Coffin’s debate lacked practical solutions
Finally, in the Francestown Candidate Debate on Oct. 7, we uncovered some of what each candidate will do if elected. Until that evening, candidate Tim Coffin had run a largely content-free campaign. His website offered no concrete solutions on how he would reduce property taxes or address other issues facing our state.
During the debate, Coffin revealed he would end Education Freedom Accounts (EFAs) and parental choice. He is willing to infringe on Second Amendment rights, emphasizing they are not “absolute.” Despite Deering and Francestown having a larger elderly population than most of New Hampshire, his narrow 40-year career in municipal debt left him with no solutions for New Hampshire’s growing healthcare accessibility crisis — an issue Representative Mary Murphy has rightly made a top priority and for which she has filed legislation.
Most concerning is Coffin’s approach to revenue. To fund education, he proposed reinstituting the Interest and Dividends (I&D) tax, claiming past tax cuts only benefited the wealthy. Does anyone else see the extreme irony here? Coffin claims four decades of experience in the municipal bond market — a market that helps the wealthy legally avoid paying their fair share of state and federal income taxes. Let that sink in.
He claims he opposes an income tax, seemingly unaware the I&D tax is one. Furthermore, he remained silent on a newly proposed 2027 sales tax, a bill Rep. Murphy has already pledged to vote against.
Rep. Murphy has demonstrated competence in advocating for Deering and Francestown. Passing five bills as a first-term Representative is extraordinary. Murphy has a track record of working well with the opposition party in Concord and voting against her party on local control and zoning issues.
Vote to re-elect Rep. Mary Murphy on November 3.