Opinion

Less than one year ago, employers, workers and elected officials joined forces to create NH HealthFirst, a new health insurance plan that promises to lower premiums for small employers by about 15 percent. At a time when most of us…

As investors struggle to regain their financial footing under the weight of the ongoing economic crisis, Washington is awash in proposals to rebuild the nation’s financial regulations and usher in a new era of responsibility in financial services. While this…

U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg has long been a leader in supporting responsible action to address the dangerous impacts of climate change. He was among a handful of Republicans to vote for climate cap-and-trade legislation as early as 2003. However, Senator…

I have been in the New Hampshire House and Senate for a total of 29 years, and in all that time I have probably read and voted on over 10,000 bills. Our Legislature works on many very important issues which…

“What’s a zombie bank?” That’s a question I heard a commentator on a prominent news network ask recently. The general topic was what the federal government would do with Citigroup. The TV personality who received the question was a consumer…

The Obama administration is taking actions to make a big dent in the small-business credit crunch by offering new incentives to small-business borrowers and lenders through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and Treasury Department actions. The bill’s primary goals…

Over the past several months, the New Hampshire Department of Labor has led an effort in the state Legislature to enact a state version of a federal bill known as The WARN Act (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act). In…

When Governor John Lynch unveiled his budget plan last week, he proposed revenue enhancements and cost-cutting measures — both necessary to get us to a balanced budget. He got it right when he proposed closing some residential treatment facilities and…

In his inaugural address, Gov. John Lynch warned that the state’s financial difficulties could not be solved by “a mythical pot of gold at the end of a magical rainbow.” Whether intended or not, his statement directly repudiates the media…

It’s a surprise to no one that this coming fiscal year will be a challenge to all agencies charged with raising revenue for the state. But even when people are spending less and less, the expectations to raise revenue only…