The New Hampshire Senate passed the school voucher bill (SB 130) and quickly âtabledâ it.
Under SB 130, Education Freedom Accounts (EFAs) would be set up for eligible families and funded by the state.
Parents could then use this taxpayer-funded money toward their childâs private or religious school tuition, homeschooling expenses and/or other educational costs.
Students must be school-aged residents of New Hampshire and their family income must fall at or below 300 percent of the federal poverty level ($79,500 for a family of four). New Hampshire has about 40 percent of families in this category.
New Hampshireâs public school districts are already cash strapped, with an estimated $31 million loss projected over the first five years under SB 130.
New Hampshire state Senate meets in person at State House
State Senator Rebecca Whitley (D-Hopkinton), left, and State Senator Rebecca Perkins Kwoka (D-Portsmouth) take a selfie before the session opened at Representative Hall at the State House on Thursday, May 13, 2021. GEOFF FORESTER Monitor staff
State Senator Harold French (left) and State Senator Robert Giuda confer before the session at Representative Hall at the State House on Thursday, May 13, 2021. GEOFF FORESTER Monitor staff
State Senator Lou D Allesandro (D-Manchester) bows his head during the opening prayer at the re-opening of the New Hampshire State Senate held at Representative Hall in the State House on Thursday, May 13, 2021. GEOFF FORESTER Monitor staff
Credit Dennis Schroeder / National Renewable Energy Labs
Offshore wind advocates in New Hampshire have high hopes after federal regulators this week approved construction of the Vineyard Wind project in Massachusetts – the largest offshore wind farm yet to reach the construction stage in the U.S.
At 800 megawatts in capacity, Vineyard Wind’s 62 turbines will be able to generate as much power as many nuclear reactors.
The project’s approval comes after delays under the Trump administration and is a first step toward President Biden’s climate change goals, which include the development of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030.
The Gulf of Maine will likely house many of those turbines, but it will be years before any are approved or built. New Hampshire is working with Maine and Massachusetts on a federal task force to plan for that new industry, but the group has met only once, in late 2019 at UNH.
CONCORD Gov. Chris Sununu issued an order Thursday expanding access to mental health services, in response to a recent state Supreme Court ruling that psychiatric patients being held involuntarily in emergency rooms must be given a chance to contest their detention promptly.
The order adds beds at receiving facilities and ensures services are received from health care providers. It also ensures better community partnerships. This order will also review all mental health services across the entire state to determine if the providers we currently utilize are truly equipped and truly capable of meeting the need of New Hampshire citizens, and we are going to be exploring additional opportunities, both in and out state in the private sector, Sununu said at his weekly news conference.