CONCORD – As part of the ongoing effort to develop a new system for funding public education in New Hampshire, members of the Commission to Study School Funding voted unanimously Monday to continue negotiations with the University of New Hampshire’s Carsey School of Public Policy to reach a final contract.

Commission Chair Rep. David Luneau, D-Hopkinton, said before the vote that concerns had been raised about the university’s administration and facilities charges that would have been 26% of the $500,000 contract under the university system’s policy. He said the charge has been reduced twice and now stands at $40,000.

Luneau said the university, the Carsey School and administrative services have agreed on the $40,000 figure or 8%.

Commission member Rep. Rick Ladd, R-Haverhill, suggested money for heating and electricity is already included in the university’s budget and he did not see why the state should have to pay for it twice.

Carsey School project manager Bruce Mallory said the state aid to the university covers instructional costs, while the research costs are separate.

“I don’t believe we are double dipping,” he said. “They are now about 8% and do not duplicate in any way aid from the Legislature.”

Commission member Sen. Jay Kahn, D-Keene, who previously served as vice president for finance and planning at Keene State College, said the charge is what is expected from research projects, and said is a way to control costs for students.

He said the 8% charge is a “rock bottom number,” and what the state generally pays for services it contracts with university system schools.

All commission members present – including Ladd – voted to move forward with negotiations to finalize a contract with the Carsey School.

The commission has less than a year to develop a more equitable formula to distribute state aid to schools.

At Monday’s meeting, the commission had preliminary discussions about a draft request for proposals for subcontractors and will discuss the issue further when it meets again Monday.

The commission also heard from Caitlin Davis of the Department of Education about how the state education aid formula works and how it is determined what each school district receives in state aid.

Amy Clark of the DOE spoke of the school building aid program and the change it has undergone in the last decade. A moratorium on new school building aid was in place from 2010 to fiscal 2019, but has since been lifted, although there is little money for new projects.

The formula was changed in 2013, Clark said, and is now a competitive process weighted toward overcrowding, safety, Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and other factors. Building aid was capped at $50 million a year, she said.

The state is paying off bonds issued before the moratorium and will make final payments on that debt in 2014. For the current fiscal year, the state obligation is $43.3 million, leaving $6.7 million available for new projects.

The state now pays 80% of its share of building projects upfront and 20% when they are completed, Clark said, instead of making yearly payments on the principle on bonds issued by school districts.

“Districts don’t have to bond as much,” Clark said, “but the state does not fund as many projects.”

The commission will review the education funding court decisions at its meeting Monday.

This is the third commission established to determine the cost of an adequate education and the most equitable method to distribute state education aid.

The commission was included in one of a series of education funding bills introduced last session to address the inequity of the current education funding system.

The commission is scheduled to meet at 2 p.m. Feb. 10 in Rooms 210-211 of the Legislative Office Building.

Garry Rayno may be reached at garry.rayno@yahoo.com.

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