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Ski resorts would be included in New Hampshire's room and meals tax in a bill proposed by lawmakers.
One-day, two-day and three-day ski lift tickets would be taxed, but not season passes or tickets for kids under 18.
The revenue would go to the governor's scholarship fund which supports students attending schools in New Hampshire.
Rep. Craig Thompson from Harrisville, who sponsored the bill, says it would focus on middle income families.
“The ones at the higher end of the socioeconomic spectrum can pay their own way,” he said. “The ones in the middles are in a really tight spot.”
The scholarships would be geared towards families paying $6,000 to $20,000 a year for college, even after receiving a financial aid package.
But the proposal to tax ski tickets has already received pushback from Republicans.
Governor Chris Sununu told the Concord Monitor in November he would veto the bill if it made it to his desk.
The bill's sponsor says he knows this isn't a perfect solution to the problem of students leaving New Hampshire to go to college elsewhere.
"But we have a real problem, and nobody's proposed a solution to it. I'm putting out a solution that builds on our existing tax structure using the rooms and meals tax,” Thompson said.
About 60 percent of New Hampshire students leave the state for higher education, according to the University System of New Hampshire.
The bill also includes $500,000 to establish college and vocational courses for inmates of the state prison system.
