Reaching Higher NH - 2025 Legislative Session

The 2025 legislative session was a challenging one for public schools. Legislators working with a new Governor considered 145 education bills. In the end, 14 became law and cumulatively had the effect of increasing school choice, undermining the teaching profession, and failing to increase school funding.

This session there were also many bills that were tabled, retained in committee, or referred back to committee. Lawmakers will begin their work for the next session by discussing which of these bills will move forward in 2026.

Check out the full list of bills below.

Here are the new laws enacted in 2025:

Increasing school choice

New laws this year increase the availability of private school vouchers and public school transfer options. Vouchers channel money from the public system to private expenses with little accountability or transparency; public school transfer options – including so-called “open enrollment” policies – create instability and unpredictability that ultimately exacerbate opportunity gaps for students, families and communities.

SB 295, HB 771, SB 97

Which bill?	What did it do?	Why does it matter?
SB 295 - relative to education freedom accounts.	This bill removes the income cap from the Education Freedom Account program, making all families eligible for a voucher. It also institutes an enrollment cap of 10,000 students in the first year, with exceptions for current voucher recipients and their siblings, students from families with incomes below 350% of the federal poverty level, and students with special needs.	The EFA program has already hit the 10,000 student enrollment cap and is expected to cost the state around $50 million in the 2025-26 school year. It is yet unknown how many of the new EFA students were already enrolled in private school, but we do know that fewer than 1,500 out of 10,000 students are from families with low incomes, meaning the program is siphoning public education money to more than 8,000 families who could afford private school without a subsidy.
HB 771 - relative to funding for open enrollment schools.	One of several open enrollment bills considered this session, HB 771 creates funding and budgeting guidelines for open enrollment schools. The bill, now law, requires that for students who attend an open enrollment school (a public school that is not their zoned school), the sending district pay the receiving district at least 80% of the sending district’s cost per pupil. The bill also requires districts to include a line item in their budgets reflecting the estimated cost of and revenue from open enrollment.	Though this bill doesn’t fundamentally change open enrollment in the state, many observers see it as a precursor to a concerted effort to bolster open enrollment in 2026. Open enrollment – in which students can enroll in any school that has space – can exacerbate opportunity gaps and lead to school closures. Particularly in a system like New Hampshire's, with vast funding inequities across districts, an open enrollment system is likely to leave students from less wealthy districts behind.
SB 97 - relative to intra-district public school transfers.	In districts with multiple schools serving the same grade level, SB 97 mandates that the district allow parents to transfer their child to an in-district school other than their zoned school, provided space is available.	This law will affect districts with multiple schools serving the same grade level. How the implications play out will depend on how districts determine what space is available and how they implement the transfer process.

Undermining the teaching profession

Within this broad category, new laws fall into two groups: those that lower the requirements to become a teacher, and those that make the work environment more challenging for New Hampshire’s teachers. The first set includes several bills creating alternative pathways to certification for part-time educators. Alternative pathways can be a viable way to increase the teacher workforce, but as designed, these laws will make it easier for districts to fill vacancies with professionals who are not trained and qualified educators. This could become a cost-cutting strategy for districts, creating downward pressure on teacher pay and benefits and ultimately meaning students are not always taught by highly qualified, certified and trained educators. The second set of bills related to the teaching profession introduce new guidelines for educator conduct, creates additional channels for parents to file complaints, and increases the power of the State in the complaint process. The cumulative effect is to undermine teachers’ autonomy, degrade parent/teacher relationships, and to create an environment of fear. Laws such as these create a chilling impact on the classroom for students and teachers alike.

