Senate endorses making more families eligible for EFAs
May 18—CONCORD — The state Senate on Thursday gave initial approval to raising the income ceiling for parents to be eligible to receive taxpayer-funded grants to send their children to private, religious, home or alternative public school programs.
While the legislation (HB 367) heads to the Senate Finance Committee for further review, the party-line 14-10 vote for the House-approved measure virtually ensures it will pass the Legislature before the close of the 2023 session. All Senate Republicans backed the measure.
The grants, known as Education Freedom Accounts, currently are limited to families that make up to 300% of the federal poverty level — $90,000 for a family of four.
The bill that cleared the Senate would raise the income limit for that same family to $105,000 annually, or 350% of the federal poverty level.
The Senate killed without debate a second House-passed bill (HB 464) to expand — regardless of income — EFAs for all children of active military families, bullied students, students in foster care, homeless students, those who have disabilities and those who attend under-performing schools.
Sen. Donovan Fenton, D-Keene, said the program doesn't have enough oversight to know whether the EFAs have led to better learning.
"I am unaware of a single program that is allowed to operate like this except the EFA program," Fenton said.
Sen. Daryl Abbas, R-Salem, said the Legislature should do all it can to allow more families to have options other than their assigned public schools.
"This is equity. That's the policy right I am looking at with this bill," Abbas said.
Sen. Lou D'Allesandro, D-Manchester, said White families (nearly 2,500) have been the predominant beneficiaries of this program, compared with students in Black (150), Hispanic (139) and Asian (48) families.
"These accounts are for Whites. The minorities are where they are," D'Allesandro said. "If we keep this up, we will destroy public education."
Senate Majority Leader Sharon Carson, R-Londonderry, said the Children's Scholarship Fund, the private, not-for-profit manager of the EFA program, provides information about the program on its website and is undergoing a legislative budget audit.
"To my way of thinking, that is transparency and accountability," Carson said.
Kate Baker Demers, the program's administrator, said that in the most recent application cycle, families of about 340 children made too much money to be eligible. About 100 of those would fit into this expanded window in the Senate-passed bill, she said.
Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut praised the Senate action.
"Taxpayers continue to benefit as we deliver high quality educational pathways to families for a fraction of the cost of a traditional education," Edelblut said in a statement.
"This is an exciting day for families in New Hampshire, as there is a clear demand for new educational options and the flexibility for students to thrive."
