Wz0NKmEbRYJra98r2CRMQtWBQzyKq8Ysa8l~ayYoTksFzrSUMRgjhOGXiIDWUiLQUEPhrDw7sD8mUqHsDU5w90uvN2Ib9ALzaSS68D~dtg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jay Buckley, executive director of the Judicial Council, told the House Finance division the council oversees the state’s indigent defense funding, guardian ad litem payments and several other court‑related vendor lines. He said the Judicial Council itself has three full‑time staff and manages an annual budget of close to $40,000,000 for indigent defense and related services.

Public defender capacity and caseload pressure

Buckley said the New Hampshire Public Defender handles roughly 85% of indigent criminal representation statewide and that the contract sets an expected caseload maximum of 70 active cases per attorney. ‘‘Most attorneys in the public defender now greatly exceed that 70 case limit. Some attorneys have over a hundred cases,’’ Buckley said, and the council has seen accelerating attrition among public defenders. He told the committee the Littleton and Sullivan County offices, for example, were severely understaffed compared with prescribed coverage and that delays in assigning counsel have led to extended detention waiting for representation in some instances.

Cost and efficiency tradeoffs

Buckley told members the state is constitutionally obligated to provide counsel and that when the public defender program cannot take a case the Judicial Council must hire contract or assigned counsel; those alternatives typically cost more per case. Buckley and council members urged that long‑term savings and constitutional compliance favor adequate upfront funding for the public defender program rather than underfunding that shifts costs to higher‑priced assigned counsel or litigation risk.

Administrative workload and financial oversight

The Judicial Council’s three‑person staff processes more than 8,000 attorney and vendor invoices annually, Buckley said, largely in paper format; a recent Legislative Budget Audit recommended an additional financial position to improve oversight and payment processing. The council said it has requested additional funds to support the public defender contract—primarily to hire more attorneys and raise starting salaries—and to add financial staff capacity to address invoice volume.

Court operations and courthouse consolidation

The Judicial Council and chief justice representatives discussed prior weighted‑caseload work that led to recommendations for additional judges and staff. Buckley and the court administration team described a plan to close certain leased circuit courthouses where consolidation yields operating savings; they told the committee that updated analysis favors closing the Hooksett and Goffstown facilities rather than previously discussed sites, and that those proposals are included in the council’s efficiency and facility planning materials. The council said consolidation is driven by staffing efficiency and leased‑space savings but acknowledged community concerns and said any closures would be phased and accompanied by public notice and local outreach.

Ending

Buckley asked the division to consider the council’s request to restore proposed funding for the public defender and to fund an additional financial oversight position. He cautioned that across‑the‑board reductions could force service cutbacks that would delay court work and raise constitutional and practical risks to timely justice.

","The Judicial Council's executive director and council leaders told the committee that the public defender system is under duress, many public defenders exceed statutory caseload guidance, and the council is asking for additional funds to reduce caseloads, raise starting pay and add financial oversight capacity to process thousands of invoices.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

NH Insurance Commissioner details $15.5M budget, $2.6M industry credit and proposes homeowner resiliency grants

Employment Security outlines staffing, trust fund health and paid family leave details

Judicial Council warns public defender shortages, caseload strain and seeks higher budget to avoid service gaps