Gov. Chris Sununu signed the state’s $13.5 billion budget, which will fund the state for the next two years, after the budget passed along partisan lines and despite a surge of protestors who rallied at the capital on Thursday.
Sununu praised the budget, saying it had, “Historic tax cuts, property tax relief, and Paid Family Medical Leave delivered all in one sweeping action is a win for every citizen and family in this state.”
House Bills 1 and 2, the budget and trailer bill, were not universally backed by legislators, with both bills being passed by the Republican majorities in the state House and Senate, with strong Democratic dissent. While Republicans focused on property tax reductions and other tax cuts, including ending the interest and dividend tax, Democrats protested other aspects of the budget, including expansion of the school voucher system, a ban on the discussion of “divisive concepts” in public schools and other state-funded institutions, and restrictions on abortion.
Maddy Springfield, 23, of Rindge and 18-year-old Erin Weidner of Rindge were among the protestors who attended a two-hour rally at the State House on Thursday, where protestors sought audience with the governor to request he veto the bill.
Springfield said she was very concerned about the impacts to education that would result from the passage of the budget, including expansion of the voucher system, which allows parents to use state funding for alternate forms of education other than the public school system, and the banning of “divisive concepts.”
Sununu supported the inclusion on banning divisive concepts in the budget, saying it would strengthen anti-discrimination laws. The wording prohibits schools and public entities from teaching that one race or gender is superior to another, and also bans the teaching the concept that a person is “inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously.” But critics have said that it does the opposite by eliminating conversations about discrimination and systemic racism in schools and stands in the way of things like implicit bias training for state-funded institutions, including state police.
Springfield said this was one of the aspects of the budget the spurred her to attend Thursday’s rally in Concord.
“It’s scary and it’s frightening that we’re not going to teach the truth of this country. As the state of New Hampshire, we’re taking 20 steps back,” Springfield said in an interview with the Ledger-Transcript. “It’s 2021, and we should be able to teach the truth of American history. I come from a family of teachers and education is one of the most powerful tools we have to change the world.”
Also controversial were aspects of House Bill 2, the “trailer” to the budget, which included a ban on abortions after 24 weeks, except in cases where the health of the mother is at risk. The restriction does not make exceptions for cases of rape, incest or fetal abnormalities, and requires that every abortion require an ultrasound to determine the gestational age of the fetus. The state must also audit programs to make sure that the programs for abortion clinics and other services be separate, both physically and financially.
Weidner said she joined the protest mainly to object to those provisions, which are the most restrictive in the state’s history.
“Over the years, it’s become an issue that’s dear to me,” Weidner said. “I can put myself in that position, and it made me think about it and have empathy for people in that situation.”
Weidner said once put in place, such restrictions can be hard to walk back.
Weidner said she also disagreed with the expansion of the voucher system, sometimes also called “school choice.”
The program allows for parents to use funding usually slated for K-12 public schools on a per-student basis to be used for private schools or homeschooling. Families earning up to three times the state’s poverty level can use the funds for an alternate form of schooling for their child.
Weidner said rather than further diverting funding from its own public school system, the state should focus on improving that education.
Weidner and Springfield have both been part of local roadside protest gatherings regarding the environment and climate change in downtown Jaffrey, but said the rally at the statehouse was the biggest protest they’ve ever been a part of.
“I thought it was amazing, being around people that had a similar mindset to me. Hearing some of the people in the crowd speak about their experiences, and how these changes would directly impact them, it was great to be able to speak to them and hear their points. I like further educating myself, and I was able to hear these viewpoints,” Weidner said.
Springfield said she and a group of local residents who drove to the protest together stayed from about 10 a.m., for just over two hours, chanting, singing songs, and entering the State House when the majority of the rally dispersed, after failing to get an audience with Sununu.
Some rally attendees remained throughout the day, and at 5 p.m. five activists were arrested and charged with criminal trespassing after allegedly refusing to leave when the building was closing for the day. Arrested were Asma Elhuni, of Lebanon, Alison Brokenshire of White River Junction, Dana Hackett of Laconia, James Graham of Lyme and Douglas Robertson of Keene.
Sununu signed the budget and the accompanying trailer bill on Friday afternoon. The budget will take effect on July 1, and funds the state government through 2023.
Weidner and Springfield said the outcome was not unexpected, and that they were disappointed, but not surprised.
“Even though it didn’t go as planned, we are coming for these people next year. If they’re against what the people of our state want, we’re just going to fight harder, and we’ll see them at the ballot box,” Springfield said. “I was born and raised here, and it’s a state I love. I want it to be a place where people can move forward, and young people of all races and religions can thrive.”
“This is the first year I can vote, and this gives me more passion to vote for what I believe in,” Weidner agreed.