A Senate proposal to expand Education Freedom Account eligibility advanced through the GOP-controlled House Education Finance Committee on a party-line vote, drawing sharp criticism from ranking Democrat Rep. David Luneau, NH Journal reports.
According to NH Journal, the party-line outcome was expected.
It was no surprise when a Senate proposal to expand EFA eligibility advanced through the GOP-controlled House Education Finance Committee on a party-line vote.
NH Journal
Luneau tied the program to the Free State Project in pointed terms.
Luneau, an outspoken opponent of parental choice, launched a lengthy tirade during Thursday’s hearing, denouncing the EFA program as a “voucher scam” and tying it to the libertarian Free State Project.
NH Journal
He claimed the program was being used as a recruiting tool, NH Journal reports.
He told fellow House members he suspects the EFA scholarship program “is really turning into a recruiting tool to bring in ‘Free State freeloaders’ into the state of New Hampshire.”
NH Journal
Luneau said the effort, in his view, aimed to reshape the state.
“They seek to, in my opinion, destroy the state that I know and love.”
NH Journal
Republicans dismissed the argument, NH Journal notes.
“That’s just ridiculous rhetoric,” said Rep. Raymond Peeples (R-Litchfield).
NH Journal
The committee’s 10-8 Republican majority carried the proposal forward despite the Democratic objections, sending SB 295, which would remove the income cap on EFA eligibility, to the House floor with an “ought-to-pass” recommendation, NH Journal reports. Vice Chair Sen. Dan Innis offered a dismissive response to Luneau’s claims during the hearing.
The exchange over SB 295 captured the deep divide over Education Freedom Accounts, with Democrats casting the program as a threat and Republicans defending it as a popular tool for families, NH Journal reports. The dispute over whether the accounts rescue children from struggling schools or serve some broader political aim framed much of the hearing, and is likely to resurface as the full House takes up the bill.
The committee’s party-line vote advanced a Senate proposal to expand Education Freedom Account eligibility, sending SB 295, which would remove the income cap, to the House floor with an ought-to-pass recommendation, NH Journal reports. The debate grew heated as Democrats pressed their objections.
Ranking Democrat Rep. David Luneau called the program a voucher scam and argued it was a recruiting tool meant to bring new residents to New Hampshire and reshape its politics, according to NH Journal. Republicans dismissed the characterization as far-fetched, with Vice Chair Sen. Dan Innis offering a dismissive response, and the committee’s 10-8 majority carried the proposal forward.
The exchange over SB 295 captured the deep divide over Education Freedom Accounts, with Democrats casting the program as a threat and Republicans defending it as a popular tool for families, NH Journal reports. The dispute over whether the accounts rescue children from struggling schools or serve some broader political aim framed much of the hearing, and is likely to resurface as the full House takes up the bill.
Read the full story at NH Journal.
