The bills listed below are from the 2021 legislative session. House members may file new legislation in mid-September, with a full list of bills available in early November. Senate members file new legislation in late October, with a full set available in early December. Stay tuned for more information about 2022 bills!
Funding for an Adequate Education Property Tax Relief Constitutional Matters
HB 608
Title
Relative to the formula for determining funding for an adequate education
Description
As introduced, this bill would make a variety of changes to the formula used to determine adequacy aid, including adding fiscal disparity aid on a permanent basis, and would require municipalities to remit the full amount of the statewide property tax to the state. It also stipulates that, beginning in FY 2022, education grants to municipalities would not be less than the grant each received in the prior year.
Sponsor(s)
Representatives Steven Smith (R-Charlestown, Sullivan 11), Rick Ladd (R-Haverhill, Grafton 4), Judy Aron (R-South Acworth, Sullivan 7), Skip Rollins (R-Newport, Sullivan 6), John Potucek (R-Derry, Rockingham 6), Walter Spilsbury (R-Charlestown, Sullivan 8)
Status
House Education Committee voted 12-8 to recommend the bill as inexpedient to legislate on Thursday, October 14
HB 623
Title
Relative to education funding
Description
This bill would ensure that education grants to municipalities in FY 2022 and FY 2023 would not be less than the grant each received in FY 2021.
Sponsor(s)
Representative David Luneau (D-Hopkinton, Merrimack 10)
Status
House Finance Committee voted to retain the bill by a 12-9 vote on Tuesday, February 16
SB 135
Title
Relative to the calculation of the cost of an opportunity for an adequate education
Description
This bill would require the Department of Education to use the higher of a school district’s or a town’s average daily membership in attendance (ADM-A) for 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 in determining the cost of an adequate education for FY 2022.
Sponsor(s)
Senators Erin Hennessey (R-Littleton, 1), Chuck Morse (R-Salem, 22), Sharon Carson (R-Londonderry, 14), Jeb Bradley (R-Wolfeboro, 3), David Watters (D-Dover, 4), Gary Daniels (R-Milford, 11), Regina Birdsell (R-Hampstead, 19), Kevin Avard (R-Nashua, 12), Bob Giuda (R-Warren, 2), James Gray (R-Rochester, 6), Ruth Ward (R-Stoddard, 8), Bill Gannon (R-Sandown, 23), Harold French (R-Franklin, 7), Cindy Rosenwald (D-Nashua, 13), Denise Ricciardi (R-Bedford, 9), Rebecca Whitley (D-Concord, 15), Rebecca Perkins Kwoka (D-Portsmouth, 21), Tom Sherman (D-Rye, 24); Representatives Rick Ladd (R-Haverhill, Grafton 4), Troy Merner (R-Lancaster, Coos 7), Edith Tucker (D-Randolph, Coos 5)
Status
Senate passed the bill by a 24-0 vote on Thursday, February 18
House Education Committee voted to retain the bill on Thursday, May 20
Provisions of SB 135 were incorporated into HB 2, which was enacted into law on Friday, June 25
SB 145
Title
Relative to a temporary change in the formula for school funding
Description
This bill would make a variety of changes to the formula used to determine adequacy aid for the coming fiscal year (FY 2022), suspending increases to account for inflation for one year, extending fiscal disparity aid for one year, and establishing floors for the attendance figures used to calculate aid at pre-pandemic levels.
Sponsor(s)
Senators Jay Kahn (D-Keene, 10), David Watters (D-Dover, 4), Donna Soucy (D-Manchester, 18), Kevin Cavanaugh (D-Manchester, 16), Tom Sherman (D-Rye, 24), Cindy Rosenwald (D-Nashua, 13), Suzanne Prentiss (D-West Lebanon, 5), Rebecca Perkins Kwoka (D-Portsmouth, 21); Representatives Mel Myler (D-Contoocook, Merrimack 10), David Luneau (D-Hopkinton, Merrimack 10)
Status
Senate Education Committee voted 4-1 to recommend the bill as inexpedient to legislate on Monday, October 18
SB 158
Title
Relative to the formula for funding an adequate education
Description
This bill would seek to institute select recommendations from the Commission to Study School Funding, including increasing the base adequacy grant and instituting weighted student amounts (e.g. for English language learners, student enrollment, enrollment in certain grades, etc.), reinstating the SWEPT as a statewide tax, and mandating minimum local contributions of 7.5 mils. It would also set the rate of the SWEPT at 2 mils and would strengthen the existing low- and moderate-income homeowners property tax relief program.
