CONCORD, NH, April 6, 2023 – The New Hampshire House of Representatives passed their version of the budget today, HB 2, voting to approve a much-improved product from what the House Finance committee originally voted out.
“The education funding formula approved today delivers more aid to some of the communities who need it most,” said Megan Tuttle, NEA-New Hampshire President. “We are also pleased that school voucher expansion language was removed from HB 2, and that spending on the program was moderated in the agreement voted on today.”
“We look forward to working with the Senate to ensure that the doors are not blown wide open on voucher expansion. The current program still has not established the necessary guardrails or transparency for taxpayers, even though it is expending public tax dollars for private schools,” said Tuttle.
NEA-NH is still very concerned that changes made to the Education Trust Fund were not removed and will be advocating strongly to see that the Trust Fund is made whole when the budget goes to the Senate.
“Budgets should fund our priorities and serve as the means to reach the vision and goals we share as a state,” said Tuttle. “Much more needs to be done to ensure that New Hampshire is doing everything it can to help recruit and retain educators. We are committed to seeing these kinds of initiatives make their way through the Senate to address this pressing need.”