This Week: Universal Vouchers and Mandatory School Spending Caps Move Forward
HB 115 & SB 295 – Universal Vouchers
This week, the House and Senate passed their respective universal voucher expansion bills.
HB 115 passed the House, 198 – 180, with every House Democrat and 10 Republicans dissenting.
SB 295 passed the Senate,16-8, with all 16 Republicans supporting the universal voucher bill and all 8 Democrats voting in opposition.
We are grateful for the lawmakers who recognized any expansion of this program will gobble up public tax dollars to subsidize private school tuition for wealthy families. Make no mistake, if universal vouchers become law, property taxpayers will be left to foot the bill and make up for the state’s diversion of public dollars away from public schools.
Both HB 115 and SB 295 were referred to their respective chambers’ Finance Committee. Please look at the rollcall on each bill and reach out to thank your state representative(s) or state senator if they voted against voucher expansion. If they did vote for voucher expansion, let them know that students and property taxpayers can’t afford what we’ve seen happen in other states: wealthy families getting taxpayer dollars to subsidize tuition and expenses at private schools they already attend.
It is important to note the likelihood that voucher expansion efforts will be put into the state budget this year – which as you may remember was how the original program was adopted. State budgets are about choices and our elected officials need to know we expect them to prioritize public schools in their decision making!
HB 675 – Mandatory Per Pupil Spending Caps
On the same day that the House voted to expand the voucher program, they also voted by a narrow margin to adopt a forced school spending cap, 190 – 185. The vote came on the heels of New Hampshire voters rejecting petition warrant article per pupil spending caps in every school district where they were on the ballot.
As amended, this bill would place an arbitrary cap on school district budgets based on inflation and enrollment trends—regardless of real costs like teacher salaries, special education services, or rising utility bills. HB 675 was referred to the House Finance Committee for further fiscal consideration, and we expect it could become a big point of debate during the state budget writing process. Click here to find out if your state representatives supported or opposed HB 675 and stay tuned for future action opportunities!
You can read and share our HB 675 press release on Facebook and Instagram!
Next Week: Major House Floor Votes on Classroom Temperatures and Culture War Bills
HB 329 – Tell Your State Representatives to Address Extreme Temperatures in School Buildings Now!
This week on the floor is a bill heard back in January and finally making its way to the floor that NEA-New Hampshire put forward. HB 329 requires school boards to develop air quality policies and plans to minimize or eliminate poor indoor air quality and temperature conditions. The bill would also require schools to implement the U.S. EPA Tools for Schools program to help provide and maintain good indoor air quality in public school buildings. NEA-NH supported legislation last year to make progress on the issue of air quality and extreme temperatures in schools, but the bill fell short of getting to the governor’s desk. Let’s get a newly revamped bill across the finish line this year to make a positive difference for staff and students. On a party line vote, Republicans on the House Education and Policy Committee recommended to kill this bill so we will need to ask representatives to vote down the motion to kill the bill and then pass it.
HB 10 – So-Called “Parental Bill of Rights”
The House version of a so-called “parental rights” bill is on the floor of the House this week. While an amendment removed any specific penalties to licensed educators, it leaves a series of vaguely stated rights in the bill, some of which already exist and others that are new and undefined. The bill amendment also places confusing and unreasonable timelines on educators to respond to inquiries from parents that are once again designed to force educators to out LGBTQ+ students. HB 10 is a threat to our profession and our students’ wellbeing because we know that the New Hampshire Department of Education will broadly interpret bills like this in order to target educators in the name of the Commissioner’s culture war initiatives.
HB 235 – Code of Conduct Overhaul Bill Requiring Rules Re: “Responsibility to Parents”
This bill would give the NH Department of Education the ability to expand the Educator Code of Conduct to include an unknown set of responsibilities to parents (not just students as it does currently). Coupled with the parental rights bill and the ability for the state board of education to adopt rules, this could be a dramatic expansion of the Code of Conduct that would place a completely unreasonable set of expectations on educators instead of their focus being on their students. This bill is incredibly worrisome since the Code of Conduct is also tied to state licensure and the ability of the DOE to investigate and act on educator licenses.
NEA-NH Bill Tracker
You can also follow all the bills we are watching next week by checking out our NEA-NH bill tracker.
NEA-NH Legislative Advocacy Toolkit
Most of the tools you need to be a legislative advocate for public education are right at your fingertips through NEA-New Hampshire. Check out our new NEA-NH Legislative Advocacy Toolkit here to get all the information you need on how to communicate with your state representatives and senators, support and oppose specific bills, and testify in Concord.
Questions?
If you have questions on any of these bills or ones not mentioned here, please feel free to contact Brian Hawkins, NEA-NH Director of Government Relations at bhawkins@nhnea.org.
Need help signing in on legislation? Follow these comprehensive instructions (details for public hearings are contained in each action request).
For House bills:
1. Visit this link: https://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/remotetestimony/default.aspx
2. Enter your personal information
3. Select the hearing date
4. Select the committee
5. Choose the bill
6. I am – A member of the public
7. Choose who you are representing – Myself
8. Indicate your position on this bill
9. Upload remote testimony (Optional)
10. Review information and click submit
For Senate bills:
1. Go to https://bit.ly/3S4Cof1 and click the date that the bill you are interested in is being heard
2. Select the committee that is hearing the bill
3. Select the bill you are interested in
4. Select a category – Member of the Public
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9. Carefully review the information to ensure it is entered correctly. If it is correct, check the box and click continue.