BOB McLEAN
District 6 - Gilford, Gilmanton, Ward 2 Laconia
Mr. McLean is a candidate for State Rep.
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Mr. McLean has our full support as his positions meet our standards of providing reasonable and responsible governance.
Learn more below.
Mr. McLean is a 30-year resident of Gilford, a member of the School Board, and serves on the town’s Budget and Facilities committees. He grew up in Meredith, is married with three children.
On his website, Bob McLean cites attacks on Gunstock and the County nursing home as some of his top issues, and ran in 2022 largely in response to the chaos in the Gunstock Area Commission. He lost in the general election, but is running again in 2024 – now with more local experience under his belt.
He voiced concerns in 2022 about tax dollars being siphoned from public schools to fund private and religious schools, funding for “Education Freedom Accounts” has increased, which Bob opposes. He said in his Citizens Count survey, "I would work to remove this program. It is an effort to privatize education in NH."
In two letters to the Laconia Daily Sun - -
, “Vote to keep Gilford school system a point of community pride,”
and
Parental control over curriculum a top priority if elected to school board
he makes a case for his position on the school board.
He remains committed to Gunstock, where he has been a ski instructor for over 10 years, and says in his website, that he opposes “trying to pull more revenue out of Gunstock instead of setting future plans for its operation.” In his Citizens for Belknap survey, he notes that he supports expanding terrain on Gunstock to appeal to younger skiers, and that the current funding should remain so some of the profits can fund future improvements.
He supports strong benefit packages and competitive wages for county employees to recruit and retain adequate staffing.
On another priority issue for Citizens for Belknap, McLean would like to see more effort from the Delegation to address homelessness and addiction. He says in his 2024 Citizens for Belknap questionnaire, “Community understanding, transitional housing, addiction treatment centers and education are all needed to fight this problem,” but he also supports stiffer penalties for drug traffickers.
We see Mr. McLean as a reasonable and responsible candidate on county issues who is engaged in his community of Gilford, and would serve Gilmanton and Laconia Ward 2 well.
In his own words - - -
Bob McLean- Candidate for Belknap County District 6 State Representative
1. How long have you lived in Belknap County? If you moved to the county, why did you choose to do so? If you have always lived in Belknap County, why have you stayed? If you’ve been a resident for one year or less, what prompted you to run so soon?
I moved to Belknap County in 1970 with my family. I graduated from Inter-lakes
high school. I moved to Boston in my twenties and realized that the rat race and urban
living was not for me. I bought a home in Gilford in 1994 and raised my family here. I
enjoy boating, skiing, fishing and so many other activities that our county has to offer.
2. Why are you running, and what is the most important legislative issue you hope to tackle the next legislative term?
I am running again for State Rep. because our state is continually passing legislation that makes it harder and more expensive to educate our children, pay our property taxes, find affordable housing and good paying jobs.
My priorities would be to roll back tax cuts for the wealthy and large corporations. I would also roll
back the many laws that are aimed at destroying public education. Then I would like to
work on ways to battle climate change, create affordable housing and implement
renewable sources of energy.
3. What do you see are the biggest needs or issues in Belknap County, and what would you do to fill that need?
The biggest issues for Belknap County are affordable housing, high property taxes and the negative effects of climate change. However, our county delegation continues to cut funding for programs that directly address these issues.
4. What distinguishes you from the other candidates running in your district?
I have experience running for office and feel that I am well informed on the issues we are experiencing. I am also a member of the Gilford school board and have had to deal with all the negative
educational changes that have been put in place.
5. A recent independent report found deficiencies in the current Belknap County jail. Would you support construction of a building that meets modern standards? Or should the existing jail be renovated?
I would be in favor of doing what is in the best interest of the residents of Belknap
County. We just renovated the locker room at GHS with excellent results and I think this
could be the most affordable solution.
6. Do you agree that traditional public schools are essential to attracting business and retaining employees in Belknap county? Should our students’ education be funded at ‘adequate education’ levels as defined by the NH Supreme Court’s in the ConVal decision? Why or why not?
Our property values are directly affected by the quality of the public education
in the community. The statewide property tax system is not working. The current state
government continues to look for ways to avoid paying the court ordered adequacy
amount per student, yet they gladly give money to people who choose alternative
education.
7. The Belknap County Nursing Home continues to operate under capacity, yet it has a waiting list of Belknap clients. What will you do as a member of the Delegation, to assist the County Commission to maximize our nursing care facility?
We need to properly fund the county nursing so employees can get a fair wage and have access to benefits.
8. The county nursing home and the Belknap Mountain Recreation Area, including Gunstock Mountain Resort, are revenue streams owned by Belknap County. As a County Delegation member, do you support leasing out the property to a private company, or selling those operations?
I do not support leasing or selling our county institutions. I know from our experience a few years ago with Gunstock that the vast majority of residents want to keep Gunstock in possession of the county.
9. Opioids and other drugs continue to be a problem in our communities. What are your ideas to reduce the impact of these drugs in our community? What resources are you willing to commit?
The opioid problem and the housing problem are connected. I have spoken to people in halfway houses in Laconia and although this works for a few, these locations are too close to where there is access to drugs. We need to support these counseling programs and continue to look for ways to help
people recover. I would support tougher penalties for those profiting from the sale of
addictive drugs.
10. Belknap County’s delegation of state representatives has the poorest rate of attendance in the state at 78% for the 2024-25 legislative session. It’s so bad that the 2nd lowest, Strafford County, is 89%. Do you commit to attending at least 80% of committee meetings, and 90% or more of Session vote days?
I will commit to the attendance proposal.
11. The Belknap County Sheriff’s Department has entered into an agreement with U.S Immigration & Customs Enforcement 287(g) program agreement. Do you support this, and why?
I do not support our involvement with ICE. You don’t get immigration reform by killing people and threatening people. There are so many other ways of dealing with this issue.
Ignore - Duplicate Question
12. The county nursing home and the Belknap Mountain Recreation Area, including Gunstock Mountain Resort, are revenue streams owned by Belknap County. As a County Delegation member, do you support leasing out the property/operations to a private company, or selling the property/operations?
13. Affordable housing continues to be a problem, causing challenges for our county economy, including limiting the worker pool, attracting business, and attracting younger families. If elected, what will you do to increase the stock of affordable housing?
I would support new construction of rent control housing and renovation of
existing sites for housing.
14. Without clean lakes and rivers, the Belknap County tourism economy would be in jeopardy. Should the county financially support pollution control and water quality monitoring programs? Why or why not?
Our lakes and mountains are crucial to the economy of Belknap County. Yes, I
would financially support these efforts. I would also support efforts to reduce climate
change. Global warming is creating a lot more drastic weather conditions which in turns
washes more pollutants into our waterways because they are not being filtered naturally
through our streams and wetlands.
15. Do you agree that the tax reduction for State revenue streams (Business Enterprise Tax, Rooms & Meals, Income & Dividends Tax, et. al), resulted in downshifted costs to Belknap county and local schools, and increased local property taxes? Why or why not?
By reducing these taxes, the state has shifted the tax burden to
property owners again. The room and meals tax is a tax that is paid in a large part by
people who visit our state. This helps lower resident taxes.
16. Would you favor reforming the Delegation’s meeting format? Should the Delegation conduct monthly meetings? Would you increase public input opportunities? Continue with Roberts’ Rules?
I have been to a few delegation meetings, and I was not impressed with the format or the organization. I would be in favor of standard meeting rules.
