New Hampshire
Should N.H.’s school choice program be open to everyone? – The Boston Globe
Currently, only lower-income families earning up to 350 percent of the federal poverty level are eligible. That works out to about $112,525 for a family of four.
The first public hearing on House Bill 115, which has 10 Republican co-sponsors in the House, in addition to four Republican Senators, was held on Thursday. The bill would remove the household income criteria from eligibility requirements for the program.
“Proposals to expand the State’s over budget, unaccountable voucher program to more than $100 million per year are misguided and will only serve to further harm public school students by cutting into already limited State funds,” Zack Sheehan, executive director of the N.H. School Funding Fairness Project, said in a statement. “Heading into school budget season, I expect to hear a lot about rising costs associated with special education and the challenges of budgeting for those unpredictable costs. Meanwhile, the State barely makes a dent in fulfilling these mandated expenses, and was threatening to leave districts in the lurch for over $16 million in unreimbursed expenses.”
“The State is actively failing to fulfil its constitutional responsibility to adequately fund public education,” he said. “We should be focused on reducing property taxes by shifting more public school funding to the State, not expanding the voucher program.”
But the effort to open the program to more people has the support of Governor Kelly Ayotte.
During her inaugural speech last week, she promised to expand the program and make sure more families can put their children in the learning environment that is best for them.
“We strongly believe in public schools, but they don’t always fit for every child,” she said during a press conference Wednesday.
Ayotte said education freedom accounts have successfully helped children reach their full potential in a variety of learning environments. And while she said she supports universal Education Freedom Accounts, the timing for enacting that change remains hazy.
“I’ll work with the legislature on that as the ultimate goal and what we do over this biennium, I think regardless of whether we get to universal or not, we’ll be expanding those opportunities,” she said.
Efforts to expand the program failed last year.
State revenues are lagging and Republicans have said they are looking at possible areas where they can cut spending. Expanding education freedom accounts wouldn’t be a negligible expense, according to analysis from Reaching Higher NH, a nonprofit education think tank.
The organization’s analysis found universal eligibility for education freedom accounts could cost over $100 million per year. In the 2024-2025 school year, the program cost about $26 million. As of Wednesday evening, 502 people had logged their support of the bill, while 2,061 opposed it through the legislature’s website.
This story first appeared in Globe NH | Morning Report, our free newsletter focused on the news you need to know about New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles from other places. If you’d like to receive it via e-mail Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.
Amanda Gokee can be reached at amanda.gokee@globe.com. Follow her @amanda_gokee.
On January 3, the United States military carried out what the administration called a “large-scale strike” in Caracas, Venezuela’s capital, amid several reported explosions and aerial bombardment.
Tune in to Civics 101 during Here & Now on Thursday, January 8 for a special edition breaking down one of the most unprecedented events in recent international affairs. This segment begins at 1:40 p.m. EST.
Listen to NHPR on your radio, stream us online, or just ask your smart speaker to “play NHPR.” You can also listen to this special episode of Civics 101 on demand.
In this episode, hosts Hannah McCarthy and Nick Capodice break down the history, context, and legality of what’s unfolding now — and what it could mean for Venezuela, the United States, and international law.
New Hampshire
Federal child care funding is being frozen across the country. New Hampshire is at risk.
Penn State OG TJ Stranahan commits to Florida Gators
Georgia Republicans move to scrap state income tax by 2032 despite concerns
Healthier Hawaii: How to protect your hearing; head and neck warning signs you shouldn’t ignore
PUC takes comments on Idaho Power fire mitigation plan | Capital Press
Illinois Democrats express outrage, seek full investigation into ICE fatal shooting of Minnesota woman
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
San Diego sues to stop border barrier construction
How Ukraine is shaping Europe’s response to Trump’s Greenland threats
GOP gearing up to face tough midterms. And, Pentagon reviews women in ground combat
Wyoming Supreme Court rules laws restricting abortion violate state constitution
How strong are Latin America’s military forces, as they face US threats?
-
World1 week agoHamas builds new terror regime in Gaza, recruiting teens amid problematic election
-
News1 week agoFor those who help the poor, 2025 goes down as a year of chaos
-
Science1 week agoWe Asked for Environmental Fixes in Your State. You Sent In Thousands.
-
Business1 week agoA tale of two Ralphs — Lauren and the supermarket — shows the reality of a K-shaped economy
-
Detroit, MI4 days ago2 hospitalized after shooting on Lodge Freeway in Detroit
-
Politics1 week agoCommentary: America tried something new in 2025. It’s not going well
-
Politics1 week agoMarjorie Taylor Greene criticizes Trump’s meetings with Zelenskyy, Netanyahu: ‘Can we just do America?’
-
Health1 week agoRecord-breaking flu numbers reported in New York state, sparking warnings from officials