How does this compare to private schools? Is pricing for private schools going up at the same rate? How does the cost of private schools compare to the cost of public schools?
In all this mess, I keep going back to the reality that the state has not met its monetary obligation to community public schools!
If they now are able to fund vouchers they should be held accountable to meet their obligation to public schools first.
In addition, public funds are for public benefit. They cannot be used for private, religious or personal use (as in vouchers to private, religious or home schools).
Interesting all the factors impinging on this ed funding debate. I'd like to add one more, which I see as an end result of our extreme method of taxing. Close to two-thirds of taxes revenues in NH, state and local, are property taxes.
I've been told if you want less of something, tax it, a lot. In fact I used this factor when I co-sponsored a bill to raise the cigarette tax back in '08 or so. Adding a few cents to that tax meant fewer kids would choose to buy them. It was a delicate balance -- the state still needed the revenue but we didn't want to make all smokers quit, or (as we played the "gray" market) discourage cross-border sales from higher taxing states (VT,MA,ME).
In NH (for the 45yrs I've been here) we've relied extremely on local property taxes for ed funding, absolutely pledging not to try any other tax mechanism. So is it any wonder we don't have sufficient housing, especially for low-income residents?
Property taxes are an easy tax for the wealthy and high income earners, and NH real estate looks very attractive to those folks from other high cost-of-living states. They are older and probably post child-rearing and post college payments. This also has the effect of running up local property values, which may put extra cost on long-time locals. Covid drastically exacerbated this trend.
The long term result is the demographics we now have.
Over the years, I've often asked bankers if they find frequently that a young couple comes in for a mortgage and would qualify to buy a local home, but the tax payment puts that home/mortgage out of their reach. The answer was always yes. Where the housing is cheap, the taxes are high, and the schools not so good, and vice versa. We certainly are not welcoming new families, and from here it looks like a lot of the kids in my son's generation have left and aren't coming back...
How does this compare to private schools? Is pricing for private schools going up at the same rate? How does the cost of private schools compare to the cost of public schools?
In all this mess, I keep going back to the reality that the state has not met its monetary obligation to community public schools!
If they now are able to fund vouchers they should be held accountable to meet their obligation to public schools first.
In addition, public funds are for public benefit. They cannot be used for private, religious or personal use (as in vouchers to private, religious or home schools).
Suggestion: 10 counties, 10 districts.
Interesting all the factors impinging on this ed funding debate. I'd like to add one more, which I see as an end result of our extreme method of taxing. Close to two-thirds of taxes revenues in NH, state and local, are property taxes.
I've been told if you want less of something, tax it, a lot. In fact I used this factor when I co-sponsored a bill to raise the cigarette tax back in '08 or so. Adding a few cents to that tax meant fewer kids would choose to buy them. It was a delicate balance -- the state still needed the revenue but we didn't want to make all smokers quit, or (as we played the "gray" market) discourage cross-border sales from higher taxing states (VT,MA,ME).
In NH (for the 45yrs I've been here) we've relied extremely on local property taxes for ed funding, absolutely pledging not to try any other tax mechanism. So is it any wonder we don't have sufficient housing, especially for low-income residents?
Property taxes are an easy tax for the wealthy and high income earners, and NH real estate looks very attractive to those folks from other high cost-of-living states. They are older and probably post child-rearing and post college payments. This also has the effect of running up local property values, which may put extra cost on long-time locals. Covid drastically exacerbated this trend.
The long term result is the demographics we now have.
Over the years, I've often asked bankers if they find frequently that a young couple comes in for a mortgage and would qualify to buy a local home, but the tax payment puts that home/mortgage out of their reach. The answer was always yes. Where the housing is cheap, the taxes are high, and the schools not so good, and vice versa. We certainly are not welcoming new families, and from here it looks like a lot of the kids in my son's generation have left and aren't coming back...
Wonderful analysis pointing the way toward real solutions.