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WEBVTT PROCEED.SUZANNE ROANTREE HAS REACTION.REPORTER: GOVERNOR SUNUNU HASLONG OPPOSED INCREASING TOLLS,BUT YESTERDAY HE SEE HE WOULDLET THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL VOTEON THE PROPOSED 50% HIKE.TODAY HE CHANGED HIS MINE.>> I'VE COME TO THE CONCLUSIONTHAT THERE'S JUST NOT THE TIMEFOR A TOLL INCREASE, NOT IN THISSTATE AND NOT NOW.REPORTER: THE PROPOSAL WOULDHAVE GENERATED $36 MILLION IN AYEAR FOR MAJOR TURNPIKEPROJECTS, SAYING MUCH OF ITWOULD HAVE COME FROM OUT OFSTATE DRIVERS, BUT THE GOVERNORSAYS THE HIKE WOULD AFFECTWORKING CLASS FAMILIES IN NEWHAMPSHIRE.>> WE HAVE GOOD ROADS AND WE DOHAVE NEEDS TO BE SURE, ININFRASTRUCTURE, BUT WE'REMEETING A LOT THOSE NEEDS.WE CAN KEEP OUR ROADS HEALTHYAND MOVING FORWARD.REPORTER: SUPPORTERS OF THE PLANSAY THE GOVERNOR IS MAKING AMISTAKE.>> HERE IN MANCHESTER THEGOVERNOR'S DECISION MEANS THATEXITS 6 AND 7 WILL CONTINUE TOBE UNSAFE FOR ANOTHER HALF ADOZEN YEARS BEFORE IT CAN BEADDRESSED.REPORTER: EXECUTIVE COUNCILORSAYS THE BOTTLE NECKS THROUGHBOW AND CONCORD WILL CONTINUEWITHOUT MORE MONEY FROM TOLLS.>> MAKES IT HARDER FORBUSINESSES NORTH OF CONCORD, THESKI BUSINESSES, THE RESTAURANTAND HOSPITALITY BUSINESS, AND ITDENIES PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEENPROMISED SOUND WALLS TO PROTECTTHEIR HOMES FROM THE NOISE OFTRAFFIC.REPORTER: BUT SOME MOTORISTS WESPOKE WITH SAY THEY AGREE WITHTHE GOVERNOR'S DECISION.>> THE TOLLS ARE HIGH ENOUGH.>> I LIVE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE AND ITHINK I'VE PAID ENOUGH FOR THEROADS.>> GLAD THEY'RE NOT GOING TORAISE THEM BECAUSE IT DOESN'TSEEM THAT TOO MUCH GETS DONEWHEN THEY ARE UP.>> NO ONE WANTS A RATE HIKE.>> IT'S NOT AS IF IN MONEY ISGOING INTO SOMEONE'S POCKET.IT GOES INTO YOUR ROADS.IF YOU WANT YOUR BRIDGES TO BESAFE, IF YOU WANT TO AVOIDCONGESTION, INVEST IN YOURROADS.REPORTER: THEY HOPE TO DEBATE

Advertisement Updated: Sununu kills turnpike toll increase proposal, won’t allow Executive Council vote ‘No coal or tolls in Christmas stockings,’ governor’s statement says Share Shares Copy Link Copy

The Department of Transportation’s proposed increase in state turnpike tolls is dead – at least for the foreseeable future.“I will not allow this toll increase to move forward,” Gov. Chris Sununu announced Thursday morning. "I was sent to Concord to fight for the working men and women of New Hampshire, and that’s what I am doing.”The announcement came in a news release entitled: “No Coal or Tolls in Christmas Stockings.”The toll hike plan has been at the center of controversy since it was first reported on Nov. 22 in WMUR’s New Hampshire Primary Source column.In New Hampshire, the five-member Executive Council has the authority to set toll rates on the state’s turnpikes, while the state Legislature has final say over the projects that are included and funded in the state’s highway plan.The governor controls what items appear on the agenda of Executive Council meetings, and he also has the power to negate a council vote.Three of the five councilors – Democrats Andru Volinsky and Chris Pappas, and Republican Russell Prescott – favored the increase of 25 cents to 50 cents on the turnpike system to accelerate the completion of what they view as much-needed projects. Republicans David Wheeler and Joseph Kenney opposed it.Earlier this month, Sununu initially placed the Department of Transportation's toll hike plan on the agenda of the Dec. 6 Executive Council meeting, following a single public hearing, which was held in Portsmouth. But Sununu removed it from the agenda a day before the vote was to take place, following a public outcry, asking for additional public hearings.Hearings were then held in Concord and Manchester. There had been speculation that the vote might have taken place at the council meeting held on Wednesday of this week, but it was not. The next council meeting is Jan. 10.Previously, Sununu said that while he opposed the toll hike, he would not keep it off of the council's agenda out of respect for the council's role in the process. He did indicated that he might negate a vote after it was taken, however.But Sununu on Thursday reversed course on how he would treat the proposal after "hearing from citizens across the state, reviewing feedback from public comment sessions and conferring with members of the Executive Council."He exercised his authority to keep the item off of the council meeting agenda, and there was no indication that it will be placed on the agenda for a vote anytime soon, if at all. A spokesman said only that the proposed increase “will not be on the agenda" and will not be "coming up for a vote.”Sununu’s full statement follows:“I have long been opposed to toll increases. After hearing from citizens across the state, reviewing feedback from the public comment sessions, and conferring with members of the Executive Council … my position has not changed.“Had the council ultimately voted in favor of toll increases, I would have negated their vote. Dragging this process out is not productive. As such, I will not allow this toll increase to move forward. I was sent to Concord to fight for the working men and women of New Hampshire, and that is what I am doing.”The DOT’s plan called for rates at the tolls in Hooksett and Bedford to jump from $1 to $1.50; in Hampton to increase from $2 to $2.50; and in Dover and Rochester on the Spaulding Turnpike to go from 75 cents to $1.Ramp tolls in Hooksett, Hampton, Dover and Rochester would have jumped by 25 cents, with no increases at the Merrimack ramps. Discounts would have been in effect for New Hampshire E-Z Pass users and a new arrangement would have been put into place giving New Hampshire E-Z Pass customers free tolls for their 41st to 50th transactions after paying for their first 40 transactions each month.Sununu’s announcement came a day after the council, meeting as the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Intermodal Transportation, voted 3-2 Wednesday to recommend