New Hampshire HB 1288: relative to enabling school administrative units to adopt budget caps.

Bill Text

HB 1288 - AS INTRODUCED

2026 SESSION

 26-2813

 07/08

HOUSE BILL 1288

AN ACT relative to enabling school administrative units to adopt budget caps.

SPONSORS: Rep. Vose, Rock. 5; Rep. Barbour, Hills. 35; Rep. Drye, Sull. 7; Rep. Hill, Merr. 2; Rep. Pauer, Hills. 36; Sen. Lang, Dist 2; Sen. Sullivan, Dist 18

COMMITTEE: Education Funding

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ANALYSIS

 This bill enables school administrative units to adopt budget caps.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

 Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

 Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

 26-2813

 07/08

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six

AN ACT relative to enabling school administrative units to adopt budget caps.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 1 New Sections; Education; School Administrative Units; Budget Caps. Amend RSA 194-C by inserting after section 9-b the following new sections: 

 194-C:9-c School Administrative Unit Budget Cap. 

 I. In a school administrative unit that has adopted this section, each year, the school administrative unit budget cap shall be the current overhead cost per student, as defined herein, multiplied by the average daily membership in residence (ADMR), as defined in RSA 198:38, of all member school districts as of October 1 of the year immediately preceding the proposed budget year, as reported to the department of education, times (1+ IF), where IF is an amount equivalent to an annual increase for inflation. The first year after a budget cap is adopted, the current overhead cost per student shall be the overhead cost per student adopted in the warrant article under RSA 194-C:9-d, IV. In subsequent years, the current overhead cost per student shall be the previous year's current overhead cost per student times (1+IFP), where IFP is the previous year's IF. 

 II. The following subparagraphs shall apply only if the school administrative budget adopted by the school administrative unit board pursuant to RSA 194-C:9 exceeds the school administrative unit budget cap for that year: 

 (a) If the school administrative unit has not adopted RSA 194-C:9-b, the warrant for each school district shall include a warrant article with the wording: 

 “Shall the voters of the [name of school district] adopt a school administrative budget of $_____ for the forthcoming fiscal year, which exceeds the school administrative budget cap of $_____, and for which $_____ is assigned to the school budget of this school district? This year's budget cap budget of $_____, with $_____ assigned to the school budget of this school district, shall be adopted if the article does not receive a 3/5 majority vote of all the school district voters voting in this school administrative unit.” 

 (b) If the school administrative unit has adopted RSA 194-C:9-b, the warrant for each school district shall include a warrant article with the wording: 

 “Shall the voters of the [name of school district] adopt a school administrative budget of $_____ for the forthcoming fiscal year, in which $_____ is assigned to the school budget of this school district, which exceeds the school administrative budget cap of $_____? This year's budget-cap-adjusted budget of $_____, with $_____ assigned to the school budget of this school district, shall be adopted if the article does not receive a 3/5 majority vote of all the school district voters voting in this school administrative unit.” 

 This question shall be used on the member school district warrants instead of the warrant article question posed under RSA 194-C:9-b, I. The budget-cap-adjusted budget shall be the minimum of the adjusted budget pursuant to 194-C:9-b, I, or this year’s school administrative unit budget cap. 

 (c)(1) Each school district moderator shall cause a vote by paper ballot to be taken, record the number of yeas and nays, and announce the result of the vote at the annual meeting. The ballots shall be delivered to the moderator of the school district with the latest chronological annual meeting. The moderator of the latest chronological annual meeting shall record the total number of yeas and nays, announce the results of the final vote on the question of adopting the school administrative unit budget, and deliver the ballots to the secretary of the school administrative unit. The secretary of the school administrative unit board shall certify the results to the department of revenue administration. A 3/5 majority of voters voting in favor shall result in adoption of the budget proposed by the school administrative unit board, otherwise the budget cap budget