Karen Liot Hill
NH Executive Councilor
Affordability
Accountability
Good Government
AFFORDABILITY
Before I was on the City Council, before I was Mayor, before I served as Grafton County Treasurer, and before I was elected to the Executive Council, I was a waitress. I know what it feels like to work hard, stand on your feet all day, count your tips at the end of a shift, and hope there is enough to pay the bills.
Later on, as the owner-operator of the Lebanon Diner, I learned the meaning of a dollar from another perspective. I know what it feels like to watch expenses rise, to hope customers walk through the door, and to make sure there are enough dollars in the bank to cover payroll at the end of the week.
This is why affordability is so important to me.
Families across New Hampshire are feeling squeezed. Housing costs too much. Child care costs too much. Groceries cost too much. Property taxes keep going up. Government should be helping make life more affordable -- not more expensive.
ACCOUNTABILITY
And that’s why accountability is so important to me.
When the state wastes money, taxpayers pay the price. When the state fails to plan responsibly, taxpayers pay the price. And when state government lowers costs - on paper - by shifting responsibility down to cities, towns, and school districts, local property taxpayers pay the price.
As Executive Councilor, my job is reading the contracts. Asking questions. Looking carefully at how taxpayer money is spent. Making sure state government is accountable to the people who pay the bills.
GOOD GOVERNMENT
When I was six years old, my mother died. My father suddenly found himself raising three young children while trying to keep both our family and his small business together. Social Security helped keep our family afloat during one of the hardest times in our lives.
Years later, when I was a young single mother and college student, my daughter was born ten weeks premature. She spent five weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit. Medicaid paid for the care that saved her life and gave me the chance to finish school and build a future for our family.
I know first-hand the power of good government to improve people’s lives. That’s why I’ve dedicated my career to public service and why I’m running for re-election.
BOARDS & COMMITTEES
Vital Communities - helped with succession planning and strategic planning, still serve on Nominating Committee
​
Wise - helped transition organization from rented space to permanent facility on Bank Street
Leadership Upper Valley - have led Government & Politics Day for 10 years
New Hampshire Municipal Association - statewide advocacy organization for cities and towns
Lebanon Middle School Parent Teacher Organization (LMS PTO) - past president, fostered increased coordination and collaboration between parents and admin
First Baptist Church of Lebanon - former songleader for 15+ years
Lebanon Energy Advisory Committee - founding member (was created as part of Lebanon's participation in US Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement, which I signed as Mayor in 2009)
Westboro Yard Committee (former City Council subcommittee) - worked to secure brownfields grant funding to clean up 2 acres on the north end to create a park
Lebanon Pedestrian & Bicyclist Advisory Committee - City Council representative
Lebanon Outing Club - volunteer lift attendant and concessions for many years
CATV - City Council representative
Grafton County Economic Development Commission - City Council representative
Chaired the City Task Force on the Welcoming Lebanon Ordinance/Fair & Impartial Policing to make recommendations to the City Council
Chaired the City Task Force on Homelessness to make recommendations to the City Council
City Council Governance Subcommittee
Subcommittee for the Implementation of the Master Plan
Lebanon Economic Development Commission - CURRENT City Council representative
Joint City Council/School Board Task Force - CURRENT City Council representative
Young Elected Officials Network - national organization of progressive local, county, and state leaders (honorary member, having aged out at 40 two years ago)
Lebanon, Upper Valley, Grafton County & New Hampshire Democratic Party