Sponsor(s)
Senator Jay Kahn (D-Keene, 10); Representatives Mel Myler (D-Contoocook, Merrimack 10) and David Luneau (D-Hopkinton, Merrimack 10)
Status
Senate voted the bill inexpedient to legislate by a 15-9 vote on Thursday, March 18
HB 486
Title
Relative to eligibility for the low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief program
Description
This bill would increase income eligibility limits for the program to $37,000 for single homeowners and $47,000 for married couples and would raise the limit on the amount of a home’s equalized value eligible for the program to $220,000.
Sponsor(s)
Sallie Fellows (D-Holderness, Grafton 8), Mary Beth Walz (D-Bow, Merrimack 23), Joshua Adjutant (D-Bridgewater, Grafton 17), Edward Gordon (R-Bristol, Grafton 9)
Status
House passed the bill by voice vote on Wednesday, April 7
Senate passed the bill by voice vote on Thursday, May 20
Governor Sununu signed the bill into law on Thursday, July 1
HB 504
Title
Relative to the state education property tax and the low and moderate income homeowners property tax relief program
Description
This bill would improve promotion of the program, would increase income eligibility limits to $55,000 for single homeowners and $70,000 for married couples, would raise the limit on the amount of a home’s equalized value eligible for the program to $150,000, would expand the program to include local school property taxes, and would require municipalities to remit the full amount of the statewide property tax to the state.
Sponsor(s)
Richard Ames (D-Jaffrey, Cheshire 9), David Luneau (D-Hopkinton, Merrimack 10), Mary Heath (D-Manchester, Hillsborough 14), Marjorie Porter (D-Hillsborough, Hillsborough 1)
Status
House Ways and Means Committee voted 24-0 to retain the bill on Tuesday, March 2
CACR 10
Title
Providing that the legislature may overturn any decision of a state court concerning the interpretation of a state law
Description
This measure would amend the New Hampshire Constitution to allow the Legislature, by a simple majority vote of both chambers and without the approval of the Governor, to overturn any decision of a state court concerning the interpretation of state statute. To be enacted, the measure requires approval of three-fifths of each chamber and two-thirds of the voters.
Sponsor(s)
Representative John Lewicke (R-Mason, Hillsborough 23)
Status
House accepted Committee recommendation of inexpedient to legislate by voice vote on Wednesday, February 24
CACR 11
Title
Providing that the legislature has the power to submit a binding referendum on whether to overturn a decision of a state court that interprets a provision of the state constitution
Description
This measure would amend the New Hampshire Constitution to allow the Legislature, by a simple majority vote of both chambers and without the approval of the Governor, to place an initiative on the ballot to overturn a state court decision interpreting the New Hampshire Constitution. To be enacted, the measure requires approval of three-fifths of each chamber and two-thirds of the voters.
Sponsor(s)
Representative John Lewicke (R-Mason, Hillsborough 23)
Status
House accepted Committee recommendation of inexpedient to legislate by voice vote on Wednesday, April 7
HCR 3
Title
Declaring that the Claremont case’s mandates that the legislative and executive branches define an adequate education, determine its cost, fund its entire cost with state taxes, and ensure its delivery through accountability, are not binding on the legislative and executive branches
Description
This measure, which, if adopted, would lack the force of law, seeks to declare that the Legislature and the Governor are not bound by the New Hampshire Supreme Court’s rulings in the two Claremont education funding cases.
Sponsor(s)
Representative John Lewicke (R-Mason, Hillsborough 23)
Status
Judiciary Committee recommended the bill as inexpedient to legislate by a 13-7 vote on Tuesday, March 2
House did not take up the committee’s recommendation prior to its deadline for action, effectively killing the measure