Letter to the Editor:
Glenn Cordelli wrote in a past letter to the Granite State News “ …nobody has answered my request to name any New Hampshire public school that has not received the money they are entitled to under state law. I am waiting.”
Here you are, Mr. Cordelli -- the answer is ALL NH public schools are not receiving the money they are entitled to from the state. (Yes, I have left out the word 'law' because the governing source for the state's obligation is the NH state constitution.)
After 40 years the state is still falling short of meeting its obligation. As a result, school districts keep suing the state and local property taxes in many towns are way too high.The legislature has tried many strategies, even avoiding the problem altogether by proposing an amendment to the constitution. (It did not pass.) But decades later, they're still far from meeting their obligation.
Indicative of this continuing problem - seven out of ten Republican Education Committee members receive funds from the Young Americans for Liberty out of texas. One of the goals of this group is voucher programs, using public funds to pay for individual students to attend private and religious schools. The YAL vision: "... liberty legislators at the state level who will advance a pro-liberty philosophy, ascend to higher office, and reclaim the direction of our government." I encourage you to learn about their 'liberty' philosophy.
Rep Cordelli was a sponsor of NH's Education Freedom Accounts which are costing the state many times more than budgeted -- and growing. What is the funding mechanism for EFA's? It's the EducationTrust Fund whose purpose was ".... to distribute adequate education grants to school districts." Even though the legislature is still not meeting their millions from the ETF to pay for individual students to go to private, religious or home schools.
Parents receive 100 percent of the state’s adequacy funding, plus added $, for their child(ren). Since when did we consider public tax dollars belonging to individuals, and distribute cash directly to parents? If this is now the case then should everyone who pays property taxes (which include local and state education taxes) be able to apply for these funds to pay their education costs? Or if I'm sick can I apply to Health and Human Services to receive my tax dollars back in order to pay my medical bills? I know to many this sounds ludicrous but to others there's a disconnect between public tax dollars and Education Freedom funds as well.
Additionally galling is legislators constantly adding more state mandates for public schools but not including those mandates in the definition of an adequate education and not requiring charter schools to abide by them. If it is so important the state mandates it -- then it is important enough to be included in the adequacy definition and for charter schools to abide by.
It needs to be noted, there are numerous plans which allow the state to meet it's adequacy funding obligation without establishing an income tax or sales tax. Don't believe this scare tactic. And yes NH residents, this will reduce local property taxes for many of us. .
Mr Cordelli, focus on solving adequacy funding, eliminating unfunded mandates, and lowering property taxes for residents.
Karen Burnett-Kurie
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