HB749

I oppose this bill

We don’t need politicians dictating the minutiae of standards and competencies in the classroom. Curriculum is set by school boards and taught by teachers, not done by the ideology of particular politicians in the state house. I oppose this massive overreach that also smacks of McCarthyism.

Please oppose HB 749. Curriculum decisions are made by local school boards, not by our legislators, so this bill is not appropriate. Have you researched whether high schools include instruction on the nature and history of communism already?

This is too micro-managing to require certification of one hour of a particular study. What if every hour of instruction required certification. Think of all the paperwork generated by teachers. They don't have time for such nonsense.

I opposed this bill. We don’t need legislators micromanaging what is taught in local high schools; those decisions are best made by local school boards.

I’m writing today to urge you to continue the independence and integrity of the Office of Consumer Advocate by maintaining it as a separate body from the Department of Energy or the Public Utilities Commission. The Office of Consumer Advocate has a unique structure that supports a perspective focused on serving the many and diverse needs of residential ratepayers. For many years I attended the Residential Ratepayers Advisory Board (RRAB) meetings in person (and online during Covid). Although I’m less able to attend meetings due to family obligations, I still appreciate reading through the documents the OCA’s office produces related to legislation and dockets at the Public Utilities Commission. As a clean energy advocate, retired engineer, and activist, I have always been proud of the way New Hampshire’s PUC treated us and permitted our participation in dockets for which we had standing as customers. The OCA was a kind of champion for we lowly consumers. While he never would side with us on the basis of climate considerations, he was quick to point out that we had a right to be heard and to hear (this came up when we had to leave the room when utilities were discussing “sensitive business of a competitive nature.”) and see as much unredacted information as possible. The Office of the Consumer Advocate answers to the Governor, Legislative Body and the RRAB. The RRAB consists of nine members appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the House and Senate President to advocate for the interests of residential ratepayers, small business owners, low income, elderly and disabled consumers and the environment. The OCA should be able to launch a challenge or hire consultants to render a second opinion on dockets and projects supported by the PUC or the DOE that will have a lasting impact on consumers. It reminds me of the stranded costs associated with the scrubber on the Bow coal plant that we continue to pay. The OCA resisted saddling ratepayers with the cost overruns of the Burgess wood plant. Who will fight for us in the future if it means going up against their bosses? The OCA is a bulwark against regulatory capture. The OCA is constantly reminding all the lawyers for the utilities and energy companies that it is the consumer who ultimately foots the bill. I respectfully request that you deny any attempt to dismantle the OCA and RRAB. It is giving the residential and small business consumers of New Hampshire a voice.

While an understanding of communism may be desirable as part of a well rounded education, conditioning the receipt of a high school diploma or certificate of completion on a prescribed amount of time teaching it adds yet another burden on public and private schools and students by micro-managing what must be taught. This subject would normally be part of a civics or history course.

Small government does not mean that the state should fit inside a classroom, micromanaging the content teachers use.

Let's allow the teachers to teach. This is unnecessary and only about politics.

There is such hypocrisy in legislating additions to public school curriculum requirements, while actively working to defund public education.

We do not need this kind of micro-managing from the state legislature - curriculum decision should to be made by local school boards in consultation with school professionals and parents.

I can not see how NH legislators should be influencing details of school curricula. Leave details of curricula to educators and those with extensive experience in designing curricula.

OPPOSE HB749 Stop micromanaging what is taught in high schools! Let the teachers use their professional knowledge and expertise develop the appropriate curriculum. Robin Helrich Hopkinton

HB 749 would micromanage what is taught in local school districts. Upending local control of our public schools goes against NH's long history of communities overseeing their own schools. HB 749 is an ill-conceived and inappropriate piece of legislation. I respectfully ask that this bill be appropriately labelled INEXPEDIENT TO LEGISLATE. Thank you.

Let local school boards and teachers decide what's taught in schools.

Decisions about high school curriculum should be made by local school boards, teachers and administrators.

We don’t need legislators micromanaging what is taught in local high schools

It's time to stop dictating the curriculum in the classroom.

This bill is unspecific and provides no substantive standards for what qualifies under this requirement, though I imagine the drafters are not intending that The Communist Manifesto be thus added to our high school reading lists. One hour of instruction on any particular topic is truly laughable, especially on something as complex and multifaceted as political theory and ideology. The only type of content that can be compressed into so short a format is pure propaganda, plain and simple. As written, it’s clear that the sponsors intend to re-institute McCarthyism, prevent students from thinking freely and according to their own values, and stifle political opposition, now and in the future.

While an understanding of communism may be desirable as part of a well rounded education, conditioning the receipt of a high school diploma or certificate of completion on a prescribed amount of time teaching it adds yet another burden on public and private schools and students by micro-managing what must be taught.

More regulation for teachers- no! They almost always teach this already.

I oppose this bill. While an understanding of communism may be a desirable part of a well rounded education, making this a mandatory requirement to receive a high school diploma adds yet another burden on public and private schools and their students by dictating what needs to be taught and for how much time.

There is no requirement for legislators to have a degree in education, so how can legislators in Concord dictate how teachers teach? Legislators know little to nothing about pedagogy, current evidence-based teaching and learning methods. Just like those in our State House prefer local control, we in the towns prefer to have our own School Board Members, Administration Leadership Teams, Teachers, Parents and students controlling what and how our local curriculums are taught. Our local communities create detailed descriptions of the qualities desired in all local graduates. This then informs our strategic plans that design both our curriculums and our local school budgets. Please vote ITL on this bill as it is a HUGE overreach over local control.

Local school districts are responsible for adopting curriculum. The state legislature should not be mandating it centrally from Concord.

Too many state mandates for what history teachers must teach will lead to more mandates, creating more conflict between teachers, parents, school administrators, and voters. We need to trust our teachers so that they can focus their energy on teaching, not on following the latest rules.