NH School Districts Cheated on Their Mandatory Reports to Voters — Act Now to Hold them Accountable
This op-ed by Cornerstone’s Ian Huyett was originally published in the NHJournal, Wednesday, March 18, 2026.
Every year, New Hampshire school districts tell voters the same thing: school taxes are going up to pay teachers. It’s a sympathetic argument. It’s also, in many districts, a lie.
This year, when state law finally required them to publicly post their spending trends, several districts illegally manipulated the data. At least three went even further, manufacturing entirely fake numbers.
New Hampshire’s school districts have been unaccountable for so long that many believe they are above the law. To hold them accountable, the culture of the right in New Hampshire needs to change. Local conservatives have to be willing to engage in conflict and litigation, or these districts will keep cheating with impunity.
Sen. Keith Murphy’s Students First Act, codified as RSA 189:75-78, which went into effect this year, requires school districts to post a mandatory report showing standardized, inflation-adjusted graphs of their 10-year spending trends—cost-per-pupil, teacher pay, and administrator salaries—at least seven days before voters approve their budgets.
Under RSA 189:77, if districts fail to obey the law, any local taxpayer can go into court and obtain his own reasonable attorney’s fees from the school district. The taxpayer can also hold the district accountable by obtaining an injunction, a declaratory judgment, and any other equitable relief as appropriate.
Yet school districts are not eager to comply. The charts often give a striking picture of rising costs, rising administrator pay, and stagnant or declining teacher pay. This year, many school districts opted to break the law and risk litigation rather than suffer the embarrassment of posting a candid report.
Read more here.
State Recognition of Biological Sex Heads to House Committee
Earlier this month, the Senate voted to pass SB 552 a critical, straightforward bill that clarifies the state’s permission to classify biological sexes in public areas such as athletic competitions, prisons, restrooms, and places of intimate privacy.
Across the state in Interlakes, Milford, and New Ipswich, biological males identifying as females have abused unrestricted access to female locker rooms, resulting in normalized harassment. Because there is no law explicitly giving permission to the state to separate biological sexes, the state Department of Justice claims that NH is prohibited from doing so at all.
SB 552 will address this issue and clarify that public entities are not forbidden from differentiating between the biological sexes. The bill resolves serious safety concerns arising from the use of self-declared gender identity by allowing the separation of shared private spaces.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
🗓️ SB 552 has been scheduled for a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday, March 25, at 10:30 am, at Granite Place, room 230.
✅ Register your support of SB 552 by signing in. Here are step-by-step instructions on how to sign in.
✍️ Submit written testimony. You can do this when you sign in. Simply hit “choose file” under step number four to upload a document with your testimony, or type your testimony into the provided box.
📍 Attend the hearing and testify in person. The hearing will be in the temporary Legislative Office Building at Granite Place, 1 Granite Place, Concord, NH 03301, room 230.
📩 If you experience trouble signing in or submitting testimony, you can email the members here.
Next Steps: Help Pregnancy Resource Centers in New Hampshire
HB 1416, introduced by Rep. Sam Farrington, safeguards pregnancy resource centers by ensuring they can operate according to their mission without fear of government overreach. Under current law, these centers sometimes face regulations that could require them to provide or refer for services that conflict with their values or mission. HB 1416 would prohibit the state and municipalities from mandating that pregnancy resource centers perform abortions, provide contraception, or refer clients for such services.
Pregnancy resource centers serve individuals with compassion and support during challenging circumstances, offering education and material assistance. Allowing government entities to impose requirements that contradict those principles undermines their ability to serve their communities effectively and could deter them from offering the help that so many need.
New Hampshire has a strong tradition of valuing the ability of faith-based and community organizations to serve without unnecessary interference. By protecting pregnancy resource centers from regulations that could force them to act against their convictions, this legislation supports the meaningful work these centers do across the state.
Last week, HB 1416 passed the NH House on a vote of 176-163.While offering protections like this to organizations that offer help to some of society’s most vulnerable seems like common-sense, every single Democrat opposed the bill. Unfortunately, six Republicans also voted against HB 1416, choosing to side with those who wish to see men and women providing help to women and babies in need forced to violate their consciences
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
✍️ HB 1416 has now been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
📩 Please contact the Senate Judiciary Committee and ask them to support the bill.
👀 Keep an eye out for the upcoming hearing date and information.
Support Homeschool Freedom in the Granite State
Rep. Kristin Noble’s HB 1268, The Home Education Freedom Act, is one of the most significant pro-liberty homeschooling reforms in New Hampshire history. Under current law, homeschooling families are required to file notices of intent, maintain portfolios, and complete annual evaluations—requirements that many parents find intrusive and unnecessary.
This bill makes those requirements optional rather than mandated, trusting parents—not bureaucrats—to direct their children’s education. It also creates important protections ensuring that the choice to homeschool cannot be used as evidence of educational neglect, prohibits school officials from creating policies governing homeschoolers, and protects the privacy and autonomy of homeschool families. Families educating children with special needs are protected as well.
HB 1268 sends a clear message: New Hampshire respects and trusts its homeschooling families.
Last week, HB 1268 passed the House on a vote of 174-166.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
✍️ HB 1268 has now been assigned to the Senate Education Committee.
📩 Please contact the Senate Education Committee and ask them to support the bill.
👀 Keep an eye out for the upcoming hearing date and information.
Support HB 1195 – Expanding Child Care Access Through Zoning Reform
Last week, the full House passed HB 1195 on a voice vote. The bill will now head to the Senate.
New Hampshire families are facing a severe shortage of quality, affordable child care options—and in many cases, overly restrictive local zoning ordinances are part of the problem. HB 1195 addresses this directly by requiring towns and cities to allow child care facilities to operate by right in appropriate zones, as long as they meet state licensing requirements.
This bill removes unnecessary local barriers that prevent home-based providers and smaller centers from serving their communities. It also provides much-needed clarity for churches that run child care facilities, easing burdensome zoning restrictions for faith-based organizations that have the space, trust, and mission-driven desire to serve local families.
You can read more about the importance of this bill in our Executive Director’s op-ed.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
✍️ HB 1195 has now been assigned to the Senate Election Law and Municipal Affairs Committee.
📩 Please contact the Senate Election Law and Municipal Affairs Committee and ask them to support the bill.
👀 Keep an eye out for the upcoming hearing date and information.