Lisa DeBartolomao

Lisa DeBartolomao earned a high school diploma from Kingswood Regional High School.[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am a native Granite stater. I have 4 grown children and 5 grandchildren. I am on the Board of Trustees of the Springfield VT Humane Society and a stanch supporter and volunteer. I support the NH Food Bank, The Haven (White River Jct., VT,) and Camp Sentinel, a Christian camp located in Tuftonboro. I edit books online for independently published authors. I have a passion for nutritional education and teach healthy eating weight loss classes. In the past, I have been a youth group leader of my church’s youth group; as well as deaconess, trustee, clerk, and Sunday school teacher. I support small businesses, the LBGTQ+ community, and people of color who just want to be treated the same as everyone else. I believe in helping others when possible and to our best ability.

I also believe that we can work together to heal our state and return NH back to the status it had when I was much younger!

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Property taxes are based on the value of a home rather than a homeowners ability to pay, placing a significant burden on many families, seniors, and working households. My focus is on identifying sustainable revenue sources, including restoring funding mechanisms that have been eliminated to reduce reliance on property taxes. My goal is to create a fair tax system in which those with greater financial resources contribute their fair share easing the burden on low and middle income home owners.Affordable housing: Many communities are facing a housing affordability crisis. Home prices have outpaced wages, putting home ownership beyond the reach of many younger adults and first time buyers. Even those who qualify for a mortgage often cannot afford the combined cost of mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, and maintenance. There is no single solution. Making homeownership more attainable will require lowering the cost of buying and owning a home through measures such as increasing the supply of affordable housing, reducing construction costs, expanding financing options, and providing targeted assistance for first time buyers.Education funding: The states’s failure to adequately fund public education has left local schools struggling and shifted more of the financial burden onto property taxpayers. At the same time, public funds are being redirected through voucher programs to support private education instead of strengthening the public schools that serve every child. My goal is to hold the state accountable for meeting it’s constitutional obligation to fully fund public education. I will support legislation that ensures the state provides adequate equitable funding for our public schools.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

As a senior living on a fixed income, property taxes are of concern to me and to my neighbors.

Affordable housing affects my children and many others of their age. Our minimum wage of $7.25 is not a livable wage (in 51 years it has risen by just $5.15–that’s less than .10 cents a year! )

And we are dead last in the United States for education funding. My grandkids are just entering high school and technical trade programs have been cut that would have greatly educated them and their peers. We need to provide our students with a quality education so they can get good jobs to afford a home and be able to pay their taxes!

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

No one in particular. I look up to the down trodden, the ones who have started with nothing, have overcome adversity, and have built themselves up into a person who has succeeded in their life goals. They never forget who they were and the struggles they overcame to get there. They see us.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Integrity, passion, forthrightness, compassion

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

The core responsibility for me when elected will be to listen to my constituents on both sides of the isle and vote in a manner that will best honor their interests and their concerns.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I would like to be remembered as a woman who cared deeply for those less fortunate, and who did everything I could to improve their life.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job was a cafeteria style waitress on the MV. Mount Washington. I worked there for 3 summers and enjoyed every single minute of it. I often ride on the boat on my days off so I could just sit in the sun with the breeze on my face.

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

I have lived below the poverty level for 3 decades, part of the last decade as a single mother with 4 children under the age of ten. I know what it is like to struggle.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

Cooperation, listening, understanding points of view, seeking to see all side to the issue. Understanding that all 3 areas of government work together as checks and balances, not as a dictatorship.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Restoring our state to the quality of life we had in the ‘70’s. That has to start with removing all Free Staters from office.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

I believe more in consensus. If I believe strongly that people will be adversely affected by a bill that the legislature passes, I will not compromise.

What was the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember?

JFK being shot. I was 5 years old. It was a very emotional experience.