HB 90, HB 354, HB 235, HB 520, HB 440, HB 10

Which bill?	What did it do?	Why does it matter?
HB 90 - relative to the definition of part-time teachers.	This law exempts part-time teachers from state education credential requirements if they work less than 20 hours a week, pass a criminal background check, are employed by a university or community college, and have relevant expertise or experience.	Though this bill was pitched as a way to offer Career and Technical Education courses that might otherwise be cut due to staffing shortages, it could be a pathway for districts to reduce costs and undermine the teaching profession by employing community college professors, who are often not trained educators, to teach core courses.
HB 354 - relative to alternate certification pathways for career and technical education instructors.	This law creates alternative pathways for individuals to become career and technical education instructors, allowing candidates to substitute three years of professional experience and an industry-recognized credential in lieu of a proficiency test.	Like HB 90, this bill ostensibly could help schools offer CTE courses they couldn't otherwise staff, but it also contributes to the degrading of the teaching profession.
HB 235 - relative to amending the educator code of ethics and code of conduct to include responsibility to parents.	This law amends the educator code of conduct to explicitly include a responsibility to parents.	The State Board of Education will need to amend the Educator Code of Conduct.
HB 520 - relative to authorizing hearing officers of the department of education to issue subpoenas.	This law allows hearing officers of the Department of Education to issue subpoenas for investigations related to violations of the educator code of conduct.	Subjecting educators to subpoenas could create a chilling effect and contributes to a culture that undermines teachers' autonomy.
HB 440 - relative to educator licensing.	This law requires the candidates for initial licenses as administrators or educators in New Hampshire achieve passing scores on designated professional assessments. It exempts career and technical education teachers.
HB 10 - establishing a parental bill of rights.	This law establishes requirements for how schools are to inform and involve parents in their child’s education. It allows parents to opt students out of sex education courses and non-academic surveys and to review instructional materials.	Much of what is outlined in HB 10 already existed in law, but some provisions – including one allowing parents to review instructional material and withdraw their child from any lesson – are new. Educators and LBGTQ rights groups were generally opposed to the bill, concerned that it created a large burden on educators and that it might require school staff to divulge information about a child’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

Failing to increase school funding

2025 was a budget year, and what’s notable is that the legislature passed effectively the bare minimum funding increase for education. Under HB 200, the legislature also made it harder for towns subject to a tax cap to override that cap should they want to. And despite considering a number of bills that could have positively affected school funding, the legislature ultimately did nothing to address New Hampshire’s disparate funding systems.

HB1, HB 2, HB 200

Which bill?	What did it do?	Why does it matter?
HB 1 - making appropriations for the expenses of certain departments of the state for fiscal years ending June 30, 2026 and June 30, 2027.	Part 1 of the state budget, HB 1 outlines appropriations for each state department. Under the budget that passed, the total Education Fund budget will be $1,274,000,000 in FY 2026 and $1,316,000,000 in FY 2027.	The budget process presented an opportunity for lawmakers to meaningfully increase funding for public education, but the bill that passed includes only pro forma increases, continuing the trend of state disinvestment in the system that serves 90% of students in the state.
HB 2 - relative to state fees, funds, revenues, and expenditures.	The second part of the biennial budget, HB2 details changes to how money is spent in the state. In K-12 education, changes include increasing available Special Education Aid and guaranteeing a higher minimum; increasing funding for the Education Freedom Account voucher program; and banning student use of cell phones in schools. The Adequate Education Grant was increased by 2%, the minimum required increase. Additionally, HB 2 prohibits programs designed to advance equity, inclusion, and diversity in any publicly funded institution, with particular funding penalties for schools.	The ban on inclusion programs and efforts to increase equity and to understand the diversity of our schools is already being challenged in the courts. Given the breadth of the language, programs that are core to schools – and some that are federally mandated – could be seen as violating the ban, causing schools to lose access to their public funding. The minimal increase to adequacy aid continues a pattern of underfunding that was recently found unconstitutional by the NH Supreme Court. It remains to be seen how the court’s ruling will be addressed legislatively.
HB 200 - relative to the procedure for overriding a local tax cap.	Previously, towns subject to a tax cap could override that cap with a simple majority vote; this bill now requires a ? supermajority.	In towns subject to tax caps, this legislation will make it harder to raise property taxes, which in turn could make it harder to increase funding for local schools. Voters have repeatedly demonstrated that they want to fund their local public schools, but state legislators continue to try to make that process harder.