passage of a 10-year state highway plan that reflected an additional $37 million generated by the toll increase in an accelerated schedule of certain infrastructure improvements.Those included accelerating completion of reconstruction of Exit 7 of the F.E. Everett Turnpike in Manchester from 2026 to 2023; completion of reconstruction of Exit 6 of the F.E. Everett Turnpike in Manchester from 2029 to 2025; widening of Interstate 93 in Bow and Concord from 2033 to 2027, and widening the Everett Turnpike from Nashua to Bedford from 2026 to 2023.Executive Councilor Volinsky said the advisory commission sent the plan and a letter signed by Prescott, Pappas and him to the governor. Sununu has until Jan. 15 to review and revise the plan and submit his own version to the state Legislature.Presumably, Sununu will revise the plan to adapt to the lack of a toll hike, or he may keep the projects as they are but recommend a different way to pay for them.Volinsky said Sununu’s decision to keep the plan off the council agenda “is certainly a change from what he said earlier. I attribute it to the governor finally paying attention.“This was one of the few times when having a disengaged governor worked for the better for the people of New Hampshire," Volinsky said. "It allowed us to craft a plan for infrastructure that shows what $37 million can accomplish, and had the governor been on top of his game and paying attention earlier, the (accelerated) projects may not have been developed. “Although I’m disappointed that the governor changed his position on allowing a vote, the fact that he didn’t engage in the process allowed some things to develop that would have been squelched by a more engaged governor,” Volinsky said.“Our plan showed what could be done with $37 million.”He said that advocates of the toll hike can now make their cases for the accelerated projects to Legislature and it is possible the toll proposal will eventually be returned to the council.If nothing else, he said, the plan “might motivate the Legislature to address safety issues.”“It’s grossly disappointing, but there is a tiny silver lining, and obviously, it shows that elections have consequences, and this is one of those consequences,” Volinsky said. “But it’s noticeable that most of the people talking about running for governor have been exceedingly quiet on this.”Pappas released a statement Thursday, saying, “I listened to the small business owners and people of my district and, as always, I'm willing to work in a bipartisan fashion to focus on improving our state's infrastructure." “The status of our roads and bridges is critical to economic development and public safety. I make decisions based on what's best for the communities I represent, not based on what's politically convenient. I'm open to any ideas Gov. Sununu or the Legislature have to move forward on these much-needed repairs."“As for me, I will continue to support ways to modernize our transportation infrastructure so it serves the needs of the residents and businesses of New Hampshire,” said Pappas, who is a candidate for the 1st District U.S. House seat in 2018.Wheeler, meanwhile, said he was “very pleased” by the governor’s announcement.“This was too much too fast, and we don’t need the tolls increased,” he said. “We need to get our highways fixed and we had a plan to do that, which was funded. And we should be going with that.”Prescott, the lead council proponent of the hike, said the council, acting as the advisory commission, “took a deep dive and looked very seriously into what is the most efficient way to move our state forward. It comes down to a small amount of effort paying huge dividends in the future. “I’m proud that we took it seriously and showed that (the toll increase) was the most fiscally responsible thing to do,” Prescott said.Meanwhile, state Senate President Chuck Morse and House Speaker Gene Chandler, both Republicans, praised Sununu’s decision. Morse said Sununu and the council added “more public debate on the last minute idea of increasing tolls.” He thanked Sununu “for protecting working families in New Hampshire.” “I look forward to the House and Senate debate on the 10-year highway plan this spring, which will allow us an opportunity to prioritize and assess our state’s infrastructure and any necessary repairs moving forward.”Chandler said he agreed that “now is not the time to ask our motorists to pay more at the tolls. This process has been rushed, and we need more time to evaluate what projects need to be done and what projects can be done with existing resources.“The Legislature will play an important role in our future planning as we review the 10-year highway plan. We look forward to receiving the governor's plan and working with him to make sure we are living within our means before anyone proposes to ask drivers in New Hampshire for more of their money.”Political reaction was predictably split along party lines.New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Jeanie Forrester said: “As New Hampshire families gather through the Christmas season, they can celebrate the defeat of a massive toll increase. Thanks to the leadership of Governor Chris Sununu, the proposed toll increase will be removed from the agenda in a preemptive veto. Today marks a victory for all Granite Staters.“New Hampshire voters ought to remember that Chris Pappas, the Democrat establishment pick for Congress, supported this toll increase all along and will have to defend this position to the voters of the first congressional district.”New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley countered: "Gov. Sununu tried to pull the wool over New Hampshire's eyes by publicly opposing a toll increase while putting it on the agenda to get passed.”“Instead, he got caught in his trick. With Sununu's rejection of this bipartisan plan proposed by a member of his own party (Prescott), Sununu now has the responsibility of proposing an alternative way to find the revenue to tackle these important infrastructural fixes."