The House Republican Alliance has sent a letter to House Speaker Terie Norelli arguing that she should remove two committee chairwomen that are responsible for the budget deficit.

"The state's financial troubles are largely the result of irresponsible and expansive spending initiatives and irresponsible revenue projections promoted by the two past chairs of Finance and Ways and Means, Representatives Marge Smith and Susan Almy, respectively," the Republican Alliance wrote to Norelli on Thursday.

Norelli announced last week that she decided to reappoint Smith to be chair of the Finance Committee, while Almy was reappointed head of the Ways and Means Committee. An email requesting comment from Norelli's office had not be returned as of this posting.

The Republican Alliance also argued that Smith and Almy ignored economic predictions that indicated a downturn in the economy and "instead Representative Smith charged ahead and developed a budget that increased spending by 17.5%, characterizing it as fiscally responsible and transparent."

The letter continued, "Representative Almy consistently promoted revenue estimates that were irresponsibly generous and proved grossly inaccurate, despite warnings from leaders from both parties."

The House Republican Alliance is a caucus of House Republicans dedicated to promoting a fiscally conservative message and includes state Rep. D.J. Bettencourt (R-Salem) and state Rep. Nancy Elliott (R-Merrimack).