HB549

The state needs to set its priorities and funding religious education IS NOT ONE OF THEM! New Hampshire's property taxes are ridiculously high because property taxpayers are picking up the uncovered share of the state's obligation to local education! Instead of funding religious education through EFAs, the state needs to send that money to school districts for adequacy grants and long overdue property tax relief!

Education Freedom Accounts siphon money from the Education Trust Fund which was established to distribute the state's adequacy grants to school districts. Given the state is still not meeting its constitutional obligation to fund an adequate education, it's time to stem the flow of money from the Trust Fund to EFAs. Tax dollars should not be funding religious education...especially when those tax dollars should be providing property tax relief! New Hampshire's property tax rates are among the very highest in this country. Instead of funding religious education through EFAs, the state needs to send that money to school districts for adequacy grants.

In 1802, Founding Father Thomas Jefferson wrote in a letter to the Danbury Baptist Convention describing a “wall” that should separate church and state, The concept of this “wall” is based on the First Amendment of the US constitution, prohibiting the establishment of a National religion. This separation of church and state clearly prohibits public tax funds from being used for the purpose of religious education. Further, the New Hampshire Constitution's Article 83 states that the state must provide a constitutionally adequate education to all children in public schools. The state must also ensure that public schools are adequately funded. I support HB 549 to prohibit the use of EFA tax funds for religious school education. The NH legislature should fully fund public education through increased adequacy aid determined in the ConVal court decision, fully fund special education aid, fully funding the state’s contribution to the public employee retirement fund, and provide adequate funding for public school building aid. Over 85% of New Hampshire’s families utilize our public schools. Public tax funds should not fund religious education. Lastly, I would like to thank you for this opportunity to submit remote testimony. I work and live in Milford and am not typically available to attend public hearings in person in Concord, though this bill is of importance to me.

We need to keep State funding out of religious schools. There no oversight or accountability and it is simply wrong to give them public funding.

Our state constitution explicitly prohibits using public tax dollars for religious schools. Article 83 "no money raised by taxation shall ever be granted or applied for the use of the schools of institutions of any religious sect or denomination"

Public funds should not be used for religious education. This is blatantly unconstitutional at both the federal and state level. Therefore, EFA funds should not go to religious schools.

There should be limits to how much my tax dollars may support religious and other private schools over which the public has no oversight. Separation of church and state!

I support this bill without hesitation. The CSF is out of control. Vote this bill down.

Separation of church and state.

YES!! This bill is the epitome of fiscal responsibility and the least that can be done for an out of control program.

My support of this bill comes from my knowledge, as a former religious person, that religious educations do not follow the standards of scientific discovery. "Religious schools are not charged with promoting democratic values, or a common American identity, as public schools are, so there is good reason to reserve public funds for public schools." Richard D. Kahlenberg My tax dollars will not be spent holding children back to a time, when, if we did not know the answer to something we attributed it to a higher power. They will also not be spent by putting blinders and emotional stress on students by teaching them they should feel shame for not conforming to the rules of religion. One only has to look to "the bible belt" of this Country to see the effects of dismissing modern education. Sex ed. for example: the States with the highest rates of teen pregnancy are all located within "the bible belt". Dropout rates also higher in "the bible belt", highest poverty rates in "the bible belt" The list goes on. No child will be a more prepared adult by attending any form of religious school.

This will put needed fiscal guardrails on this program and also work to separate church and state as our state constitution requires.

This bill correctly prevents taxpayer money from funding religious education, as required by the Constitution Bill of Rights, Amendment 1.

Our state constitution forbids using state tax monies to fund education and this seems like a good way to ensure that exactly that does NOT happen. A good rule of thumb is how would one feel if his or her tax dollars were used to support a religious philosophy he or she found abhorrent.

Public taxpayer money should not be used for private schools, including religious schools.

Stop funding religious entities with public funds. Fund public schools with public funds!

We need guardrails on the Education Freedom Accounts.

I don’t believe that taxpayer funding should be given to religious organizations. If the parents want religious instruction, that’s on them to provide, not the state.