New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch
(Photo by
Marc Nozell under a Creative Commons license)
New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch has not only vetoed the
so-called "right to work" bill passed by the state's
crazed Republican
legislature. He's issued a genuinely strong statement
explaining his veto:
"States should not interfere with the rights of businesses and their employees to freely negotiate contracts. That is unless there is a compelling public interest, and there is no compelling public interest in passing this legislation," Lynch wrote in his message to lawmakers. "There is no evidence that this legislation will offer any benefits to New Hampshire's economy or workers."
Lynch said New Hampshire has one of the fastest growing economies in the nation, has one of the lowest unemployment rates and has one of the highest median incomes. New Hampshire's unemployment rate was 5.2 percent in April.
"New Hampshire has a lower unemployment rate and a stronger economy than most states with so-called right-to-work laws. In states with a right-to-work law, workers on average have a lower standard of living, bringing home less in their paychecks and going without health insurance more frequently," he wrote.
He additionally noted that neither business owners nor workers have told him they support such a law. In that he echoed the state's labor commissioner, who had previously said that not one of the more than 2,000 business owners he's met with have lobbied for right to work.
The Republican leadership of the state legislature plans to attempt a veto override. According to NHPR, House speaker William O'Brien thinks he needs 15 to 20 new votes. But he doesn't seem optimistic about getting them:
“My caucus members are concerned that they are united that the Governor cannot function as a third branch of the legislature. The senate and the house have spoken with very strong majorities that right to work is what the people of NH want.”
Legislators who think they have the numbers they need generally don't resort to questioning a governor's right to veto bills.
