It also reflects the long-held, mistaken belief among too many in control of the Statehouse that everyday Granite State citizens are lucky to live in a state that asks its wealthiest to pay less than their fair share. Ayotte claimed the state is “pushing funds to the local level more than ever before in our history.” If so, she ought to explain what funds she’s counting, because mainly what’s been pushed to the local level in recent years, and what seems to be continuing under her budget, is a tax burden. She then issued a finger-wagging warning to cities and towns to do more to help local property taxpayers, even as she’s continuing her predecessor’s policies of cutting needed revenues while downshifting costs to those very taxpayers.
Meanwhile, Ayotte proposes expanding the state’s ill-advised school voucher program, which is already diverting tens of millions of dollars from public education, by removing any family income requirements for those now attending public schools. You may recall the Education Freedom Account program originally passed the Legislature under the guise of being a tool to help the state’s poorest families afford alternative schooling. According to the right-wing Josiah Bartlett Center, Ayotte’s proposal would make approximately 98,000 public school students eligible for an EFA starting in the 2026-27 school year, a roughly 17-fold expansion of the program. That’s a potential 98,000 students receiving what was an average $5,255 per student this year in public money to not attend public schools.
Reporting by Keene Sentinel February 19, 2025