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NOTICE: This opinion is subject to motions for rehearing under Rule 22 as well as formal revision before publication in the New Hampshire Reports. Readers are requested to notify the Reporter, Supreme Court of New Hampshire, One Charles Doe Drive, Concord, New Hampshire 03301, of any editorial errors in order that corrections may be made before the opinion goes to press. Errors may be reported by E-mail at the following address: reporter@courts.state.nh.us. Opinions are available on the Internet by 9:00 a.m. on the morning of their release. The direct address of the court's home page is: http://www.courts.state.nh.us/supreme. THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE ___________________________

Hillsborough-northern judicial district No. 2009-791

CITY OF MANCHESTER v. SECRETARY OF STATE & a.

RYAN CASHIN & a. v. CITY OF MANCHESTER

Argued: June 15, 2010 Opinion Issued: November 10, 2010 City Solicitor's Office, of Manchester (Peter R. Chiesa on the brief and orally), for the City of Manchester. Backus, Meyer & Branch, LLP, of Manchester (Robert A. Backus on the brief and orally), for the petitioners, Ryan Cashin & a.

Michael A. Delaney, attorney general (Glenn A. Perlow, assistant attorney general, on the brief and orally), for defendants Secretary of State, Attorney General and Commissioner, New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration. Joseph Kelly Levasseur, of Manchester, by brief, for the intervenor, N.H. Advantage Coalition. Douglas, Leonard & Garvey, P.C., of Concord (Charles G. Douglas, III on the brief), for Concord Taxpayers Association, as amicus curiae. Wadleigh, Starr & Peters, PLLC, of Manchester (Dean B. Eggert and Gregory M. Sargent on the brief), for New Hampshire School Administrators Association, as amicus curiae. Fred S. Teeboom, non-lawyer representative appearing by approval of the Supreme Court under Rule 33(2), on the brief and orally, for Nashua Taxpayers Association, as amicus curiae. HICKS, J. These consolidated cases challenging the legality of a proposed amendment to the City of Manchester's charter are before us on interlocutory transfer without ruling from the Superior Court (O'Neill, J.). See Sup. Ct. R. 9. We conclude that the amendment is invalid. The following facts are recited in the interlocutory transfer statement or are supported by the record. On July 30, 2008, the city clerk for the City of Manchester (City) received a charter amendment petition that proposed amending the City's charter to limit annual budget increases "to the change in the National Consumer Price Index

Download 2009-791, City of Manchester v. Secretary of State & a.; Ryan Cashin & a

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