Here is what happened to the rest:

Referred/Rereferred Bills

Bill Number and Name	Description	Status	Implications
HB 676 - relative to the composition and responsibilities of the parent and education service provider advisory commission, and establishing education freedom account impact and parent satisfaction surveys.	This bill changes the composition and governance of the Parent and Education Service Provider Advisory Commission, increasing membership and requiring annual reporting. The bill also introduces two new surveys of parents whose children receive Education Freedom Account vouchers.	Passed House; Referred to Senate Committee
HB 741 - allowing parents to send their children to any school district they choose.	HB 741 would create an open enrollment school system across the state. Parents would be allowed to enroll their child at any public school in the state with no tuition cost, and the student’s home district would send funding to the district the student ultimately enrolls in.	Passed House; Rereferred to Senate Committee	This bill would fundamentally change the public school system, likely exacerbating opportunity gaps. This bill has no transportation requirement, which means parents would be required to get their child to and from the school they choose. This means that many students will not be able to choose a school other than their zoned school, regardless of policy, and those schools might face significant budget strain as they navigate unpredictable enrollment patterns and funnel local money to other districts. Ultimately, it's likely some schools would close, leaving some communities with no local public school.
HB 431 - establishing a commission to study the costs of special education.	This bill would establish a commission to study the costs associated with special education in public schools.	Passed House; Rereferred to Senate Committee	Special education funding is a primary driver of school spending. A commission to study the costs could benefit public schools if it helps them better plan for and fund services, but without additional funding, simply analyzing the cost won't go far.
SB 101 - authorizing parents to enroll their children in any public school in the state.	Another open enrollment bill, SB 101 would allow parents to enroll their child in any public school in New Hampshire.	Rereferred to Committee	Some of the funding and logistical details are different in this bill than in HB 741, but the goal is ultimately the same: to create a statewide open enrollment system where students are no longer educated in their local community. As with the other open enrollment bills, such a system would exacerbate inequality, leaving behind the students who can’t reasonably access other options.

Retained Bills

Bill Number and Name	Description	Status	Implications
HB 748 - establishing a local education freedom account program.	This bill would establish a local Education Freedom Account program, requiring districts to fund vouchers for in-district students opting out of public schools at twice the adequate education grant aid amount.	Retained in Committee	Like the statewide voucher program, a local private school voucher program would drain money from public schools and increase opportunity gaps.
SB 34 - relative to parental consent for student participation in Medicaid to schools program.	This bill would require schools to obtain written parental consent for each new service provided to students under the Medicaid to schools program.	Retained in Committee	Requiring consent for each new service adds administrative burden and may delay students receiving the services they need.
HB 563 - relative to the cost of an opportunity for an adequate education, extraordinary need grants, fiscal capacity disparity aid, and determination of education grants.	This bill would change the way adequacy aid is calculated, with notable changes for special education differentiated aid. The bill proposes to scale special education funding based on the amount of support required.	Retained in Committee	This bill would have increased adequacy aid to school districts by approximately $7.1 million in FY 2026 and helped districts fund the special education services they are legally required to provide.
HCR 11 - declaring the directives of the judicial branch in the Claremont cases that the legislative and executive branches define an "adequate education," adopt "standards of accountability," and "guarantee adequate funding" of a public education are not binding on the legislative and executive branches.	This resolution states that the NH Supreme Court’s directive that the legislature and executive ensure adequate funding for public education was nonbinding.	Retained in Committee
HB 491 - establishing a committee to study alternative funding methods for public education and how to reduce its reliance on local real estate property taxes.	This bill would establish a committee to study alternative funding mechanisms for public education.	Retained in Committee	The call for this committee acknowledges that the state may need to consider alternative funding mechanisms for public schools. A study committee alone can't make legislation, but it could set the table for future legislation.
HB 709 - allowing parents or guardians to admit their children into any school district where they pay any property or school district taxes.	This bill would change the definition of legal residence to allow parents to enroll their children in any school district where they pay property or school district taxes.	Retained in Committee
HB 155 - reducing the rate of the business enterprise tax.	This bill would lower the Business Enterprise Tax rate, likely resulting in decreased revenue for the Education Trust Fund.	Retained in Committee	This bill would decrease the amount of money available through the Education Trust Fund, continuing state disinvestment in public education.
HB 734 - relative to the state education property tax and the low- and moderate-income homeowners property tax relief program.	Another attempt to rethink SWEPT, this bill would require towns to send SWEPT revenue to the state for redistribution. It also would change the formula for calculating tax relief, and create a committee to study the property tax relief program.	Retained in Committee	This bill attempts to make SWEPT a true state tax, allowing for equalization across districts. This would ultimately lead to more equal state funding for public schools by shifting state tax dollars from property-rich towns to towns with lower property wealth.
HB 366 - relative to school building aid for eligible projects.	This bill would increase the money available for construction and renovation projects within school districts, establishing a minimum funding level of $60 million per fiscal year.	Retained in Committee	This bill would help accelerate school rennovation projects, which have been stalled in recent years due to a cap on school building aid.
HB 295 - making school building aid program funds nonlapsing.	This bill would make school building aid funds nonlapsing, allowing for greater flexibility.	Retained in Committee	This bill would make it easier for public schools to complete critical renovation projects.
HB 362 - granting the department of education rulemaking authority to require candidates to obtain passing scores on professional education assessments.	This bill would require candidates for administrative or educator positions in the state to achieve a passing score, as determined by the State Board, on a professional education assessment.	Retained in Committee
SB 211 - relative to biological sex in student athletics.	This bill would mandate that all school sports teams be designated as male, female, or coeducational and that student athletes participate only on teams that match their sex assigned at birth.	Retained in Committee
SB 204 - relative to the responsibility of local school districts to provide meals to students during school hours, reimbursing schools for meals provided to students at no cost, and making an appropriation therefor.	This bill would allow local school boards to extend eligibility for school meals to students whose families earn up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level.	Retained in Committee
HB 665 - relative to eligibility for free school meals.	This bill would expand eligibility for free school meals to students from families earning up to 300 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.	Retained in Committee

