Madam Chairwoman and members of the Committee, my name is Corey Lewandowski and I am the State Director of Americans for Prosperity here in New Hampshire. I am here today to speak in support of SB 227.

To put it simply, the Board of Tax & Land Appeals (BTLA) is a dinosaur – an antiquated relic that is no longer a vital or vibrant part our system and is in dire need of modification if it is to continue operating.

According to the BTLA’s website, “the Board's goals are to provide an alternative forum to the superior court in tax cases that is timely, fair, inexpensive, and accessible to the taxpayers and property owners. The Board has responsibility, parallel to the superior court to hear appeals of all local and state taxes.”

In order words, the Board was created to help adjudicate taxpayers’ concerns by establishing a peer organization from which persons could seek recourse from a decision at the local
level.

Please join AFP-NH State Director, Corey R. Lewandowski, at the Bedford GOP Monthly Meeting on Tuesday, February 14 at 7:30PM in the Lower Level McAlister Room of the Bedford Public Library where he will discuss a variety of state legislative issues and upcoming AFP-NH activities.

First, THANK YOU to everyone who contacted their State Senators on HB 648.

This bill relating to eminent domain petitions by public utilities passed the Senate last week by a vote of 23-1. This is a huge victory for private property owners in our state and is a real demonstration of our citizen legislature at work – an overwhelming number of you contacted your elected officials with your concerns and they voted to best represent the people that elected them.

Thank you again to all of you for your efforts.

Second, there are a couple pieces of legislation receiving hearings this week that we want to bring to your attention.