A committee of the New Hampshire Legislature has recommended $47 million in cuts to social services, the courts, the environment and prisons.
The House Finance Committee voted Wednesday on what lawmakers consider to be the first phase of cuts to close what could be a state revenue shortfall of $132 million next year.
Under the proposal, public workers would have to pay a bigger share of their retirement for one year, disabled adults would wait longer for services and schools would lose dropout prevention money.
Finance Committee chairman Rep. Marjorie Smith of Durham says there was no way around making cuts that hurt those who depend on the state the most, but there were efforts to spread the burden by cutting funding for arts and cultural programs.