AFT-NH: House Should Reject Budget
Proposed Budget Would Raid State’s Education Trust Fund
Howes: It Would Become a Reverse “Rob Peter to Pay Paul” Scheme
CONCORD, N.H.—The following is a statement from AFT-New Hampshire President Deb Howes, urging the New Hampshire House to reject the proposed budget for many reasons, including the fact that it would raid the Education Trust Fund for any non-education purposes and make public schools depend on even more local property taxes and lottery revenues:
“All 165,000 Granite State public school students should be guaranteed safe and welcoming public schools that are fully staffed, well-resourced and provide curriculum to meet their learning needs. Instead, the proposed budget would raid the Education Trust Fund of hundreds of millions of dollars for non-education purposes, even tax cuts for the wealthy. This would become a reverse ‘rob Peter to pay Paul’ scheme that would mean more tax cuts for the rich, less money for our public schools, and therefore inadequate and inequitable education funding. Our public schools would be totally dependent on lottery revenues and local property taxpayers, who already are buckling under the burden. This budget demonstrates that New Hampshire couldn’t care less about properly supporting our public school students. Budgets are about values; this proposed budget gambles with our children’s future. The House must reject it.”
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Contact: President Deb Howes at president@aft-nh.org