House Bill 354 is a piece of legislation in search of a problem. It proposes to ban certain books in K-12 classrooms, but in language so vague that it is not clear exactly which books are banned, citing only books that could be ‘harmful to minors.”
But who decides what is harmful? Local school boards approve curriculum, yet this bill undermines that local control, a bedrock New Hampshire value. When this bill was heard in the Senate educational committee, 39 people supported it and 1,367 opposed it. In the House education policy committee, 47 supported and 1,355 opposed. So once again our legislators disregarded the will of the majority in favor of the vocal few.
Finally, there is already a mechanism in place that allows parents to opt out of educational materials they feel are not right for their child. Parents have every right to make a decision for their own child, but not for someone else’s child. I urge Gov. Ayotte to veto this bill and request that you contact her office and do the same.
Linda Mattlage
Concord