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.

CONCORD, N.H. — A town official in New Hampshire is facing civil rights charges from the state attorney general’s office for allegedly stealing a Pride sign because of his animus toward the LGBTQ+ community.

Frank T. Hobbs Jr., who is listed as vice chair of the Goffstown Budget Committee, allegedly plucked the “Goffstown Pride” sign from alongside an intersection last summer, leaving behind “numerous” other signs, according to a legal complaint New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella’s office filed this week in the Hillsborough County Superior Court northern district.

Hobbs, 56, was caught taking the sign on June 5 because the person who lawfully placed it there on public property had also left behind a trail camera to monitor the area after prior incidents of sign theft, according to the complaint.

When a local police officer began investigating, Hobbs argued with the officer and asked whether it’s illegal to pick up “roadside trash,” according to the complaint.

Hobbs told the officer he had been advised he can remove signs that display “pedophile symbols,” and he removed the “Goffstown Pride” sign because he found it offensive, like a “pedophile” sign, according to the complaint.

The complaint alleges two violations of the New Hampshire Civil Rights Act. One accuses Hobbs of trespassing and the other accuses him of damaging the sign.

“The trespasses and property damage violated the Civil Rights Act because they were motivated by Defendant’s animus toward sexual orientation and/or gender identity,” the complaint says.

Leslie M. Gill, an attorney who has represented Hobbs in a related criminal case, did not answer questions from The Boston Globe.

Hobbs, who works as a financial adviser, was elected to a three-year term on the town’s budget committee in 2022. He did not respond to an email seeking comment.

The victim who reported that their sign had been stolen did not respond to a request for comment.

Each alleged civil rights violation comes with a $5,000 maximum civil penalty, according to the attorney general’s office, which has asked the court to issue a preliminary injunction barring Hobbs from engaging in or threatening physical force, violence, or trespassing against anyone based on their protected characteristics, including sexual orientation, gender identity, and more.

This case against Hobbs as an individual comes as Formella’s office is also pursuing civil rights charges against a group accused of anti-LGBTQ+ intimidation at a drag queen story hour event.

Prosecutors are asking the judge to prohibit Hobbs from contacting the alleged victim directly or indirectly or going within 350 feet of their person, home, or workplace.

Hobbs was arrested in July by the Goffstown Police Department. He was charged in Goffstown District Court with one misdemeanor count that he stole a “Goffstown Pride” sign worth less than $1,000, but that charge was dropped in November, according to court records.

Hillsborough County Attorney John J. Coughlin did not respond to an email seeking comment on why the misdemeanor charge was dropped.

The location where the sign theft is alleged to have occurred, at the intersection of Route 114 and Route 114A in Goffstown, was a popular spot for political signs ahead of the 2024 general election. Hobbs was among those who stood with fellow supporters for Donald J. Trump on that corner on Oct. 11, with signs and flags supporting the candidacy of the now-president-elect.

Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.

A Southwest Airlines pilot from New Hampshire was arrested in Georgia Wednesday, removed from the cockpit of a plane that was getting ready to take off.

David Paul Allsop, 52, of Bedford, New Hampshire, was booked into jail and charged with driving under the influence.

Passengers said they were getting ready to take of from Savannah when the plane stopped and police boarded the aircraft.

“[The officer] went into the cockpit,” passenger Robert Newmerch recounted. “He walked back out of the plane, came back a couple minutes later, and the pilot left with him.”

Southwest Airlines said they Allsop has been removed from his role

“We’re aware of a situation involving an Employee on Flight 3772 Wednesday from Savannah,” a Southwest spokesperson said in a statement. “The Employee has been removed from duty. Customers were accommodated on other flights, and we apologize for the disruption to their travel plans. There’s nothing more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Employees and Customers.”

“My shoes are coming off,” Newmerch said. “How is a pilot getting through anywhere with any type of alcohol in his system whatsoever?”

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