Birdsell: Here are Some of Our Successes During the Last Two Years

WINDHAM, NH — After two years serving the communities of Derry, Hampstead and Windham as a state Senator, I can honestly say I’m proud of the work the Legislature has accomplished.

It has been my pleasure to work for each of my constituents in Concord and I know my work will have a positive impact on your lives and our community.

Submitted by state Sen. Regina Birdsell.

I wanted to mention a few issues in particular that have topped my list of priorities, including addressing the substance abuse epidemic, helping small businesses, widening I-93 and strengthening voting laws.

The heroin and opioid crisis has been a top priority for the legislature this session because it has greatly impacted each and every one of our communities. The legislature responded to this crisis, focusing on prevention, treatment and recovery, and increasing funding to bolster the efforts to curb this issue by more than 80 percent.

In addition, we worked to improve the small business climate, lowering the cost of doing business and providing incentives to create more jobs. We implemented important business tax cuts, which have spurred job creation with 13,700 of our fellow Granite Staters finding new employment in the first six months they went into effect, nearly three times all of last year combined. This economic growth has contributing to a $100 million revenue surplus.

As a member of the Senate Transportation Committee, I also had a hand in shepherding the 10-year highway plan through the Legislature. This year’s fiscally responsible plan included resources to ensure red-list bridges and failing roadways are repaired. It also allocated $22 million from past-project savings in order to finish the I-93 project all the way to Manchester, including exit 4A, while devoting resources to other priority transportation projects across the state. A strong infrastructure is necessary to ensuring tourists, employers and employees continue to have safe and easy access for visiting and doing business in our state.

And lastly, we were able to implement a number of election law changes in the last session to strengthen voter verification, and attempted to establish a modest 10-day voter residency requirement. My goal is to create a stronger voting system in our state, eliminate "drive-by voting" and instances of voter fraud. Stronger requirements will ensure that the person in the voting booth next to you is invested in the community that will be impacted by their votes. For many, this is not a partisan issue and in a recent WMUR Granite State poll, more than 57 percent of voters in New Hampshire support a voter residency requirement. We need to come together to sustain the integrity of our elections, and I will continue to work on finding a path forward that does just that.

I am committed to improving our state by ensuring a strong small business climate, keeping government spending low and protecting New Hampshire taxpayers, and I look forward to returning to the Senate to continue this work should I be re-elected this fall.

State Sen. Regina Birdsell, R-Windham, represents Derry, Hampstead, and Windham in the Senate.