By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org

CONCORD – Lottery Director Charlie McIntyre revised his revenue estimates upwards by about $13 million over the next two years, giving budget writers more wiggle room and to help state agencies and programs now facing cuts from both House and Senate versions of the budget.

This comes after good news also came to the budget committee of conference on Thursday that another $95 million can be budgeted from revenue unanticipated when both chambers were working up their numbers.

Members of the House and Senate committee held off on big ticket items and could not come to a resolution on distribution of rooms and meals tax revenue to municipalities, but did discuss likely changes in the Group II retirement package.

The House in its budget allocated the fund $27.5 million a year for the next ten years as Gov. Kelly Ayotte suggested in her budget. The Senate voted to delay funding to start for six months but run it at $27.5 million for the next 10 years from there. 

It was not favored by Senate President Sharon Carson, R-Londonderry, who also maintains that it might make more sense to wait until 2027 when a thorough retirement system review is scheduled. 

Sen. James Gray, R-Rochester, who was chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said he has been asked to bring an amendment related to the so-called “Group II” retirement fund $15 million annually for the next biennium.

But he also said that it has been past Senate practice to table any bill of substance if it is being litigated and noted a lawsuit filed in Merrimack County Superior Court related to the matter.

If it wasn’t withdrawn or settled, he said, “table that sucker.”

“Remember that lawsuit,” Gray said.

He also indicated a battle brewing between Senate and House on a House plan to cap rooms and meals tax revenue at $137 million, which was opposed in the Senate with the Senate leaving distribution at 30 percent to municipalities on a per capita basis.

Gray said the Senate action was intended to let municipalities know the state is not downshifting to them.

The 8.5 percent rooms and meals tax is one of the larger revenue sources the state has which is paid by those dining out and staying in hotels and short-term rentals. Since 1967 the state has shared the revenue with municipalities first at 40 percent but now down to 30 after trimmings in 1997 and 1981.

The day also found the House acceding to or essentially accepting the Senate’s version on most of the non-big ticket items and agreeing to come back on Monday morning sometime after updated revenue figures are approved in Ways and Means.

Though they got through an entire overview of House Bills 1 and 2 in about five hours as chairman Kenneth Weyler lamented, Gray said it would go faster if he started saying he’d acceded more often which got a laugh and a notation that the House was doing it more than the Senate.

LOTTERY HAS JACKPOT JUST AT THE RIGHT MINUTE

McIntyre told the committee of conference on the budget Friday that he expects an increase of revenue from previous estimates.

The House had been given a revenue estimate of $173 million from the lottery when it developed its budget this winter. It was raised in the Senate twice during the budget deliberations as current revenues are climbing.

This year, McIntyre said, he expects to deliver to the state $207 million, a 7 percent increase and in the next two years, he said conservatively, estimating $200 million each year.

There are a couple reasons for that, he said. Scratch ticket declines in revenue have stopped “and we look to be growing again. Sports betting, we did not have a negative impact from (Massachusetts) that we anticipated, and we are just doing better at everything else. And so we’ve raised guidance again. We hope that is good news for you folks,” he said. 

“Our revenues are doing well,” he said.

There is a 30 percent return to the state on lottery sales with monies also going to charities big and small who have seen an overall increase in help.

McIntyre said predicting revenues is one of the hardest things he has to do and said he does not want to give legislators a “pie in the sky” number that he and they will have to walk back, so his numbers are on the conservative side.

Salem, Nashua and Seabrook all have new or improved charity casino gambling options and though they had a “flash” the first couple of days open, McIntyre said they have found a “sweet spot” in terms of attendance and have very sophisticated customer relations management tools and so their players clubs will help maintain their revenue streams.

“I don’t see this as a declining business at all and candidly, one of the nice things about the Nash (in Nashua) is as I understand it the majority of their revenue comes from Massachusetts.”

CORRECTIONS

The House budget slashed jobs and programming in the Department of Corrections by 10 percent from the governor’s budget, without input on what those impacts could mean from the commissioner.

Former Commissioner of Corrections Helen Hanks resigned in the middle of the budget process and has been temporarily replaced by John Scippa, who still heads up Police Standards and Training.

Scippa said he was told the House is “not quite in agreement” with the Senate and not ready to accede to their number and the House would rather come up with a proposal next week on funding.

WHAT’S NEXT

The committee of conference on HB 1 and HB 2 has plans to come back at 10 a.m. on Monday but it is likely going to be closer to 11 a.m. as they want to await revenue projection numbers which are expected in a separate committee at 10 a.m.