TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012 VOL. 20 NO. 187
BERLIN, N.H.
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County delegation to study Coos Motion to form finance committee County Government Center BY BARBARA TETREAULT THE BERLIN DAILY SUN
LANCASTER – The Coos County delegation yesterday approved forming a committee to look at the feasibility of constructing a centrally located Coos County Government Center that would contain all of the county’s operations. Rep. Duffy Daugherty, (R-Colebrook) made a motion to form a feasibility and planning committee for the development and construction of a new centrally located Coos County Government Center. He said the proposal calls for looking at a center sufficient to accommodate all of the current Coos County administrative and management functions includ-
ing both nursing homes, the department of corrections and jail, and offices for the sheriff, county attorney, registrar of deeds, and county administration. Daugherty said he feels the county is bleeding money right now. He cited the cost of transporting prisoners all over the county and running two outdated nursing facilities. With indications that the economy is starting to rebound, Daugherty said he feels this is the time to look at the county system. He said he did not have a location for the center but suggested the Groveton-Stark area was central. see STUDY page 17
Four way race for selectman in Gorham BY MELISSA GRIMA THE BERLIN DAILY SUN
GORHAM — Four Gorham men have filed to run for a single open seat on the board of selectmen. Terry Rhoderick, William “Bill” Jackson, Bruce Lary and Tad Michaud, each submitted paperwork with the town clerk recently declaring their intent to run for election to replace outgoing selectman Terry Oliver. The only other contested races in town are for two
seats on the Planning Board. Incumbents Lawrence Guay and Earl McGillicuddy face a challenge from Robert James Mengel and Wayne Flynn for the two, three-year seats. Six open positions on the Budget Committee garnered the attention of six interested individuals, leaving those races uncontested. Glen Eastman and Robert Demers each filed to run for the two, single year terms. Jeffrey Schall threw his hat in the ring see GORHAM page 8
Bryant Godin of Berlin was giving blood for the fi rst time Friday at the Red Cross Blood Drive at White Mountains Community College.
stirs angry debate among county delegation BY BARBARA TETREAULT THE BERLIN DAILY SUN
LANCASTER – A motion to form a finance committee lead to bitter exchanges between members of the Coos County delegation at yesterday’s quarterly meeting. As the meeting neared the end of its agenda, Rep. Larry Rappaport (R-Colebrook) proposed the delegation form a fi nance committee to focus entirely on the county budget. Rappaport noted the proposed 2012 budget calls for an eight percent increase in the amount to be raised by taxes. He said the county budget, which is projected to increase by two percent this year, is constantly going up. Rappaport said he recommended having one representative from each of the delegation’s four subcommittees serve on the finance committee. Rep. Herb Richardson, (R-Lancaster), said he was opposed to the idea, arguing it was not necessary. Richardson said he does his homework on the budget and contacts the administration when he has questions. His comment drew an angry response from Rappaport, who punctuated his remarks by calling Richardson an “asshole.” Rappaport said he resented the implication that he did not do his homework. “You can call me all the names you want but Herb Richardson does his homework,” Richardson replied as Chairman John Tholl, (R-Whitefield), ruled Rappaport out of order. Rappaport apologized to the delegation for losing his composure. Rep. Bill Hatch, (D-Gorham) said he could understand the need for such a committee if the delegation was larger. The delegation currently includes 11 representatives but will be reduced to ten when the new House districts are approved. Rep. Bill Remick (R-Lancaster) pointed out the delegation has trouble getting a quorum sometimes now and wondered about adding another committee Rep. Robert Theberge, (D-Berlin), questioned whether the motion was an attempt to micro-manage the administration and county commissioners. He noted the commissioners and administration annually hold a public hearing on the commission’s proposed budget in December. The delegation then reviews the budget before finalizing it in March. Theberge called the current process sufficient. Tholl said even with a finance committee, the final decision on the budget rests with the entire delegation. Rep. Duffy Daugherty, (R-Colebrook) agreed with Rappaport on the need for a finance committee. Daugherty said he saw no fi nancial analysis of the
(BARBARA TETREAULT PHOTO)
see DEBATE page 9
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