The Keene School District would get an additional $381,646 in state money next year under a bill approved by the N.H. Senate that seeks to help communities struggling to pay for local education.

Senate Bill 420 — which was approved 21-1 Thursday and now goes to the House — would also provide $106,000 to Jaffrey and $157,000 to Swanzey next year, along with money for dozens of other NH cities and towns.

Sen. William Gannon, R-Sandown, voted against the bill after commenting the towns he represents would not qualify for any money under the measure.

The extra funding would be based on a formula tied to municipal property values and the number of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches.

With a population of 23,047 (2020 Census), Keene’s assessed valuation was $2 billion last year, its tax rate was $31.28 per $1,000 of property value and the percentage of students eligible to receive subsidized lunches was above New Hampshire’s average.

Statewide, 20.89 percent of students in grades 1 through 12 were eligible for these lunches. In the Keene district, six of seven schools exceeded this percentage.

For comparison, the like-sized town of Hudson has a valuation of about $3 billion, a tax rate of $21.67 and is below average for children eligible for these lunches. Hudson would get no funding under SB 420.

“Our goal is to identify those towns with the greatest needs, giving them property tax relief and increased aid for their students,” the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Erin Hennessey, R-Littleton, said in a statement.

In an interview Friday, she said previous attempts to supplement school aid “haven’t always passed the smell test.”

“This targets the communities where the ability to pay for education is much more difficult versus other communities. That’s why you see the Claremonts and the Berlins, and you see Keene in there as well.”

Claremont would receive $498,872 in the first year of the program, while Berlin would receive $377,415.

Local communities that would get extra funding next year include Charlestown, $184,487; Winchester, $151,031; and Hinsdale, $131,254 (see full list).

In all, Hennessey’s bill would provide $14.67 million in “extraordinary need grants” next year and $9.6 million in 2024.

N.H. Sen. Jay Kahn, D-Keene, praised the bill, but said more public education money is needed.

“It’s good that we are recognizing that additional dollars going to education ought to go to our needier communities,” Kahn said Friday. “This is a paltry amount.”

He said state funding for public schools next year is set to drop by $34 million from its current level of $988 million.

Next year’s annual operating budget for the Keene School District, which voters approved last month, is $71.1 million.

In New Hampshire, the bulk of education costs are covered by local property taxpayers.

A report by the National Education Association last year found that New Hampshire has the lowest contribution of state money and the highest contribution of local money going to fund public education of all states.

In 2019-20, about 31 percent of New Hampshire’s education funding came from the state level, while just under 64 percent came from local taxpayers and about 5 percent came from the federal government.

Hennessey said it’s important to remember that such rankings don’t address different tax structures among states. New Hampshire doesn’t have an income tax on wages so it’s not apt to compare it to a state that does have a generalized income tax, she said.

The state is being sued by the ConVal School District and others that argue New Hampshire is not providing sufficient funding to meet N.H. constitutional obligations of ensuring an adequate education at all school districts. The case is awaiting trial.

These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.