The School Funding Commission held its first meeting on Jan. 13. A video of the meeting produced by Reaching Higher NH is available here. Below is a brief summary of what took place.
Rep. Dave Luneau was elected Chair of the Commission and asked each member to introduce him/herself. The members who have been appointed to date include:
- NH State Representatives:
- Rep. David Luneau
- Rep. Mel Myler
- Rep. Richard Ames
- Rep. Rick Ladd
- NH State Senators:
- Sen. Jay Kahn
- Sen. Jon Morgan
- Members of the public:
- Iris Estabrook (a former teacher and former legislator who has served on two prior legislative education funding committees) an
- David Ryan (Superintendent of Exeter area schools)
- Corinne Cascadden (Interim Superintendent of Littleton School District; recently retired Superintendent of Berlin School District)
- Jane Bergeron-Beaulieu (Exec. Director of NH Association of Special Education Administrators)
- John Beardmore (Investment Analyst who has previously worked in the Legislative Budget Office and in the Governor’s office)
- William Ardinger (attorney at the Concord law firm of Rath, Young and Pignatelli; has served on the UNH System Board of Trustees)
- An additional three members of the public will be appointed by Chairman Luneau and the Senate President may still appoint one more.
Chairman Luneau emphasized the challenging nature of the work that lies ahead. The Commission was given a very tight timeline to accomplish its work and report back to the legislature with a recommendation for legislation to enact policy. (Current law requires that the Commission submit its report by September 1, 2020, though legislation has been introduced to extend the time by a few months.) He also emphasized that Commission members should approach their task with an open mind as they seek to define the problem and fully understand the challenges of funding public education, without preconceived ideas about solutions.
Other members of the Commission had an opportunity to express their thoughts about the task ahead and to provide some context about their own backgrounds and concerns.
Chairman Luneau stressed his desire that the Commission’s proceedings be transparent and accessible. All meetings will be live-streamed and transcribed on the Commission’s website. (The website does not yet appear to be up and running, but will be accessible from the General Court’s website here.) The public will also have access to minutes of the meeting, once the Commission has staff on board.
In order to enable maximum public participation, some of the Commission’s meetings will be scheduled in different places around the state and meetings will include opportunities for public comment. In addition, the Commission will plan community conversations around the state, to “listen to people talk about the challenges of funding education.” Chairman Luneau suggested that the Commission might want to partner with the UNH Carsey School of Public Policy and/or the National Conference of State Legislatures, which could help coordinate and implement these efforts by the Commission. He said that he hoped representatives from those organizations will be present at the next Commission meeting.
The Next Commission Meeting: 1/27/20
The next meeting of the Commission will be held on January 27 at 2:00 p.m. in the Legislative Office Building, 33 N. State St., Concord, NH, rooms 210-212. To watch live proceedings of that meeting, check the Commission’s website, which may be accessed from here. If the website is not yet up and running, try Reaching Higher NH’s Facebook page.
Upcoming “School Funding and Property Taxes 101” Presentations:
Marlow, NH: Thursday, March 5 at 7:00 p.m. at John Perkins Elementary School, Route 10, Marlow NH [Sponsored by Marlow NH Community Advocates, Friends of Perkins Academy, Marlow School District, Marlow Select Board, SAU 29, Langdon Select Board, Fall Mountain Regional School District(Acworth, Alstead, Charlestown, Langdon, and Walpole)] It is free of charge and open to the public.