FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 8, 2008

Contact: Representative Emma Rous

(603) 271-3334

HOUSE EDUCATION COMMITTEE APPROVES

EDUCATION COSTING BILL

CONCORD – The House Education Committee voted today for legislation that determines the cost of providing an adequate education to all New Hampshire students. The New Hampshire Supreme Court tasked the Legislature with defining, costing and funding an adequate education, and a bill from last year’s session that defined an adequate education has already been signed into law. This costing bill estimates the cost of an adequate education to be, on average, $4,685 per student.

"This legislation is a thorough and thoughtful examination of the cost of the components of an adequate education as defined by the legislature and fulfills the state's constitutional responsibility to determine the cost of adequacy,” said Rep. Emma Rous (D-Durham), Chair of the House Education Committee and co-sponsor of the legislation.

Senate Bill 539 allocates aid per pupil based on universal costs. The cost of adequacy includes Special Education, English Language Learners, and schools with students who receive Free and Reduced Price Lunch. These factors are all included in the average per student amount of the cost of an adequate education.

The total cost of providing an adequate education for every public school pupil under this plan is estimated to be $915 million, but the bill also includes $58 million above adequacy to assist towns with a low property tax base per pupil that would see decreased amounts of money under the new constitutional formula. This includes $49 million in fiscal capacity disparity aid, and transition aid adds another $9 million in 2010.

The House Education Committee also amended the legislation – changes are below.

· Special education, which was previously divided into two categories of funding, has been combined into one category which blends the needs of both special education students who receive instruction within the classroom and those who receive their education outside a traditional setting. The allocation per student will be based on a weighted average.

· The original legislation provided additional aid to schools where at least 12 percent of the students are eligible for Free or Reduced Price Lunch. The legislation now also provides for additional funding for economically disadvantaged students in schools that have less than 12 percent of their students eligible for Free and Reduced Price Lunch.

· Charter Schools approved by the state will now be provided fiscal capacity disparity aid.

· Reading specialists for elementary school students will now be included as part of the universal cost of an adequate education. The reading specialist at the elementary level is a requirement of the Standards for School Approval.

This bill now heads to the House Floor, and upon passage, to the House Finance Committee.