Concord, NH – New Hampshire state lawmakers on Wednesday passed a state budget that funds Cannon Mountain Ski Area through 2013, and in so doing removed a Senate proposal to lease the state-owned resort in Franconia Notch to a private operator.

Negotiators from both the state House and Senate agreed that the matter should be debated in a new bill to be introduced next year.

The issue of privatizing Cannon Mountain, part of Franconia Notch State Park has been discussed in hushed tones for years, but facing necessary budget cuts the legislature this year introduced a bill in an attempt to force the issue. While in years past the ski area consistently lost money, its operations have resulted in annual profits in recent years and by some accounts visitation in 2010-11 set a record. Advocates for privatization argue that while the ski area earned a $1 million profit this winter, the state can’t afford to shell out for necessary capital improvements to the resort. Proponents advocate pumping the proposed lease payments for Cannon Mountain back into the state’s park system. New Hampshire Governor John Lynch has previously voiced his opposition to privatizing Cannon.

The State of New Hampshire actually owns two ski areas. The second, Mount Sunapee in the southern town of Newbury, has been leased since 1998 to Triple Peaks LLC, the family owned conglomerate that owns and operates Okemo Mountain in Ludlow, Vt., and Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado. Profits from that lease are reinvested into Cannon Mountain.