KEENE, N.H. (MyKeeneNow) State Representative Nick Germana joined Dan Mitchell on WKBK’s Good Morning with Dan Mitchell show Tuesday morning to preview a legislative listening session in Keene and discuss mounting concerns over New Hampshire’s state budget. The conversation touched on sweeping funding cuts, the proposed expansion of the school voucher program, and the long-term consequences for higher education and critical public services.

Germana, a Democrat representing Keene, highlighted the tension between costly new initiatives—such as the proposed $100 million annual expansion of the Education Freedom Accounts (EFA) program—and simultaneous budget reductions that he says are undermining the state’s ability to serve its most vulnerable residents.

“We’re expanding our school vouchers up to a hundred million dollars a year at a time when there are lots of other things that people are really concerned about,” Germana told Mitchell during the interview.

Germana said the expansion of the EFA program is being financed at the expense of other agencies, including the Council on Aging, the Office of the Child Advocate, and the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, all of which are facing significant funding reductions. The state university system is also taking a hit, with a proposed 30 percent cut—roughly $50 million over the biennium—leading to higher in-state tuition at schools like Keene State College.

“Because of the lack of state funding, our tuition has gone up and up and up over the years,” Germana said. “We’re not getting those out-of-state students who used to subsidize in-state tuition anymore.”

The conversation also addressed the $1.5 billion in projected settlements related to abuse at the Sununu Youth Development Center, which Germana said poses a major fiscal challenge. Layered on top of that, he argued, is the impact of 10 years of tax cuts for the wealthiest residents, which he says have left the state budget approximately $700 million short of where it needs to be.

“We’ve now seen 10 years of cutting state revenue by cutting taxes on the wealthiest Granite Staters,” Germana told Mitchell. “That’s put us significantly behind where we need to be for this budget cycle.”

The issues Germana raised on air are expected to be the focus of an upcoming legislative listening session taking place Wednesday evening from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Delegates Hall on the second floor of the county courthouse in downtown Keene. All of Keene’s state representatives will be in attendance and the public is encouraged to participate.

“This is a chance for people to come out and let us know what their priorities are,” Germana said. “We want to hear from everyone—regardless of party affiliation.”