Karen Burnett-Kurie: State can increase education spending without a sales or income tax

To The Daily Sun,

Saying there is only one way to increase state spending on education and reduce property taxes is a tired old scare tactic. It can be done without instituting a sales or income tax.

Multiple sources of funds go into the Education Trust Fund: sweepstake funds, business taxes (business profits tax and the business enterprise tax), meals and room tax, tobacco tax, real estate transfer tax, liquor and beer tax, insurance tax, interest and dividends tax, lottery, communications tax and tobacco settlement. Increase the ETFs share of any of these sources would move the needle.

• Stop eliminating and reducing sources of funding, e.g. the interest and dividend tax and the business taxes

• Use the State General Fund surplus

• Stop fighting the lawsuits over the state meeting its constitutional obligation

• Stop mandating added requirements for public school districts, these are unfunded mandates

• Use the Education Trust Fund for its original intent only — adequate education grants to traditional public schools

• Don't require school districts to provide services to charter schools, these schools receive two times more state money per student than traditional public schools; let the charter schools cover these costs with the state's added funding

• What about the NH program which allows businesses to divert their tax dollars to scholarships for kids to go to private schools? It reduces tax revenue which could go into the ETF

The article “Small Ball” outlines many additional ways of reducing costs and increasing income. None involve a state sales or income tax.

The first lawsuit challenging NH's public school funding was filed in 1982. The state does not need to fight more suits, wait for more court rulings, study the problem again, or define adequate education. Just get it done.

Karen Burnett-Kurie

Wolfeboro