CONCORD — Republicans on the Senate Education Committee are proposing to increase New Hampshire's educational freedom entitlement, but it's not as ambitious as the House would like.
In Senate Bill 442, a late amendment to a companion bill, the committee would open the program to households with incomes up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level, or $124,800 in total household income for a family of four. is suggesting. This increase is smaller than the increase to 500 percent of the federal poverty level that House Republicans advocated and passed.
The Education Freedom Account program, created in 2021, allows families to use a portion of their state education dollars to pay for non-public schools or home education. Currently, the program is limited to children in households with incomes up to 350 percent of the federal poverty level, or about $109,200 for a family of four.
Republicans have supported the program as a way to provide families with an alternative school if their local public school doesn't work for their children. The fund provides an average of $4,600 per child per year, but the amount varies depending on factors such as income level and need for special education services.
Democrats argued the program was an inappropriate use of state funds, saying too much money came from the Education Trust Fund, which is used to fund the state's annual allocation to public schools. Democrats have warned that the spending could make it harder to increase state funding for public schools in the future.
Since the program's inception, some Republican lawmakers have pushed for expansion to higher-income groups. Congress raised the income cap from 300 percent to 350 percent of the federal poverty level in last year's budget, but some Republicans are pushing for the cap to be expanded further or eliminated entirely.
In February, the House passed House Bill 1665, which would raise the cap to 500 percent of the federal poverty level, or $156,000 annually for a family of four. The Senate has not yet taken up the bill, but is expected to vote on the 400 percent recommendation during the full session on Friday.
Democrats in the House and Senate have introduced a number of bills since 2021 aimed at eliminating, reducing, or subjecting the Educational Freedom Accounts program to greater scrutiny.
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