Dawn Lincoln's blog

There can be a lot of confusion over how town government really works in NH. I assume that every state is different, but you don’t have to be an “outsider” to wonder how a town meeting actually runs and why town residents, new and old, should learn all they can about how it works and why it’s so important for every eligible resident to attend both their annual town meeting and school district meeting.

The residents are the legislative body (that’s you – the registered voter!) that determines very important things like how much the operating budget for the next fiscal year is going to be. And if the bond for a new school is going to pass. And if your town is going to change any one of a myriad of zoning regulations, tax exemptions, or town policies. All these things have the power to impact your tax rate and your rights (or lack thereof).

In 2005, HB406 was introduced to the NH House Education Committee. The intention of HB406 is to reduce the burdensome and unnecessary government restrictions placed upon NH homeschoolers. In summary the current law states that a homeschooler must submit an annual notification, an annual curriculum plan that must be acknowledged by the party it is sent to and an annual evaluative process that can be satisfied through testing, portfolio review or other methods agreed upon by the parent and the participating agency. HB406 removes the curriculm component, leaving annual noticifaction and evaluation.

HB406 came out of committee with an Ought to Pass with amendment recommendation. The amendment was a minor change to the original language that did not negatively effect it's intent in any way. It passed the House vote and was sent to the NH Senate Education Committee.