This Week’s Recap: Open Enrollment Fails to Pass House—and What to Expect Next
After a great deal of debate and concern expressed by New Hampshire voters and communities across the state, the New Hampshire House failed to pass SB 101, the mandatory open enrollment bill, by a vote of 168-184. The House then tabled the bill; with the deadline having passed to act on it, that means this open enrollment mandate proposal is effectively dead.
However, another open enrollment bill is still in play. As you may recall, HB 751 was originally intended to be fast tracked back in January. After public backlash, it was held back in a Committee of Conference. That group of policy makers has until May 28 to meet to discuss further changes to HB 751 and find a compromise on open enrollment. Then, each Chamber would need to pass their compromise before it goes to Governor Ayotte. We'll keep you updated on open enrollment as things continue to develop.
Next Week – Important Bills Impacting Your Local School Budget Process
No rest for the weary, as we have a few major hearings being held in Senate Election Law and Municipal affairs that would have a negative impact on your local school district budgets. Please sign in and/or write in against these anti-public education bills; if you’re on break this week, it would be great to have you join us in Concord for one of the hearings!
HB 1300: Mandatory Biennial Tax Cap Vote Hearing Tuesday – PLEASE OPPOSE!
As recently amended, HB 1300 would require that at every even-year November General Election, a local school district budget cap question would be placed alongside each community’s state ballot. This follows the House Republican leadership’s failed attempt to artificially cap school budgets across the state (HB 675). Just like that effort, this amendment specifically targets school districts with arbitrary caps that don’t address the real issue of public education funding inequities in our state.
Let’s be clear—we don’t want or need state politicians to hurt public services by forcing budget cap votes on our communities every two years.
PLEASE REGISTER YOUR OPPOSITION TO HB 1300 (Public Hearing is April 28 at 9:30am in Room 122-123 of the State House – Sign in instructions below)
HB 1355: Eliminating Default Budgets
HB 1355 would remove the default budget as a backup option to a school or town budget failing at the annual meeting. Instead, if no operating budget article is adopted, the town or school district would automatically have an operating budget equal to the previous year’s approved budget, unless a special meeting is subsequently scheduled. This is another attempt to artificially hamstring local school budgets without the ability for voters to meet the rising costs that are beyond their control.
PLEASE REGISTER YOUR OPPOSITION TO HB 1355 (Public hearing is April 28 at 10:15am in Room 122-123 of the State House – Sign in instructions below)
April Break Public Education Day at the State House on 4/28
Please join NEA-NH and public education advocacy ally organizations on Tuesday, April 28th for a Public Education Day at the State House. The day includes briefings on the critical education issues facing New Hampshire, followed by opportunities for skill building, issue workshops, State House tours, and meetings with elected officials. Based on the State House calendar for the day, there may also be opportunities to participate in public hearings or attend Committee meetings. During our time together, we will gather at the State House for a public education group photo and have ample time for conversation with each other and leading public education partners as we work toward a strong future for public schools. Mark your calendar and click here to register for Public Education Day at the State House on 4/28!
NEA-NH Action Center
Most of the tools and information you need to be a legislative advocate for public education are right at your fingertips through NEA-New Hampshire. Check out our NEA-NH Action Center to get all the information you need about issues we’re tracking at the State House, how to communicate with your lawmakers, and how to take action on specific bills.
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 [email protected].
Need help signing in on legislation? Follow these comprehensive instructions (details for public hearings are contained in each action request).
For House hearings:
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 hearings:
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
5. Indicate your position on this bill
6. Click continue
7. Enter your name and contact information
8. Click continue
9. Carefully review the information to ensure it is entered correctly. If it is correct, check the box and click continue.