Tabled Bills

Bill Number and Name	Description	Status	Implications
HB 402 - relative to liability as taxable income of education freedom account payments.	This bill would have removed language asserting that Education Freedom Accounts do not qualify as taxable income.	Tabled	This bill would not have changed the tax status of vouchers, but would have removed language asserting an exemption some experts said might not always hold true.
HB 483 - relative to the definition of a scholarship organization for purposes of the education tax credit.	This bill would have changed the definition of “scholarship organization” for the purposes of the education tax credit, limiting participating to charitable organizations incorporated in New Hampshire.	Tabled	Currently, the only scholarship organization operating in New Hampshire is the Children’s Scholarship Fund – NH, which is headquartered in New York City and not incorporated in New Hampshire. It is unclear if this would change enrollment patterns in the EFA program.
HB 583 - relative to state participation in the Medicaid direct certification program for free and reduced price school meals.	This bill would have directed the Department of Education to use Medicaid eligibility to determine students’ eligibility for free- or reduced-price lunches.	Tabled	Accurately identifying students eligible (based on family income) for free- and reduced-price lunch (FRPL) is important both to ensuring students are fed and to helping schools that serve these students access necessary funding. Many states have been changing how they determine FRPL eligibility in recent years to reduce the administrative burden and ensure a more accurate count.

Nonconcurrence

Bill Number and Name	Description	Status
SB 209 - relative to owner's project managers for projects funded by school building aid and relative to reporting requirements for persons or entities financing lawsuits.	This bill would change the requirements for the use of owner’s project managers in school construction projects funded by school building aid. It also adds liability requirements for OPMs.	Nonconcurred (Senate)

