New Hampshire Politics: Proposal 1

Proposed Amendment to the New Hampshire Constitution
CACR 45

Sponsors: Sen. Jim Rubens, Sen. Sheila Roberge, Sen. Eleanor Podles, Sen. Johnson, Rep. Mary Brown, Rep. Tom Colburn, Rep. Weyler, Rep. Fran Riley, Rep. Leo Pepino

[Adequate Education and Funding] Add to Article, 5 Part II, following the phrase "all estates within the same;" insert after the semicolon the following new language:

"provided that, without infringing upon the natural, fundamental, and inherent unalienable right of parents to direct their care, teaching, and education of their children, and consistent with the principle that the determination of the adequacy of and levels of funding for education is the province of the people and their local officials, duly elected for that purpose, in each political subdivision, said general court may delegate to the state's political subdivisions in whole or in part, any duty which may be vested in it to provide for an adequate education, to every educable child in the public schools, and to guarantee adequate funding, said general court having said full power and authority to define and to implement by appropriate legislation such duty, and any tax imposed and levied by any city or town to implement such delegated duty is local, and any such tax which is proportional and reasonable throughout such city or town shall satisfy this article;"

This proposal:

eliminates constitutional guarantee of political independence of towns under Art. 6, Pt. I of the Constitution;
authorizes the legislature to define its own duty;
overrides Art. 28-a which prohibits unfunded mandates;
gives legislature a blank check - no limit to the cost;
taxpayers nightmare - placing no limit to the type of local tax to be authorized, a local income and/or local sales tax are possible.
is a lawyer's dream - insuring endless litigation to determine whether an "adequate" education is being given to every "educable" child in this State;
offers no protection for home schoolers - they are already considered part of the public school system, being regulated under the commissioner of education and counted as public school students for the purposes of dual enrollment;

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