By GARRY RAYNO
CONCORD — A key Republican state senator wants to know why quarterly financial reports called for in a new law are not ready as budget battles continued Wednesday between key legislators and the governor’s office.
The day before, Gov. Maggie Hassan proposed filling the Rainy Day Fund to its legal limit and chastised legislators for failing to act on funding to fight the state’s opioid crisis.
Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro, said with no quarterly report on the state’s finances, lawmakers cannot make informed decisions on money to fight the opioid addiction epidemic.
Bradley sponsored Senate Bill 32, which was approved last year and requires the administration to issue the quarterly reports beginning March 31.
The governor’s office said lawmakers were told last year the state’s financial system does not produce the kind of reports lawmakers requested.
“As the Department of Administrative Services informed legislators last year, there were technical issues with this kind of reporting that might not be compatible with the department’s software system and could cause delays,” said William Hinkle, Hassan’s communications director. “The department is working to address these technical issues, and the State’s comptroller has met with the Senate President to discuss those efforts and to inform him that the report would be delayed.”
Hinkle noted overall spending reports are available online.
In a letter to Hassan, Bradley said the legislation was developed due to frustration over the lack of financial information from her office.
“Frankly, it is a shame that we had to take legislative action to obtain what should be public information,” Bradley wrote, noting his original intent was to provide greater transparency so lawmakers could make better decisions.
“This is more important now than ever before as we are faced with needing to make mid-budget expenditures for the purpose of curbing the heroin crisis affecting communities across the State of New Hampshire,” Bradley wrote.
Tuesday, Hassan said she wants additional resources to address the opioid epidemic and urged the House Finance Committee to approve about $10.5 million for drug treatment, prevention and education, and to increase enforcement.
“We do know that revenues are already more than $80 million ahead of projections and that the budget will be balanced,” Hinkle said. “We hope that this letter is not a suggestion that the technical issues the Department of Administrative Services warned about last year will be used as an excuse to not support additional resources to combat the heroin and opioid crisis when we know that the funds are available.”
The House Finance Committee is grappling with a series of drug treatment, prevention and recovery bills aimed at addressing the state’s substance abuse crisis and addiction epidemic.
The bills were supposed to be quickly approved by lawmakers this session, but they instead have followed the usual legislative process. – See more at: http://www.unionleader.com/article/20160428/NEWS0621/160429327#sthash.bFglRZv8.dpuf
