SENATOR PRESENTS SCHOOL FUNDING PLAN TO THE HOUSE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                   Tuesday, April 1, 2008

 Contact: Senator Iris Estabrook

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SENATOR PRESENTS SCHOOL FUNDING PLAN TO THE HOUSE

CONCORD – Senator Iris Estabrook (D-Durham) presented her school funding legislation to the House Education Committee today.

“This bill is the result of a thorough and data-driven process to identify the costs included under our new definition of an adequate education. The Senate has passed a well thought-out plan that meets the requirements set out by our Supreme Court and is sound educational policy,” Estabrook said.

Senate Bill 539 allocates aid per pupil based on “universal” costs required in all schools while recognizing that some schools need additional aid to cope with the challenges of higher concentrations of economically disadvantaged pupils. Schools also get allocations for the number of children receiving special education services or English language instruction.

“We’ve created a five-step plan that recognizes that the cost of educating New Hampshire children is not the same in every community. The greater the percentage of at-risk students, the greater the challenges for the classroom teacher and other teaching staff,” Estabrook said.

Aid amounts rise from a base level of $3,450 per pupil to double that sum in schools facing the greatest challenges. Three intermediate steps are in place, depending on the percentage of pupils receiving free or reduced-price lunches.

The legislation also creates “fiscal capacity disparity aid” to help towns with smaller tax bases and lower median incomes – a factor that could not be considered as part of adequacy. Estabrook argued this provides a critical supplement to adequacy and should be considered as part of the overall education funding package.

“We can’t ignore the fact that communities like Berlin and Claremont don’t have the same capacity as wealthier communities to raise money to meet the needs of their students. In property-poor towns, funding adequacy without addressing this disparity is not enough,” she said.

The House Education Committee is chaired by Representative Emma Rous, a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 539 who worked alongside Senator Estabrook on the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Costing an Adequate Education. It was that committee that created many of the recommendations that were incorporated into Senate Bill 539.