NH House, Senate pass school tax credit bills

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The New Hampshire's House and Senate passed similar plans Wednesday to give businesses a tax credit for donating to scholarship organizations to send students to private or public schools.

The House voted 236-97 to funnel the donations through organizations that provide scholarships of up to $2,500 to start. The scholarships would be adjusted annually. Home-schooled children could receive one-fourth of that limit for educational expenses. The amount of tax credits could not exceed $3.4 million the first year.

The Senate voted 17-7 Wednesday to pass a similar bill.

The bills attempt to target low- and middle-income students for the scholarships and regulates 70 percent of the scholarships for the first year to students warranting adequate education grants, but would decrease each year thereafter.

Districts losing state aid above a certain threshold would receive additional money to partially offset the loss of funding when students leave their schools.

Both bills specify that eligible students must come from low-income families. But the version passed by the Senate removed a provision that would have allowed exceptions for special circumstances in which a family was facing a temporary financial hardship.

State Sen. Jim Forsythe, R-Strafford, said there was some concern that the provision would have allowed money to go to wealthy families.

Each chamber next reviews changes made to its bill and has the option of passing it, killing it or asking to negotiate a compromise.

Supporters say the scholarships would give parents a choice for their children.

"There are reasons for choice and that's what this is all about," said state Rep. Rick Ladd, R-Haverhill.

Opponents argue it is unconstitutional to use taxpayer funding to send students to religious schools.

State Rep. Marjorie Porter, R-Hillsborough, also said diverting money from public schools to private and religious schools would mean higher costs to the public schools. She said public schools could be left with the poor, disabled and homeless students who cost more to educate and fewer students with fewer problems who are less costly to educate.

"Our local public schools will be caught in a tight bind. They'll have higher cost students to educate with less state aid," she said.

She also said the only way private schools would be held accountable for how they spend the money would be through a parents' satisfaction survey.

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Associated Press staffer Holly Ramer contributed to this report from Concord, N.H.