NH Statehouse Candidates Make One Last Pitch for Votes

Five candidates for state representative running in some of the city’s 19 competitive Statehouse races participated in a business forum at The Office Suite on Nov. 5, co-sponsored by Concord NH Patch.

Kathy Rogers, Candace Bouchard, Ron Noyes, Al Jones, and Ken Georgevits all introduced themselves to voters and spoke about issues ranging from higher education funding, right-to-work, taxes, and other issues that representatives may face during the next legislative session.

Rogers, an attorney who has also been a Concord City Councilor, county commissioner, state representative, and Merrimack County Attorney, said she was running because she was “concerned about the tone” in the Legislature during the last two years. Previously, she said, both parties were able to be productive even when Democrats were in the minority. Sometimes, she is a fierce partisan, “to my detriment,” she noted. However, 75 percent of the work done in the Legislature was put together by both parties, working together, she said.

“I was able to pass some things that were helpful to all people,” she said.

Rogers talked about her background focused on dealing with juveniles and how some had gotten into trouble and the costs on the county structure. She added, “I’m an expert at multitasking,” nothing that she learned a lot of skills while working at Home Depot and putting herself through law school.

Bouchard, who is running for re-election to the House from the new single seat Ward 9 district, and is also a city councilor, said had been doing a lot of work on the public works committee. She said that she would like to restore some of the cuts in funding that affected the middle-class, like cuts in higher education. Bouchard’s father, who was in the military, owned a number of businesses in Concord and Epsom after moving to New Hampshire, so she grew up around small business and understood the concerns of small business owners, she noted.

Noyes, a local musician, is running in the newly created floterial district on the western side of the city, from Penacook to the South End. He presented a R.E.A.D.Y. plan for business that would encourage cutting red tape and analyzing regulation, economic competition, and dialogue.

“You guys are literally the backbone of our economy,” he said. “Any politician should be asking what you guys need, all the time.”

Jones said he might look familiar to voters since there was a story a month ago about the fact that he donated a portion of his kidney to his wife 11 years ago. He said they now have fully functioning, completely regrown kidneys.

“It’s one of those amazing things about the medical industry today,” he said.

Jones agreed with Noyes that regulation and fees needed to be looked at. He added that it seemed like the Legislature was balancing the budget on the backs of small business. He agreed with the “hostile” tone in the Legislature but added that there had been some good that had come out of it, including lower fees and a better budget. Jones said, however, that he agreed that people should work together.

Georgevits is a commander in the United State Navy Reserve and an aerospace engineer.

“So, by definition, I am a rocket scientist,” he said, to laughs.

Georgevits said he started out with his race setting a civil tone and reached out to both sides of the aisle for his race. He stated that he was endorsed by both Concord Mayor Jim Bouley, a noted Democratic activist and lobbyist, as well as former U.S. Rep. Chuck Douglas, a former judge and now, a private attorney. Georgevits said the endorsements show that his bipartisanship is not just words even though he didn’t have a political record. If elected, he said he would work on fiscal responsibility, personal accountability, and attempting to advise people to make the right choice first.

When asked what the next governor could do to improve the business climate and help small businesses, Bouchard said that an idea that was floated previously was a central online location on how businesses could move to New Hampshire and start businesses. She also said that infrastructure needed to be improved to offset the problem of higher fees with lower weight limit bridges.

“We have companies that are not coming to this state because our infrastructure is aging,” she said. “We’ve got to invest.”

Rogers pointed to more investment in community colleges and training the workforce, especially when considering the technology advances.

Noyes said there are so many regulations he’d like to eye. One example was a regulation banning the use of honey and maple syrup in beer. It was removed and now Red Hook is expanding its operations and hiring more people.

“No one is going to get harmed from honey in their beer,” he said. “It’s just one example of thousands of these little small things that we don’t even think of or are necessarily aware of.”

Jones said it was important to listen to business people about their concerns especially since business taxes were balancing the budget. Small business, he said, will improve the economy.

Georgevits said approving right-to-work was needed in order to bring businesses into the state. Thousands of jobs, he noted, have gone to South Carolina, as well as other jobs about the new jobs.

However, Rogers disagreed on right-to-work saying that the state already had a low unemployment rate, with higher wages and insurance without right-to-work. The other states have worse economies, she said, adding that even the Union Leader is against it.

Bouchard said she was against right-to-work with Noyes saying there were conflicting reports on the issue. He added that thing that bothered him about it was that it violated a person’s freedom of association. Jones agreed with the policy.

On LLC taxes, Georgevits and Jones said they needed more information. Noyes, Bouchard, and Rogers all said No.

On a state income tax, Rogers said since only a flat tax would be constitutional and not a graduated income tax, she couldn’t support it. Bouchard said that residents had made it clear they didn’t want an income tax and preferred to rely on property taxes. She added that she didn't support Question 1, the constitutional amendment against an income tax. Noyes, Jones, and Georgevits all said they wouldn’t support an income tax, with Georgevits saying he was also against Question 1.