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Lawmakers weigh requiring five-year tax-impact notices on multiyear warrant articles
Summary
House Bill 138 would require that when a municipality or legislative body elects to include a tax-impact statement on a warrant article, the estimated tax impact be shown for the first five years for multiyear expenditures. Supporters call it transparency; opponents say multiyear projections are unreliable and burdensome for multi-town districts.
Representative Diane Bauer, prime sponsor of House Bill 138, told the committee the bill would expand existing enabling language so that, when a legislative body chooses to require a tax-impact notation on a warrant, the estimate must include the first five years for multiyear expenditures. "By including this information, this provides full disclosure and transparency to the voters so that they are better informed when they go to vote on spending," Bauer said.
The proposal drew divided testimony. Eric Power, president of the School District Governance Association of New Hampshire and a Brookline planning-board member, said voters want and need multiyear estimates:…
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