Killed Bills

Bill Number and Name	Description
SB 207 - requiring the department of education to administer the education freedom account program.	Under this bill, the Education Freedom Account program, currently administered by Children’s Scholarship Fund NH, would have been transferred to the oversight of the Department of Education.
SB 203 - relative to administration of the education freedom accounts program.	This bill would have changed the eligibility and reporting requirements for the Education Freedom Account program, restricting eligibility to students from families earning less than 350 percent of the federal poverty level and requiring annual reporting and income verification audits.
HB 738 - requiring certain non-public schools or education service providers that accept public funds to perform background checks on all employees and volunteers.	This bill would have required criminal background checks for all employees and volunteers at nonpublic schools or education service providers accepting public funds.
HB 739 - relative to excess funds paid to municipalities for use in school districts.	This bill would have required towns to remit excess statewide education property tax to the state for deposit into the education trust fund.
HB 237 - prohibiting the use of special education state aid funds and differentiated aid special education funds on students not receiving special education services.	This bill would have prohibited the use of special education funding for services intended for non-special education students.
HB 703 - relative to prohibiting school districts from denying meals to students with unpaid meal balances, and making an appropriation therefor.	This bill would have required districts with USDA-approved school meal programs to implement policies that ensure students with unpaid meal balances are not denied meals or otherwise stigmatized.
HB 669 - relative to requiring all revenue raised under the statewide education property tax to be deposited in the education trust fund, and setting an equalized statewide tax rate.	This bill would have set a new statewide education tax rate and required all revenue generated from the statewide education property tax (SWEPT) to be deposited into the education trust fund.
HB 550 - modifying the base cost of an adequate education.	This bill would have increased base adequacy payments from $4,182 to $7,356.01 per student.
HB 527 - replacing the statewide education property tax with a local revenue contribution.	This bill would have replaced the statewide education property tax (SWEPT) with a local revenue contribution.
HB 515 - repealing the chartered public school eligibility for state school building aid.	This bill would have made charter schools ineligible for state school building aid grants.
HB 503 - amending how revenues from taxes are allocated to the education trust fund.	To increase revenue for the education trust fund, this bill proposed reinstating the Interest and Dividends Tax and raising the Business Profits TAx, Business Enterprise TAx, and Meals and Rooms Tax.
HB 318 - relative to the percentage of revenue from the business enterprise tax deposited in the education trust fund.	This bill would have increased from 41 to 59 percent the percentage of revenue from the Business Enterprise Tax deposited into the Education Trust Fund.
HB 283 - relative to the list of subjects that comprise an adequate education.	This bill would have removed arts, world languages, engineering and technologies, personal finance literacy, and computer science from the list of subjects that constitute an adequate education.
HB 255 - increasing the percentage of revenue deposited in the education trust fund from the business profits tax.	This bill would have increased from 41 to 59 percent the percentage of revenue from the Business Profits Tax deposited into the Education Trust Fund.
HB 646 - requiring school districts to establish an online application for participation in the free and reduced price meal program.	This bill would have required school districts to provide both an online and a physical application for free or reduced-price school meals.
HB 384 - prohibiting bullying in schools.	This bill would have required that after an incident of bullying or cyberbullying, the district hold a conference with the parents or guardians of the alleged perpetrator.
HB 549 - relative to the use of education freedom account funds in religious schools and institutions of higher education.	This bill would have prohibited the use of Education Freedom Account vouchers at religious schools or for religious education or training.

Vetoed Bills

Bill Number and Name	Description	Status	Implications
HB 115 - making temporary appropriations for the expenses and encumbrances of the state of New Hampshire	This bill would have removed the income cap for the Education Freedom Account voucher program, with no enrollment limit.	Vetoed	Though this bill was vetoed, a separate bill, ultimately signed, removed the income cap on the voucher program, while instituting an enrollment cap.
HB 319 - relative to the responsibility of local school districts to provide transportation for pupils in kindergarten.	This bill would have removed the requirement for districts to provide transportation for students enrolled in half-day kindergarten.	Vetoed
HB 324 - relative to prohibiting obscene or harmful sexual materials in schools.	This bill would have prohibited schools from providing access to materials with “harmful” content and created a process for parents to file complaints about access to such materials. The bill would have allowed the attorney general to pursue civil action against schools found in violation of the ban.	Vetoed	By offering a broad definition of what is considered obscene or harmful, this bill would have functionally served as a book ban, with schools at risk of legal action if they were found providing access to materials deemed objectionable. The bill was opposed by the NH School Boards Association, the AFT-NH, and the ACLU of New Hampshire, among others.
HB 446 - relative to parental notice for non-academic surveys in public schools.	This bill would have required school districts to give parents copies of all non-academic surveys conducted in schools and would have prevented schools from requiring survey participation without parental consent.	Vetoed	Mental health advocates and educators were particularly concerned about language that would have made the Youth Risk Behavior Survey opt-in. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey provides valuable data on trends in youth mental health and substance abuse, and also plays a role in the state’s access to federal funding to address mental health and substance use.