A new report says "high road" policies help grow manufacturing economies
Although tourism is something of a signature industry for New Hampshire, the largest sector of the state’s economy–by far–is advanced manufacturing. So-called “SMHT” (Smart Manufacturing/High Technology).
Looking back on the exodus of shoe and textile factories, the slow death of the wood products industry, and the decline of high-tech in the 1990’s, you’d be forgiven for chalking-up the growth of SHMT to the miraculous.
If Fairpoint agrees to the PUC's terms, underserved areas could see better broadband coverage
The question of whether to offer customers rebates for bad service or expand broadband access throughout the state is now pretty much for Fairpoint to decide.
The telecom company faces $2.8 million in fines related to a series of service problems that cropped-up back in 2009. Rather than return the fees to customers, Fairpoint asked the Public Utilities Commission to allow it to use that money to expand broadband access. As we previously reported, it was a controversial proposal. And, as Dennis Paiste now writes for the Union-Leader, the PUC approved the proposal by a vote of 2-1. But Commissioner Michael Harrington wrote a dissenting opinion: Continue Reading →
“New Hampshire soared above its rivals in two categories where it excelled – the state achieved an A grade for being the #5 easiest state nationwide for starting a small business and for being the #8 friendliest state in the country towards small businesses.”
But the survey also finds that not all counties are created equal. Continue Reading →
New Hampshire stands out as a friendly state for small businesses
Here’s a news tip courtesy of our sister site, StateImpact Idaho. The Kauffman Foundation and online hiring service Thumbtack.com surveyed more than 6,000 small business owners. The questions covered an array of topics, including: Overall small business-friendliness, ease of starting a business, hiring costs, regulations, training programs, networking programs, and current economic health.
And when you break it all down, New Hampshire’s small business environment far outpaces the rest of the Northeast, with a solid “A.” That’s compared to a “D+” for Maine, a “D” for Massachusetts and Connecticut, and an “F” for Rhode Island and Vermont. Continue Reading →
While Obama won NH in 2008, there's no guarantee he'll snag the Granite State a second time around
At this point, politicos figure nine states could go to either Obama or Romney this November: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Wisconsin and…New Hampshire. All of them went for Barack Obama back in 2008. But New York Times reporter Michael Cooper notes that Republicans have also made some major strides in those states over the past few years. And the rate of economic recovery looks very different in each place. Cooper writes that a number of economic factors beyond the axiomatic “It’s the economy, stupid!” could be in play: Continue Reading →
With stimulus funding to the Green Launching Pad shut off, the start-up incubator is considering how to continue its work
The challenge of growing New Hampshire’s green economy just got more difficult. Federal stimulus funding for the state’s chief eco-friendly business incubator dried up at the end of April. Now, the University of New Hampshire‘s Green Launching Pad program is rooting around for private funding to keep the program going. Although early GLP grant funding went to small start-ups, the last round of federal money actually went to established manufacturers to fund job growth.
And as we’ve previously reported, calculating job creation and other economic impacts of the Green Launching Pad is tricky business. Continue Reading →
The accident that killed Redhook Brewery worker Benjamin Harris shocked New Englanders. At seven o’clock on a Friday morning, the 26-year old newlywed and father-to-be was doing a routine task at the Portsmouth plant–pumping a plastic keg full of compressed air so that he could clean it.
The keg exploded, mortally wounding Harris in the chest and head.
Now OSHA‘s investigating. The agency says it could be months before it knows what, exactly, is responsible for Benjamin Harris’ death, and if the incident was just a freak accident, or something the brewery could have prevented. Foster’s Daily Democrat reports Vice President of Commercial Operations, Andy Thomas confirmed “the keg that ruptured and critically injured Harris was not owned or used by Redhook Brewery, nor was the keg owned by any other brewery operated by Craft Brew Alliance, Inc., Redhook’s owner and operator.”
The notion of breweries as potentially dangerous places to work isn’t necessarily something that would occur to many people outside the industry. It can be easy to forget that breweries are manufacturers, and that the people working in these facilities are dealing with difficult and dangerous equipment. With that in mind, we’ve been gathering information this week to try to put this accident into context. How common are brewery accidents compared to other manufacturers? And what are the most common types of hazards these workers face? Continue Reading →
It’s that time again! A time when we at StateImpact sit back and sift through the crowd’s collective wisdom to bring you the Top 5 Must Read Posts of the week. And we’ve got a rather diverse roundup this week, spanning fishing and politics, indie booksellers and foreclosure funds. Here, ready for your perusal, is the Essential StateImpact:
Staying Afloat: One NH Fisherman’s Struggle To Keep Fishing: Our top post of the week breaks down why the feds changed groundfishing regulations, and how those changes are challenging a long-time fisherman’s livelihood. And, it’s got a slideshow.
NH Plays Waiting Game For Foreclosure Settlement Money: New Hampshire has a healthy slice of a massive settlement with the big banks coming. But there’s a lot of work to be done before the state–or foreclosed families–see a penny of it.
NH's revenue situation isn't as bad as originally projected
Although revenues haven’t quite pulled New Hampshire away from a budget shortfall, it seems that day could be approaching. As Kevin Landrigan reports for TheLobbyNH.com:
“The state took in $251 million in April, which was $2.1 million – or less than 1 percent – below the estimate that House and Senate budget writers had come up with nearly a year ago.
Late last week, top legislative leaders had feared that April would be off by $12 million or more.”
With two months to go before the fiscal year wraps-up, Landrigan writes that the state’s raked in about $1.9 billion, and is only $32 million away from making the projected forecast. And Administrative Services Commissioner Linda Hodgdon is reasonably optimistic that the state could clear a good chunk of that shortfall away, if not eliminate it altogether. Continue Reading →
Ed Eastman (L) and Jim Pasnar (R) study a map to determine where they will drop the net for a three-mile trawl.
Jim Pasnar guides the 100-foot net onto its spool. Jim is attentive as he works in order to avoid entangling himself in the gear.
A mediocre catch of 150 pounds of shrimp pour onto the deck of the Sweet Carolyn. Eastman and Pasnar say it’s difficult to predict how good a trawl will be.
Pasnar spends about an hour on his knees sorting herring from shrimp. The sorting is all done by hand.
Ed Eastman pours shrimp into 100-pound buckets as Jim Pasnar shovels the catch off the deck. On a good day, they would pull in 12 to 15 buckets. This day only yields six buckets. Eastman needs to fill three buckets just to pay for the day’s fuel. Jim’s salary is 20 percent of the catch.
Ed Eastman speaks to his wife, Carolyn, on his cell phone while Pasnar minds the high-tension cables.
Eastman and Pasnar take a break. There is little downtime in their 14-hour work day.
Always working in tandem, Eastman and Pasnar fill buckets to sell to three locals who meet the boat at day’s end. Selling directly to customers earns Eastman 60 percent more per pound.
This week, commercial fishermen began trawling the seafloor off New Hampshire for cod and other signature New England catches. But Ed Eastman, who has been groundfishing off the coast for 31 years, was not among them. Regulations governing groundfishing became too burdensome, he says, and he could no longer earn a living wage. Last year, Eastman sold his groundfishing permit and moved on to other fisheries, like shrimping.
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