Their free state is here

'Free Stater' plan for NH debated at forum

'Free Stater' plan for NH debated at forum

WASHINGTON – Speakers at yesterday's forum on the Free State Project and its goal to re-locate 20,000 libertarians to the Granite State see challenges and opportunities ahead.

In hopes of spreading its free society message and build support for the project, the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research sponsored yesterday's debate titled, "The Free State Project: Move and Live Free?" Experts on economics, policy and politics argued the advantages and difficulties ahead for the libertarian movement.

The Free State Project aims to relocate 20,000 libertarians to New Hampshire towns as advocates for limited government and greater personal liberty.

"We love NH and what it stands for," said James Sorens, a Yale University political science professor who is serving as project director of the Free State Project. "We want to be a part of that, and we're hoping our message will come through crystal clear."

The group formed in September of 2001 and now, Sorens claims, has more than 5,000 members who have signed non-binding contracts to pack their bags for a new life in the Granite State.

The group is predominantly single, well-off, and educated males between 18-35 years of age.

"These people are most likely to move, settle, make roots and be involved in the community," Sorens said. But 40 percent who have signed contracts are married, though their children "will not be using public schools," he said.

They have already set up a home schooling association and others will attend private institutions, Sorens explained.

Michael Barone, a senior writer with U.S. News and World Report and principal co-author of The Almanac of American Politics, said the group appeared to be "a form of communalism that reminds me of Brigham Young and the Mormons."

He said New Hampshire is already the most libertarian of the northern states because it has a "real force on national politics" and has "people who indeed vote with their feet."

New Hampshire is home to 257 members of the Free State Project, according to Sorens, though only 20 who have signed the contract have moved in from out of state.

That is the first real test for the organization, Sorens said, getting 20,000 libertarians to move north.

"We're not asking people to move until we get all the signatures," he said.

Wyoming was the runner-up choice for the movement, with Vermont, Delaware, North and South Dakota, Montana, Idaho and Alaska also possible choices. About 1,000 members opted out of moving to New Hampshire when it was selected, which Sorens claims is "typical."

Richard Vedder, an economic historian at Ohio University, said the success of the movement depends on migration to the state, which in the end will determine the movement's ability to sway politics in New Hampshire.

But, Vedder said, 20,000 libertarians would only be able to change New Hampshire's political orientation to a small degree. What the group is doing, he said, is "a more explicit way of doing what Americans are already doing.

"Americans already tend to move away from big government," Vedder said, and to states that offer lower taxes, such as New Hampshire.

Every day for the past 3 years, 1,500 people have moved from high tax states to ones that offer some relief, according to Vedder.

Alan Bock, an editorial writer at the Orange County Register, said the Free State Project follows in the tradition of the migration projects in the United States of the mid-70s.

But those cases were different, he said, in that the Free State Project is not seeking a "utopian society."

A challenge the Free State Project will face in New Hampshire, Bock said, is "when outsiders come with explicit political agendas, are they going to alienate them rather than influence?"

Jenna Wolf is a Washington intern with the Boston University News Service

More media articles about the FSP

These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by The Free State Project, a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship, and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see US Code Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 107).

Keene's the hook in Free State commercial

Keene's the hook in Free State commercial

Keene's scenic beauty and vibrant downtown have been selling points for city business owners and politicians for years.

Now, the city's Railroad Square will be featured in a television commercial aimed at luring members of the Free State Project to the Granite State.

Keene resident James G. Maynard, the Free State Project's New Hampshire contact person, has produced and is featured in the commercial, which will begin airing Wednesday. He is joined in the ad by local Free Staters Patricia L. LaPree and Justin Somma.

The Free State Project was formed in 2001 as a movement to bring 20,000 libertarians to one state in hopes of gaining political power. Their tenets include small government, fiscal conservatism and individual freedom. On Oct. 1, the 5,000 members of the project voted to move to New Hampshire. Maynard estimates the group now has about 5,500 members.

"With the lowest crime in the nation, the lowest taxes in the continental U.S., and a part-time citizen legislature, the state of New Hampshire is the ideal place for libertarians and other friends of local, responsible government to relocate," the project's Web site states.

The Keene television commercial – which will air on WNNE Channel 31 throughout western New Hampshire and eastern Vermont, and WPTZ Channel 5 in Western Vermont and eastern New York – is part of a campaign aimed at convincing voters in Killington, Vt., to secede from that state and join New Hampshire. It was filmed last week.

