0:00 → 9:36(9m 36s)
Sponsor / presenter outlines HB 1596: raises cigarette excise from $1.78 to $2.80 as a cost-of-living adjustment, repeals an income-based Medicaid premium (not yet implemented), and restores prior cuts to UNH funding; sponsor frames package as net positive revenue and points to public health benefits and competitive positioning in New England. (Presenter: unnamed Representative/sponsor)
House Ways and Means Committee public hearings on multiple bills including HB 1596 (tobacco tax, Medicaid premium repeal, UNH funding), HB 1580 (surcharge on non-primary residences), HB 1707 (unoccupied-residence tax and transfer-tax exemption), HB 1810 (road salt mitigation fee), HP 1409 / VLT distribution, HB 1559 (addiction fund allocation), and HB 1338 (proposed exclusion of abortion providers from charitable gaming). Testimony included public health groups, industry representatives, municipal and state agencies, and many local residents; several bills drew substantial technical and fiscal questions from DRA and other agencies.
