Latest Posts
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Finally, a Budget!
From NH School Funding Fairness Project’s 9/30/19 Newsletter: Finally, the Legislature and Governor have reached a budget deal, and there’s a lot to like! Basically, for…
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A Changing Role for ANHPE
Regular readers will have noticed fewer posts than usual to anhpe.org. Though in recent years we have actively opposed privatization - statewide school vouchers (SB…
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Zip Codes Can Dramatically Limit Future for NH Students
Garry Rayno’s column today in InDepthNH and other papers makes the key point about the impact of insufficient state funding for public education in New Hampshire…
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Update On Budget; Important Public Hearing This Thursday!
As you know, Governor Sununu vetoed the legislature’s budget, and the State is now operating under a “continuing resolution,” meaning that last year’s budget remains in effect. …
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Budget Hearing 8/29: Speak Up for Students, Property Taxpayers and Local Businesses!
Public Hearing: The Effect of the Budget Impasse on Education House and Senate Ad Hoc Budget Committee Thursday, August 29, 10 a.m. (hold a sign…
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A big hurdle remains for Learn Everywhere
The following op-ed by Bill Duncan was published in the Concord Monitor on July 24, 2019. We are at an interesting juncture in the debate…
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NH School Funding Fairness Project Newsletter 7/22/19
As Summer Sizzles, Let’s Turn Up the Heat on the Budget! What’s been happening at the State House There’s still no news on a budget…
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An eloquent reminder of good things happening in our public schools
Sometimes it feels as if public education is under siege. Lately the education news has been mostly about reductions in school funding and the Education…
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Governor’s Budget Veto Hurts Students and Property Taxpayers
The following was published in the Concord Monitor as a “My Turn” piece on July 10, 2019. In the wake of the Governor’s veto of…
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As budget talks continue, keep up the pressure for fair school funding!
NH School Funding Fairness Project Newsletter, July 7, 2019 Now that budget negotiations are taking place behind closed doors, there’s no real news to report. However,…
The New Hampshire Supreme Court has decided nothing about the voucher tax credit program. Why not use that money for a real public purpose?
Here’s my opinion piece on the voucher program as it has appeared in the Concord Monitor, the Portsmouth Herald, the Union Leader and (upcoming) the New Hampshire Business Review.
Before the misunderstanding spreads too far, it is important to point out what the recent New Hampshire Supreme Court decision actually said about the constitutionality of the voucher tax credit law:
Nothing. (more…)
Commentary on the Supreme Court’s voucher ruling runs negative
The New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the plaintiffs did not have the standing to sue, so did not address the underlying constitutional issue of state funding to religious education. Editorial opinion so far does not support the court: (more…)
Statement on the New Hampshire Supreme Court decision on the voucher tax credit progam
We, the plaintiffs, want to thank our attorneys, the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State for their committed work on this very important case to settle the question of whether New Hampshire’s recently passed voucher tax credit program conformed with the requirements of the New Hampshire Constitution.
While we challenged several provisions of the law, the central question was whether our constitutional prohibition against using state funds for religious instruction, even if that funding was provided indirectly in the form of tax credits to businesses who contributed to the program.
New Hampshire Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality of the voucher tax credit program to be handed down Aug. 28 at 9:00AM
The decision will appear here on the Supreme Court decision page.
Gilles Bissonnette, NHCLU, straightens Bobby Jindal out about the consitutionality of private school vouchers in NH
Bobby Jindal thinks New Hampshire presidential primary voters should know what he thinks about whether private school vouchers are constitutional in New Hampshire. (more…)
NH Supreme Court hears the voucher tax credit case
The New Hampshire Supreme Court heard the voucher tax credit case yesterday. Both sides stated their cases clearly and concisely. The justices had many pointed questions and Chief Justice Linda Dalianis complimented the legal teams for the quality of their briefs on this legally complex case. Here is the video of the hearing.
Oral arguments set for April 16 in the voucher tax credit case
The New Hampshire Supreme Court has set 9:30, April 16 as the date for oral arguments in the voucher tax credit case. The hearing will take place at One Charles Doe Drive, Concord, NH 03301.
Each side will have 15 minutes to argue its case.
This year’s voucher tax credit program will be even smaller than last year’s
There was an interesting story in the Union Leader this morning. The headline said, “Half of scholarship cash from business tax credit donations returned,” as if this information that was announced two months ago were news today. And here’s the first paragraph (emphasis added): (more…)
Education tax credit program should be repealed - Concord Monitor
The Concord Monitor gets it right on the voucher tax credit law:
It’s not every day that the attorney general and the governor find themselves publicly at odds over important state policy, but it happened this week – and thank goodness.
At issue is a 2012 law that set up a tax credit program for businesses, essentially rewarding them for donating money to a fund that provides “scholarships” to help some children attend religious or other private schools, receive home-schooling or attend a public school outside their home district. Controversial from the get-go, the program was approved by the Legislature over the veto of then-Gov. John Lynch.
A superior court judge ruled last summer that the program could not be used to support religious school education. And this week Gov. Maggie Hassan weighed in, filing a brief encouraging the state Supreme Court to uphold the lower court ruling – in opposition to the attorney general’s office, which is defending the law.
“The governor treasures the diversity of private schools in our state, and fully appreciates their contributions to tolerance and learning. But the decision to contribute to a private religious school is a personal decision. It should not be supported by the state’s tax structure, and it should not have the effect of diverting scarce taxpayer dollars from crucial public needs,” Hassan said in her brief.
She’s right. The Supreme Court should do as the governor suggests. And, beyond that, the Legislature should pull the plug on the entire program.
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read the rest here:Editorial: Education tax credit program should be repealed | Concord Monitor.
The State’s media: Gov. Hassan urges high court affirm strike down tax credits for religious schools
Here’s Kevin Landrigan in the Nashua Telegraph on the Governor’s amicus brief asking the NH Supreme Court to strike down the voucher bill. The brief itself is here, along with the many other briefs opposing the law.
CONCORD – Gov. Maggie Hassan urged the state’s highest court Monday to strike down a state law that gives business owners tax credits to support religious school scholarships.
In a brief filed by her lawyers, Hassan said Strafford County Judge John Lewis rightly decided tax credits supporting religious schools violated separation of church and state.
“The education voucher tax credit program is a misguided policy that undermines New Hampshire’s public education system and violates our state’s constitutional separation of church and state,” Hassan said in a statement.
Advancing New Hampshire Public Education 