The project has also developed three half-page newspaper ads which have run in the Mountain Times of Killington.

Killington selectmen are urging voters to secede from Vermont because they claim the town is overtaxed by the state. They have discussed rejoining New Hampshire – a move many claim is outrageous.

Vermont Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz said Killington has little chance of secession "absent an armed-insurrection type of thing."

But supporters of the move say the town's restaurants, inns and other businesses send $10 million a year to the state capital in sales, room and meal taxes, but the state returns just $1 million in state aid to Killington.

The town is hit especially hard by a statewide property tax imposed in 1997 to fund schools. Killington, population 1,092, won a Superior Court order that called the state's method of assessing local properties "arbitrary and capricious," but the Vermont Supreme Court reversed that decision. New Hampshire, 25 miles east, has no income tax or sales tax.

Maynard said the commercial attacks Vermont's tax system "in a light-hearted, comical fashion."

He said the message the commercial tries to get across is that state government waste and a burdensome tax system can turn any town into another Killington. Maynard said the commercial serves a dual role in showing people what a great place New Hampshire – and Keene specifically – is to live.

"Keene is a beautiful, beautiful place," Maynard said. "I wouldn't want to do (the commercial) anywhere else."

While the Free State Project has been out of the national media spotlight lately, Maynard said the group has been busy with a "massive reorganization" designed to ease the move to New Hampshire.

"We've been working hard every day," he said. "We're really looking forward to making things better for ourselves, our parents and our children."

Associated Press contributed to this report.

More media articles about the FSP

These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by The Free State Project, a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship, and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see US Code Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 107).

Free Staters to head for the hills of NH

Free Staters to head for the hills of NH

by Palmyra Geraki • Contributing Reporter • 11/04/03

New Hampshire's old motto from the American Revolution – "Live Free or Die" – might soon take on a whole new meaning. At least it will if political science lecturer Jason Sorens and the Free State Project have anything to say about it.

The Free State Project calls for a critical mass of people from around the United States to move to a single state in order to push several objectives: reducing taxes, eliminating economic and governmental regulations, repealing most drug and gun laws and fostering individual liberties.

"There is no intention to take over. Most libertarians really want to work with the governor," President of the Yale College Libertarians Lindsay Bliss '06 said.

The project is not affiliated with the national Libertarian Party even though it champions several Libertarian objectives. The idea for the project started in 2001 when Sorens, who was then a graduate student at Yale, wrote an essay for an online journal delineating the Free State Project idea. Within only a week, he received over 200 positive replies from interested people. He and the others began planning in an Internet forum. Most of the planning for the project has been conducted online since then.

Although Sorens founded the movement, he is currently the Chairman of the project's board of directors, a role he described as less involved.

New Hampshire was chosen from a group of states which included Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming.

"It seemed small, it seemed relatively conservative to begin with which would be easier to work within. It's a pretty nice place," Jonathan Berry '05 said.

Free Staters were looking for a state that was small enough that 20,000 would make a difference, with low campaign spending, so that Free State candidates could compete and a pro-conservative or pro-Libertarian history. New Hampshire's convenient geographical location, low state and local taxes, relatively healthy economy and liberal gun laws helped.

"It's an advantage to have the state in the Northeast. Having Dartmouth College there will be very helpful if they want to attract academic interest," Bliss said.

The Free State Project hopes to attract 20,000 participants to New Hampshire by 2006. But Sorens said he thinks the project will attract even more than 20,000.

"There is nothing magical about the number 20,000. Once we've recruited that many, we'll recruit even more. 20,000 can be described as the minimum number that we are aiming at, the minimum goal. If there are good things going on in New Hampshire more people will be drawn to the state," Sorens said.

Others are more cautious in their predictions.

"It remains to be seen how many people will end up going to New Hampshire," Berry said. "Do I think that enough people will go to New Hampshire to affect real political change? I'm sceptical but hopeful."

Political science professor David Mayhew last year expressed to the Yale Daily News his doubts about the effect that 20,000 people could have, even on a small state. But Sorens said he thinks 20,000 vocal people could have a big impact.

"These people are activists and not [just] voters and presumably they will influence the overall political culture very strongly," Sorens said.

