Happy New Year to all!
As we begin a new legislative session, it’s encouraging to see that one our goals in 2019 has become a reality. Many people contacted their legislators last spring and encouraged them to establish a funded, independent commission to study school funding in New Hampshire. In the end, they did. The budget bill signed last fall included a Commission to Study School Funding to, among other things, “make recommendations to ensure a uniform and equitable design for financing the cost of an adequate education” for NH children. (The full list of responsibilities assigned to the Commission is set forth on pages 79-80 of HB4. )
First Meeting of Commission to Study School Funding
The first meeting of the Commission will be on Monday, January 13 at 10:00 a.m. (Legislative Office Building , 33 N. State St., Concord, NH, in rooms 210-211.) This will be an organizational meeting in which, among other things, the chair of the commission will be chosen.
The meeting will be public, but no public testimony will be taken. We will attend this and all other Commission meetings and report to you on developments. It’s our understanding that the meetings will be live streamed, and we’ll share the link to the live stream once it becomes available.
Members of the Commission
Members of the Commission who have been named so far include:
- Representatives David Luneau, Mel Myler, Richard Ames, and Rick Ladd
- Senators Jay Kahn and Jon Morgan
- Members of the public appointed by the Senate President: Iris Estabrook and David Ryan (Note: the Senate President may appoint one additional member of the public),
- Members of the public appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives: Corinne Cascadden, Jane Bergeron-Beaulieu, and John Beardmore
- The Governor also has the opportunity to appoint a member of the public.
- The person who is elected chair of the Commission at the first meeting will be able to appoint an additional three members of the public to participate.
Meanwhile….Our Work is Not Done!
Public understanding of the school funding issue will continue to be critical as the Commission does its work and, ultimately, issues its report and recommendations to the legislature. Here are two ways you can help:
1. Please consider arranging for us to give a “School Funding and Property Taxes 101” presentation in your community. Presentations are free, though sponsors/hosts are asked to provide a venue and publicize the event. Various different types of organizations may be sponsors, including school districts, public libraries, civic organizations, Rotary Clubs, Chambers of Commerce, etc., and a sponsor may decide whether to make the presentations open to the public or only to its members. Because we are non-partisan, we will not hold a forum sponsored by a single political party, but if a local Democratic group wants to partner with a local Republican group to co-sponsor a bipartisan forum, we’d be happy to make our presentation there.
If you’d like to work on bringing a “School Funding and Property Taxes 101” presentation to your community or organization, please contact us at schoolfundingfairness@gmail.com.
2. We’re looking for volunteers to help with our “School Funding and Property Taxes 101” presentations. If you sign up, you’ll be able to use the PowerPoint slideshow that provides much of the information and helps to structure the talk. We’ll provide you with training and will co-present with you until you feel comfortable going on your own. If you’re interested, please send an email to schoolfundingfairness@gmail.com.
Upcoming presentations
Hill, NH: A “School Funding and Property Taxes 101” presentation sponsored by SAU 103 will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 14 at 6:30 p.m. at 32 Crescent St., Hill, NH. It is free of charge and open to the public.
For additional updates and information:
1. Follow us on Facebook: NHSchoolFundingFairness
2. See our new website at fairfundingnh.org to learn more about the NH School Funding Fairness Project.
3. Check Reaching Higher NH at http://reachinghighernh.org/ for additional resources.