NH House House Speaker Comments on Passage of Legislative Oversight Committee of Department of Environmental Services

CONCORD – House Speaker William O’Brien offered the following comments on the passage of House Bill 1435, which establishes a committee to oversee the Department of Environmental Services (DES).

House Speaker William O’Brien

“This bill provides an avenue for legislative oversight and will ensure that the agency carefully considers the impact the Department of Environmental Services has on New Hampshire communities and convinces the legislature that the impact will be positive. It also creates a mechanism to provide feedback for the Department. We will continue to focus on legislation this session that brings more efficiency and accountability to state government and House Bill 1435 is such a reform.”

Comments

[Ok]

So, this committee that "comes out of the legislature "will be experts on environmental issues?
They will do what is best for health and the environment?

[Anonymous]

Oh, yes, Bully O'Brien and the boys are just SO very committed to protecting the natural resources and special places that make NH the great place it is.......as long as there is a dollar sign attached to that resource and their buddies can make a buck out of it. Thankfully, the Senate will likely kill this bill!

[Dagny Taggart]

FINALLY! NH DES’ Tom Burack has long believed and stated in numerous public testimonies that NH’s “fixation” on private property rights are a real hindrance to the work of his agency, that he and DES personnel should be able to trespass anywhere and anytime they fear some invertebrate or puddle of water are being “endangered”, that citizens can’t be trusted to manage their own property and should have no say in that management, that DES not only knows best but could care less about the opinions and beliefs of the great unwashed horde of NH’s private property owners.
Why is that the case, a reasonable person might ask?
It is because less than 10% of DES’ +$200 million budget comes from the state’s General Fund; the balance comes from fees, fines, alternative compliance payments - which are not dissimilar to simple extortion – levied by him and members of his regime. The other 90% comes from grants of money paid to the feds in the form of federal taxes. This means that, because Mr. Burack et al do not ask the General Court for money, by default, the General Court has allowed him and them to fly under the radar screen and impose their will AT will on private property owners. I learned as a youngster if I didn’t ask my parents for money and kept my mouth shut, they pretty much left me alone to do whatever I could get away with; same thing here. I also learned not to squeal on a big brother because if I did, he’d come just after me when my folks weren’t looking. Thus, DES, by extorting money from property owners and then threatening them with further retaliation if they complain, has until now, pretty much been left alone by the parents over at the General Court.
The truth is that it is we, the property owners and taxpayers of NH, are the ones who are endangered by this man and his fellow travelers. Having someone finally being able to peek into Burack’s puddles is a welcome event. Good for the House, good for HB 1435!

[C. dog]

Another good move of a pawn. This should apply to all state agencies: that they actually have to follow the same rules as the rest of the plebes, or at the very least, the police. Start with warrants to trespass on property, burden of proof on the agency, and preferably dismantling of the agency regime and all the wrongs, privileges, and pomp appertaining thereto. Violations of property rights belong in courts, not playgrounds for shakedown artists to get their fill.
– C. dog applauds from the cheap seats