Bliss said she thinks the enthusiasm many Libertarians share will help Free Staters make a difference.

"Libertarians tend to be really passionate about their cause and eager to put themselves in an environment with political freedom," Bliss said.

Sorens said he thinks the project could even spread to other states.

"Some of those policy changes will spread to other states for two main reasons: first, policies that work are frequently adopted by other jurisdictions. Second, the reduction of taxation regulations should enhance economic growth and draw businesses and individuals from other states," Sorens said.

Sorens acknowledged that there will be disagreements on certain issues – such as abortion – goals and strategy among Free Staters since the project itself does not delineate any particular policies.

Sorens said some Free Staters favor working exclusively with the Libertarian party and others advocate working with a Republican caucus.

"[Another] strategy would be to form a non-partisan political organization that would endorse candidates on the bases of their support for concrete legislation. It would endorse candidates from any party that supported that legislation," Sorens said.

Sorens personally favors the last strategy, he said, because he maintains that Libertarians are non-partisan.

"[They] see themselves as outside the electoral spectrum," he said, although he acknowledged that Republicans tend to support Libertarian policy more than Democrats.

Sorens said he expects strategy to unfold over the years. He said he thinks the project will be long-term or have "long-term consequences." Bliss agreed.

"Change in not going to happen overnight," Bliss said.

An article in the New York Times on Oct. 27 suggested that the project could benefit from New Hampshire's high political profile as a state with an early presidential primary.

"The effect will be minor in this round," Sorens said. "Most [Free Staters] are interest in working first with the local and state community. Only in the long run I expect an effect on federal elections."

Sorens said he will "eventually" move to New Hampshire, where he plans to continue teaching. While he called teaching his "real calling," he said he thinks it is not his place to promote his political views in the classroom.

With 5,055 signed members on Nov. 3, the impact the project will have remains to be seen.

More media articles about the FSP

These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by The Free State Project, a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship, and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see US Code Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 107).

Benson gives welcome to Free State

Benson gives welcome to Free State

MANCHESTER – Gov. Craig Benson welcomed members of the Free State Project to New Hampshire on Saturday, saying he was excited about their plans to move to the state and promote their agenda of smaller government.

"We'd love to have you," Benson told several Free Staters at the annual convention of the state Libertarian Party, held at the Highlander Inn.

"We don't have to agree on everything to make things happen. What we have to agree on is that we're going to leave things better than we found them," he said.

The Libertarian Party and the Free State Project share members and political goals: scaling back government, taxes and reliance on public schools.

Saturday marked one month since supporters of the Free State Project announced they had chosen New Hampshire as the stage for their political "revolution." They hope to move 20,000 "liberty-minded individuals" to the state to transform the political system from within.

Some of the project's 5,000 members want to decriminalize drug use and prostitution and lift restrictions on gun ownership and gambling, as well.

Benson said he disagrees with some of those goals, but agrees with the Free Staters on "the important issues."

"What we're standing for is smaller government," he told reporters after his formal remarks.

"They don't want government on their backs, in their businesses, or in their private lives."

In his speech, Benson described various initiatives he has gotten funded by private businesses, as well as two proposed amendments to the state constitution that he supports.

One, dubbed the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, would limit increases in state spending to the rate of inflation, adjusted for increases in population. It also would require a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to increase existing taxes.

Members of the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance, a new political action committee formed by members of the Free State Project living in the state, have already said they probably will support that amendment.

The other proposed constitutional amendment would give the Legislature exclusive control over state spending on education.

State Supreme Court decisions have found the state constitution includes a guarantee of public education for every child, paid for by state taxes. Those decisions led to the statewide property tax for schools.

Benson also called for putting the "passion" back into education, in part by letting students get credit for educational experiences outside classrooms.

He characterized public education standards as inflexible, based on a model of learning everything inside four walls, 180 days a year, six hours a day.

"Why do we make someone like my daughter, who's trying out for the Olympics, take gym class, too?" he said, to vigorous applause.

Kelton Baker, president of the Free State Project, presented Benson with a stuffed toy porcupine – the movement's mascot – after his speech.

"We're very happy and very excited about our work in the state of New Hampshire," he said. "And we're very happy to have a governor who supports us."

More media articles about the FSP

These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by The Free State Project, a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship, and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see US Code Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 107).