Dear Editor:
In reply to Mr. Reed’s Letter to the Editor regarding the “recommendations” by the Bedford Taxpayers Association (BTA), we would like to share some information that he failed to mention.
The BTA is a local non-partisan organization committed to fiscal restraint and helps Bedford residents with recommendations on candidates running for office in New Hampshire. Mr. Reed noted that most of the recommended candidates were Republicans and also mentioned that Republicans in general are committed to fiscal responsibility.
The BTA welcomes members of any political affiliation and encourages all candidates to commit to fiscal responsibility. In 2012 BTA recommended a Democrat, Barry for Sheriff and this year we did not recommend a Republican, Wolf.
During the last election, we had several Republican candidates reach out to the BTA who were committed to fiscal restraint if elected. However we noted that not one Democrat reached out with that same commitment. This is a concern for our Board Members; but we cannot force a candidate to commit to something they may not support if elected.
Fiscal responsibility, low taxes and spending should always be a non-partisan issue and we welcome members and candidates committed to that political cause. Over 25 years of existence BTA has had many members, Officers, and Directors who were not Republicans.
In fact, Mr. Reed could join the BTA and take his concerns directly to candidates in an effort to help keep taxes low and help ensure all candidates share our mission. Let this be an appeal to future candidates for office in New Hampshire. We welcome your commitment to fiscal restraint and while we may have several candidates who share these views, we try our best to vet the best candidates overall.
Residents of Bedford are also welcome to join the BTA if they’d like to help in this process. We welcome anyone regardless of political affiliation as long as they share in our mission of: Reasonable Spending, Stable/Lower Taxes and various other goals stated on our website that relieve the burden of high taxes and unsustainable growth of Government.
Roy Stewart, BTA President and BTA Board of Directors