Inedaquate legislature
I wish to respond to Andrew Demers op-ed piece about school funding and taxation problem. New Hampshire ranks 50th in the country for state support of public education as a percentage of total revenue. About 70% of public school revenue comes from local property taxes. You only have to read this paper to understand the impact of this financial burden on property owners.
Mr. Demers posits that reducing the number of SAUs and reducing administrative cost will solve the tax problem. The size of the saving would only fund a small portion of the statewide funding deficit. He woefully underestimates the size of the problem. Also, he offers no solution to the grossly unfair current school taxation situation, where property rich distracts can afford good schools and towns such a Franklin, Pittsfield, Newport and Claremont are struggling with very high school taxes and low school achievement. Where a student lives determines what kind of a education he or she receives. This should not be.
Meanwhile, the state legislature does all it can to change the definition of an adequate education and redefine the state’s responsibility for an adequate education. It reminds me of changing the deck chairs on the Titanic. We need the state to come up with a better solution to fund education for the entire state rather than the current unfair system.
What we have is an “inadequate legislature.”