HB 751 Statewide open enrollment — any student can attend any public school district, with funding following the student.
Statewide open enrollment — any student can attend any public school district, with funding following the student.
Impact Score — How Does This Bill Affect You?
Overall Impact Score
Concerning
Scale: 1 (harmful) to 10 (beneficial)
Your Wallet
Sending districts lose 80% per-pupil funding while fixed costs like buildings and buses remain
Your Community
Rural districts face declining enrollment and revenue in a difficult-to-reverse cycle
Your Freedom
Students can attend any public school district in the state
Status
Passed Senate 16-8 (Jan 29, 2026). In House.
Voted Yes
16 R
Voted No
0 R + 8 D
Sponsor
Sen. Tim Lang (R-Sanbornton)
The Short Version
Sounds like "school choice" but here's what it actually does: any student can enroll in any district, and 80% of the per-pupil cost follows them. Small rural districts lose students (and funding) to larger, better-resourced districts — but still have to maintain buildings, bus routes, and staff for the students who remain. It's a death spiral for rural schools. And the receiving districts control capacity, meaning wealthy districts can cherry-pick while poor districts hemorrhage. Passed the Senate 16-8.
Who's Behind This Bill?
Who Benefits
- ▲ Well-funded suburban districts that attract transfer students
- ▲ Families in underperforming districts (more options)
Who Pays the Price
- ▼ Small rural districts (lose students and 80% per-pupil funding)
- ▼ Taxpayers in sending districts (fixed costs remain)
- ▼ Students with special needs (receiving districts can limit capacity)
Roll Call Detail (3 votes)
Every recorded floor vote on this bill, with each legislator's individual vote. Click a name to see that rep's full record.
YES = Adopt this amendment. NO = Reject this amendment.
Show all 24 individual votes
Voted Yea (24)
YES = Adopt this amendment. NO = Reject this amendment.
Show all 24 individual votes
Voted Yea (16)
YES = Pass the bill. NO = Reject the bill.
Show all 24 individual votes
Voted Yea (24)
Full Analysis
"Open enrollment" sounds like freedom. In practice, it's a mechanism that accelerates inequality between wealthy and poor school districts. Sen. Tim Lang (R-Sanbornton) sponsored this bill, which allows any NH student to attend any public school district regardless of where they live.
The funding formula is the key: when a student leaves their home district, 80% of the per-pupil cost follows them to the receiving district. But the sending district's costs don't drop by 80% — they still have to heat the same buildings, run the same bus routes, and maintain the same minimum staffing levels. Losing 10 students doesn't mean you need one fewer teacher; it means your remaining classes are slightly smaller but your budget just took a six-figure hit.
Meanwhile, receiving districts control their own capacity. This means high-performing, well-funded districts in wealthy towns can set strict enrollment limits, accepting only as many transfer students as they choose. There's nothing stopping them from being selective about which students they accept. Students with expensive special education needs? Districts aren't exactly going to roll out the welcome mat.
The predictable result: a handful of well-funded districts become magnets, small rural districts bleed students and funding until they can no longer sustain themselves, and the legislature gets to point to the resulting failures as proof that public schools don't work. It's the charter school strategy applied to the entire public school system.
Bill statuses as of May 2026. Check LegiScan or NH General Court for the latest.