By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org
CONCORD – Republican Senators refused to increase the base cost of an adequate education across the state for the next biennium, didn’t go along with many Democratic bills but they all agreed that folks should be able to get booze delivered.
The Senate met Thursday and rejected Democratic-backed bills related to education, firearms and the legalization of cannabis.
SCHOOL FUNDING
Saying it would cost $537 million a year, a motion to kill Senate Bill 582 passed on a vote of 16-8 along party lines.
State Sen. Debra Altschiller, D-Stratham, noted that the measure would move the state closer to compliance with the court order which came after a three-week trial in November, 2023 in which Superior Court Judge David Ruoff ruled that the $4,100 state contribution per student is inadequate and unconstitutional. She said he went further than other courts have done and determined that the state minimum should be $7,356.01.
Altschiller said there has been a full budget cycle “and we have done nothing” to come into compliance even though Republicans have found $51.6 million for education freedom accounts for the 2025-26 school year alone, nearly double the previous year.
Senate Minority Leader Rebecca Perkins Kwoka, D-Portsmouth, asked her if passage of the measure could lead to a reduction in property taxes and Altschiller said “yes.”
State Sen. Regina Birdsell, R-Hampstead, said the state is already spending more than $1 billion in education funding and said the bill was asking for an income tax if passed.
State Sen. Keith Murphy, R-Manchester, said the decisions on raising taxes rests with the legislators not the courts.
Altschiller said the $537 million is not a favor or gift but a constitutional requirement.
She said when senators swear to uphold the constitution they don’t get to choose parts they do or do not want.
Public schools educate 90 percent of the state’s students and they deserve better. She said the state found more than $100 million for “vouchers” and “we can find this in the next budget cycle.”
Known as the “Standing up for Students Act,” supporters said New Hampshire has the lowest state contribution towards public education in the United States.
INCREASED SPECIAL EDUCATION FUNDING NIXED
By a vote of 16-8, Republicans also killed Senate Bill 584-FN which would have increased state contributions to special education funding.
It would have increased it by $450 million from the education trust fund, said Murphy, going from $2,100 per pupil to $16,000 a year on average.
Sen Sue Prentiss, D-Lebanon, said special education funding is a driver of education costs but the federal government does not cover enough.
“Special education is not optional,” she said. “If you haven’t fixed it for 30 years it is going to cost more.”
Sen. Cindy Rosenwald, D-Nashua, reminded fellow senators that this is ignoring a constitutional obligation. She noted the emergency room boarding crisis and a court order compelling the state to take action and that the legislature agreed and spent tens of millions to fix that.
EFAs for CTE
The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 491-FN which would allow students to use education freedom accounts to pay for career and technical education. That now goes to the Senate Finance Committee.
FIREARMS IN SAFE SCHOOL ZONES
A bill that would prohibit carrying firearms in safe school zones was also killed on a vote of 16-8.
Sen. Daryl Abbas, R-Salem, said while the stated goal of SB 463-FN surrounds safety, the question is whether this actually advances that goal. He said it would impact law-abiding citizens, not those who intend to violate the law and will not be deterred by a misdemeanor when they are considering a felony.
Sen. Donovan Fenton, D-Keene, said the bill does not limit the second amendment but draws clear commonsense boundaries around schools and takes the guesswork out of who can have a gun in that zone. He said he is a gun owner and father and those truths are not in conflict with one another.
“This is not about politics. It is about responsibility,” when a child’s safety is at risk, Fenton said.
Altschiller said she finds it upsetting that no progress is being made to protect schools. She said students can’t have guns.
“We can and must do better,” she said. She noted that hundreds and hundreds of constituents signed in support of this bill compared to three dozen who wanted to kill it.
CRITICAL RISK PROTECTION ORDERS
The Senate killed SB 555-FN which would establish a procedure for submitting firearms if people pose a danger to themselves or others.
Abbas said if passed it would fundamentally change how the state handles rights. While well intentioned it would be an infringement on second amendment rights, he said.
Abbas said it should be very clear how a person would get that weapon back and he said he does not feel the bill adequately satisfies those concerns. He said the bill relies heavily on hearsay evidence.
Altschiller said a vote to kill this bill is to do nothing to protect people like Bradley Haas, who was killed as he worked at the NH State Hospital as a security guard. She gave a number of other examples.
She said the bill would allow for a hearing and due process to temporarily remove and restrict weapons and would be “a speed bump,” to slow down an unraveling situation. She noted Maine has just taken action, after the Lewiston massacre involving a disturbed individual.”
“Think about the next tragedy, because it is coming,” she said. “And when it happens…someone’s going to ask us in our districts ‘was there anything that could have been done?’ Yes there was,” she said. “Thirteen of us need to stand up today and say ‘not on my watch…’ that New Hampshire families mean more than a political calculation.”
The roll call vote to kill the bill was 16-8 along party lines.
CANNABIS
Laid on the table on a vote of 15-9 was Senate Bill 651-FN-A which would legalize and regulate cannabis.
Gov. Kelly Ayotte has said she does not support the legalization of cannabis. A motion to lay on the table was made and many Republicans supported it and Democrats opposed it.
Fenton said the public overwhelmingly wants this to pass and this would lower property taxes and create revenue.
E-Z PASS INCREASE COST FOR OUT-OF-STATERS LAID ON THE TABLE
Sen. Denise Ricciardi, R-Bedford, urged her fellow lawmakers to support SB 627-FN relative to toll rate adjustments. The Senate voted to lay the bill on the table.
She said the goal is not to raise taxes for residents while also allowing for more road construction.
Sen. David Watters, D-Dover, said he supported it and it would not increase tolls for any resident who has an E-Z pass and those who don’t could get a pass for free. The out-of-staters will pay more, he said, but still New Hampshire’s toll rate per mile would still be among the lowest in the country.
“This is a way to ensure that we can fund the 10-year highway plan,” he said.
ARTS FUNDING
Passed was SB 633 which establishes a voluntary surcharge program and fund for the division of arts and state council on the arts.
SENT TO INTERIM STUDY, A TAX CREDIT TO SUPPORT LOCAL FARMS
Senate Bill 637 which seeks to incentivize markets to purchase from New Hampshire farms was sent to interim study. Sen. Victoria Sullivan, R-Bedford, said the tax credit bill had raised concerns and is not ready to move forward. She asked for it to be referred to interim study.
Perkins Kwoka said there were some concerns from DRA but there are ways to get around the concerns and she wanted to offer an amendment but on a voice vote, the bill was sent to interim study.
LIQUOR DELIVERED
Senate Bill 524 passed, which would allow liquor to be delivered to customers who order a meal for home delivery.
Sen. Tara Reardon, D-Concord, said the bill would enable on-premise licensees to deliver liquor to customers who order a meal for home delivery. Liquor would be required to be transported in its original container with proper labeling by a W-2 employee.
“This would help to ensure there is a clear chain of custody from the restaurant, the employee that delivered it, and the person who signed it,” she wrote on behalf of the Senate Commerce Committee which voted 6-0 that it ought to pass.
A Committee Amendment would establish a commission to study the development of a regulatory framework for tincture products containing alcohol.
SOUND BARRIER ON I-93
Senate Bill 631 passed, which would install a sound barrier on Interstate 93 in Londonderry near housing. It will be on the southbound side.
STATE NOT PAYING TO BUY DANIEL WEBSTER COLLEGE
The Senate returned to Senate Bill 406 from last week to send a clear message that the state is not going to spend $20 million to buy the land at the former Daniel Webster College in Nashua.
NEXT WEEK NO SESSION
The Senate will not be coming into session next Thursday.