Why a constitutional amendment is needed to restore taxpayer standing to challenge illegal spending By Andrew Cline On Sept. 1, 2015, Manchester’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved a contract with the city’s teachers union that included a pay raise. Three aldermen with immediate family members employed as city teachers voted for the contract, in […]
If the Education Savings Account (ESA) program proposed in Senate Bill 193 becomes law, school district operating budgets can be expected to decline on average by a mere 0.14 percent in the program’s first year, leaving districts with 99.86 percent of their operating budgets intact, based on the performance of school choice programs in other […]
On Tuesday, the august members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives will consider House Bill 287, which would create a commission to study legalizing prostitution. It comes with an “ought to pass” recommendation from the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee. (The jokes really are so obvious, you’ve probably already thought of a better […]
The whole premise of the anti-school-choice movement is that parents cannot be trusted to make sound educational decisions for their children. Still, it is jarring to hear people saying out loud that ESAs will harm special-needs children. These are precisely the children who could benefit most from an ESA. The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education […]
Bartlett Brief The Best Bet on FirstNet Opting in is less risky for New Hampshire December 19, 2017 On December 7, Gov. Chris Sununu announced his intention to have New Hampshire opt out of the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet). In theory, opting out of FirstNet would give the state greater control over its […]
It’s been a decade since New Hampshire increased turnpike tolls statewide, which means that the Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Turnpikes has awakened, like the mythical Kumbhakarna, ravenous and ready to devour more of your money. Kumbhakarna was (is?) a Hindu demon cursed to sleep for long stretches. Periodically he would awaken, eat everything in sight, […]
Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) will not decimate public school budgets, a report released today by the Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy shows. In fact, even using a high average cost for each ESA and a high ESA take up rate of 5 percent, the report shows that every school district in New Hampshire […]
Debunking the Top Five Myths about Senate Bill 193, Education Savings Accounts November 7, 2017 The House Education Committee meets on Wednesday, Nov. 8, to consider Senate Bill 193, a bill to establish Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) in New Hampshire. This briefing paper dispels several myths about the bill. SB 193 would establish ESAs that […]
CONCORD — U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan should explain why they voted against ending the federal tax deduction for state and local taxes, which aids high-tax states at the expense of New Hampshire, Andrew Cline, interim president of the Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy, said. “Through the state and local tax deduction, […]
Save The Date! 2017 Libertas Dinner featuring Stephen F. Hayes Editor, The Weekly Standard Contributor, FOX News December 4, 2017 Reception 5:30 p.m. Dinner 7:00 p.m. Grappone Center 70 Constitution Avenue Concord, New Hampshire Mark your calendars for Dec. 4 and join us for the Josiah Bartlett Center’s annual celebration of free markets and free people. We […]