New Hampshire Senate Bill SB117

New Hampshire 2025 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/22/25
• Refer: 1/22/25
• Report Pass: 2/12/25

Caption

Making an appropriation to the department of education to fund the online tutoring program.

Summary

SB 117 appropriates $1,000,000 from the general fund to the Department of Education for the biennium ending June 30, 2027, to continue the state’s online tutoring program, identified in the fiscal note as Tutor.com. The money is designated as non-lapsing, meaning any unspent funds remain available for the program rather than reverting at the end of the fiscal period. The bill also sets an effective date of July 1, 2025. In addition to funding, the bill requires the Department of Education to submit annual reports beginning June 30, 2026, on the use and effectiveness of the online tutoring program. Those reports must go to the governor, legislative leaders, and the chairs of the relevant education and education finance committees in both chambers. The bill does not create a new program; it continues existing online tutoring services through a specific appropriation and oversight requirement.

Impact

The bill amends state spending authority by appropriating $1,000,000 from the general fund to the Department of Education for online tutoring services and making those funds non-lapsing. It also adds an annual reporting requirement to the department’s obligations, creating a recurring oversight mechanism for lawmakers and executive officials. According to the fiscal note, the appropriation is below the estimated cost of the current contract for Tutor.com, so the bill would continue the program but may not fully fund it at existing service levels.

Sentiment

The available record suggests generally supportive sentiment toward maintaining the online tutoring program, as reflected by the bill’s sponsorship and its straightforward appropriation-and-reporting structure. No committee transcript or recorded vote information is provided, so there is no evidence of formal opposition or debate in the materials supplied. The bill appears framed as a continuation of an existing education service rather than a controversial policy change.

Contention

The main point of contention identified in the fiscal note is funding adequacy. The Department of Education reported that its current Tutor.com contract costs $1.6 million per year, while the bill provides only $1 million for the entire biennium, leaving an estimated shortfall of $1.1 million in each fiscal year covered. That means supporters of the program may view the appropriation as insufficient to sustain current operations, while fiscal conservatives may view the lower appropriation as a budgetary compromise. No other specific disagreements are documented in the provided materials.