A coalition of education groups says the state isn't providing enough funds to pay for the most basic education requirements, much less providing an adequate education.
New Hampshire Citizen's Voice Project released a study Tuesday showing a large gap between actual education costs and what local communities receive from the state.
New Hampshire Public Radio's Amy Quinton reports.
The Citizens Voice Project says the state should be paying at least 2,000 dollars more per student in New Hampshire to cover basic education mandates.
That's about a 425 million dollar gap between what the state mandates and what it funds.
The study called "Funding the Gap" was presented by a coalition including teachers unions, the Children's Alliance, and the Claremont Coalition among others.
Scott Johnson with the Citizens Voice Project says the study looked at only four minimum requirements for providing an education; staff, buildings, transportation, and system leadership.
"we don't think these four building blocks are in and of themselves enough for an adequate education because they exclude so many other important items, but we do agree they're things schools have to provide and that the state should fund"
Furniture, books, computers, sports, elective courses, special education needs, were just a few of the other important items the study excluded.
Ellen Shemitz with New Hampshire's Children's Alliance says it also excluded early childhood education, something the state board of education wants all districts to offer by 2007.
"none of the costs of that early care and education or a full day kindergarten are included, this truly is a bare bones budget that doesn't even meet the basic requirements that citizens told us they thought were central to enabling our students to learn."
The study considered the state's per pupil adequacy costs, as well as targeted aid. The two come to about four thousand dollars per student.
The study does not include federal funding which is usually about four percent of a school's budget.
Scott Thompson says local communities still end up footing the bill.
"What this all means to NH citizens is that they currently fund the gap through local property taxes, the state is effectively requiring local communities to pay for state mandates with local funds."
In New Hampshire's school funding debate, the arguments have usually centered on how the towns and state should share the costs.
But Andru Volinski, the lead plaintiff attorney in the Claremont case, says that debate shouldn't happen until actual education costs are determined.
"to open the door costs more than 6,000 per pupil, we can split that up however later on, and we can talk about the legality of that, but until people understand that they're currently paying 6000 per pupil out of local property taxes, baring the brunt of that, we can't have the next part of the discussion."
The Citizens Voice Project has provided copies of their study to Governor Elect John Lynch.
Lynch has promised to do away with the statewide property tax in favor of targeting state aid to communities that need it.
For NHPR news, I'm Amy Quinton.
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Facebook
Google
Yahoo