Please vote HB 1816 Inexpedient to Legislate. Focus on votes to ensure the State of New Hampshire meet its constitutional obligation to provide an adequate education. After that, then focus on fixing special education funding. No school district should spend 15% to 48% of its budget on special education costs. The state needs to meet those catastrophic costs... not property taxpayers. Thank you.
HB1816
House · 2026 sessionRepublicanSigned into lawSchool district financial emergency intervention
AIAllows the commissioner of education to initiate and implement a district recovery plan when a school district's financial and operational condition is deemed a financial emergency and requires the state school board to establish rules for vetting business administrator candidates.
(New Title) relative to the intervention of the department of education into a school or school district during a financial emergency and requiring the state school board to establish rules governing the vetting of school district business administrator candidates.
Status
Signed into law · July 16, 2026- ✓Introduced
- ✓House
- ✓Senate
- ✓Governor
- ✓Law
Division of testimony
143 submissionsPlease vote HB 1816 Inexpedient to Legislate. Focus on votes to ensure the State of New Hampshire meet its constitutional obligation to provide an adequate education. After that, then focus on fixing special education funding. No school district should spend 15% to 48% of its budget on special education costs. The state needs to meet those catastrophic costs... not property taxpayers. Thank you.
The state has no place in forcibly taking over our school districts and negating our votes. The citizens of the district are supposed to be in charge.
I strongly oppose this bill. I do not believe in state take-over of town or district management.
The NHEd and DRA should assist and offer help to schools with fiscal issues but, a take over of schools is like the budget cap you keep trying to push through..it is against local control and community oversight for the public schools.. Solve the education funding issue, follow the court orders, stop the out of control vouchers and maybe public education in NH might once again thrive like it did before the war on public schools arrived.
Do not vote to allow the NH Department of Education to take over the operation of a school district. Parents and district tax payers must be included in decisions about their schools. Do something about adequate state funding of schools instead.
Remember who pays the taxes; they should have some control.
This seems like unnecessary overreach. We have elected school boards who have resolved such problems for many years. Stay in your own lane, we need you there!!!
I oppose this bill on principle for the good of NH school districts.
The department of education and the Governor have created a disaster for public schools. Now we should trust the department to intervene? No thanks. How about funding the schools and stop siphoning off the money for unaccountable religious institutions?
The Dept of Education should have no place in usurping the rights of local school districts.
I'm opposed to this bill - It would allow the Dept. of Education to take over a school district and leave out communities and parents from any decision-making. Schools need to be under local control, but follow certain state regulations.
This bill would remove decision making from local parents and communities.
Giving the Department of Education the authority to intervene in a school or school district during a financial emergency as well as the authority to require the school district to renegotiate its employment contracts and reallocate its resources would exclude parents and communities from decision making.
State intervention may be necessary in genuine financial emergencies to protect students’ access to education, but it must be narrowly tailored, transparent, and respectful of local governance and community input.
No State takeovers of local school districts, and no State power over local contracts!
I can't believe I have to say this in the State of New Hampshire, but: stop stripping away local power! It's what makes this state great.
This is unconstitutional, according to a recent press release from the Secretary of State. An error appears in Part II, Article 83, of the NH State Constitution where the word “or” was mistakenly replaced with “of” in many printed and online versions over the past several decades. That small change materially alters the meaning of a clause that limits how state tax dollars may be used.
I strongly oppose HB 1816. This bill allows the state to step in and take control of local school districts after years of underfunding them. The Legislature creates the financial crisis, shifts costs to local property taxpayers, and then uses that crisis as justification for intervention rather than meeting its constitutional obligation to fund public education.
Position recorded without written comment.
Position recorded without written comment.
Position recorded without written comment.
Position recorded without written comment.
Position recorded without written comment.