Superior Court Judge David Ruoff has once again ruled that the state has shirked its duty to fund an adequate education and this time further held that local school property taxes, which vary in rate from one municipality to another, are themselves unconstitutional.
The New Hampshire Supreme Court once again says the state has failed to fulfill its constitutional duty to fund an adequate education as ordered by the justices in the foundational Claremont litigation nearly three decades ago.
In a decision dissenting Senior Associate Justice James Bassett called “an unfortunate triumph of form over substance,” the NH Supreme Court has ruled that some 30 municipalities with abundant property wealth are entitled to retain proceeds from the Statewide Education Property Tax (SWEPT) that exceed their costs of an adequate education.
Three lawsuits challenging the legitimacy of funding public schools, all underway and nearing resolution in the courts, have spurred fresh efforts by the Legislature to address issues that lawmakers have dodged for nearly three decades
A hearing took place earlier this week to define if grants awarded to students enrolled in the EFA program represents taxable income under the federal tax code
HB 238 hearing causes union loyalists to turn up the heat amid the cold
In the meantime, NH DOT is considering what can be done to improve the pedestrian and cycling path on the northbound side of the Little Bay bridges
Trio of justices to decide outcome of long-running ConVal litigation regarding the cost of an adequate education
Supreme Court weighs constitutionality of statewide education property tax (SWEPT)
The Coalition Communities consist of 26 cities and towns in New Hampshire, where, in all these municipalities, the equalized property per pupil (EVPP) exceeds the state median of $1,786,757.
The stage is set for the three-cornered litigation over the legitimacy of the Statewide Education Property Tax (SWEPT) before the New Hampshire Supreme Court, which will weigh the state’s appeal of the ruling by Judge David Ruoff of Rockingham County Superior Court that the administration of the tax is unconstitutional.
Jessica Wheeler Russell of Penacook, who sits on the board of Merrimack County School District, spoke briefly to begin the testimony when the Rand trial opened last week. She told the court she regularly took calls or had conversations with her constituents asking what could be done to stem the ever-rising rate of the school property tax.
The opening of the Rand trial before Judge David Ruoff in Rockingham County Superior Court last week marked the beginning of an effort to persuade the court to reaffirm and enforce the rulings of the New Hampshire Supreme Court in the Claremont cases by ordering the state to rescind and replace its unconstitutional system of financing public schools.
The brief claims the current funding system fails to direct sufficient state aid to districts with the greatest needs and leanest resources
The lawmakers filed an amicus brief with the New Hampshire Supreme Court, which will consider the state’s appeal of the decision of Judge David Ruoff of Rockingham County Superior Court in the suit brought by the ConVal School District
The state has appealed Judge David Ruoff's order in the suit brought by the ConVal School District finding that the state is shirking its duty to fund an adequate education as required by the Constitution
Three-decade fight over public education funding shows no signs of abating
The decision follows months of sparring between the Board and Department of Education and professional educators, punctuated by a critical legal analysis of the proposal by attorneys in the Office of Legislative Services
Granite State joined other New England states in seeking $500m for incentives to apply for heat pump technology to apply single-family, multifamily residences
Meeting at the tail end of the biennial budget cycle on the eve of a general election, the second-year session of the Legislature is something of an anticlimax to a time when lawmaking and politicking compete for the time and attention of legislators.
'NH deserves a working-class governor' decrees restauranteur vying for Democratic gubernatorial nomination
Nursing and public health official Diane Uzarski named inaugural dean of the new school
A legal analysis of the proposed Ed 306 Rules found to be at odds with state law, Constitution
April revenues of $38.2 million were 7.9% more than projected
Senate and house passed bills to raise income eligibility threshold to increase numbers of those qualifying for the program
The second legislative session in New Hampshire tackles many business-related proposals on the House and Senate floors
State aims to retain property as 'economically viable' land for production of timber
House instead dusts off HB 1583, HB 1656 amendments to adjust state funding for education
Plan would raise SWEPT rate and increase its share of state education aid from $363m to $773m
Judges' impartiality 'reasonably questioned' as litigation moves forward surrounding SWEPT allocations, adequate education funding
Unless the NH Supreme Court stays Judge Ruoff’s order, the state must comply with the decision to increase base adequacy payments per pupil
Carbon harbored in trees now a virtual commodity traded between forest landowners and commercial entities seeking to offset their greenhouse gas emissions
Republican lawmakers seek to expand Education Freedom Account program, with a number of house bills going to the floor this week to expand the program
Warren B. Rudman Center for Justice event highlights fiscal challenges facing the next administration
House Education Committee arm-wrestles a number of bills addressing adequate funding in public schools
Proposed house bills could help effect tax reductions between fiscal years 2025 and 2030
Over 150 state bills this session cater to public education
'Parametric' coverage pays based on magnitude of events rather than value of loss
State argues it would be unable to distribute state aid to school districts until Legislature remedies the flaws in existing funding system
Gov. Sununu claims NH spends 'the most' on public education, but unequal property taxes fund 70% of public school expenditures
Judge David Ruoff made a decision on ConVal School District and SWEPT cases
NH Fiscal Policy Institute report details that NH trails all other states in public education funding
Forestry workforce may be affected by sale of Connecticut Lakes Headwaters Working Forest to Bluesource Sustainable Forest Company
Suit also names Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the U.S. DHHS as defendants
That failure creates 'serious financial event' for Burgess BioPower and 'the entire economy of northern New Hampshire'
Report shows that state, federal funding cover a fifth of services — taxpayers fund the rest
Funds from the Federal Railroad Administration used to enhance the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad
Bids opened for bridge replacement estimated at $34.8 million
The suit claims DOL rule weakens retirement savings protections
Attorney General John Formella finds 'compelling evidence' of former state senator's fraudulent use of Covid-relief funds
Meet Samii, the mannequin who is bedridden in the AI Simulation Lab, one of the drawing cards to the new $32 million home of the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences at Saint Anselm College.
As a crippling financial crisis uncovered in recent weeks in Claremont makes headlines, Pittsfield, too, is reckoning with a budget shortfall of more than a million dollars as a new school year gets underway. Pittsfield’s deficit, discovered early this year, is roughly $1.8…
Portsmouth-based GBCC offers one of the few associate degree programs in Surgical Technology in the region and the only one in New Hampshire that is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Programs (CAAHEP).
Superior Court Judge David Ruoff has once again ruled that the state has shirked its duty to fund an adequate education and this time further held that local school property taxes, which vary in rate from one municipality to another, are themselves unconstitutional.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, July 14, allowed the Trump administration, for now, to proceed with mass layoffs and a plan to dramatically downsize the Education Department ordered earlier this year. The decision from the nation’s highest court marks…
Keene State College has started to gut its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives to comply with new state law. It’s an all-too familiar tune for many higher education institutions. Since taking office in January, President Donald Trump has gone on…
The partnership, which started many years ago as a cross-town agreement between the college and John Stark, has steadily grown. Graduates of Hopkinton, Kearsarge Regional and Hillsboro-Deering, among several other high schools in the state, were already eligible.
New Hampshire remains one of the lowest funders of public higher education in the country, according to 2024 data from the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEOA).
The New Hampshire Supreme Court once again says the state has failed to fulfill its constitutional duty to fund an adequate education as ordered by the justices in the foundational Claremont litigation nearly three decades ago.
