Surrounded by smiling children and beaming lawmakers, Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) gave Granite State Republicans a long-sought win by signing a universal school choice bill into law.
The new law removes the income caps on the popular Education Freedom Account (EFA) program, allowing all New Hampshire parents to use the state portion of their child’s education spending on alternatives like private and home school.
“As a mom, I can’t think of anything more important than making sure that every child in this state has the opportunity to reach his or her full potential in the setting that works best for them in terms of education,” Ayotte said. “And that’s really what this bill does.”
School choice supporters were thrilled.
“New Hampshire parents are grateful and relieved that more doors are finally open,” said Kate Baker Demers, executive director of the Children’s Scholarship Fund, which oversees the program. “They’ve known what their children needed—and now, thanks to this law, more families can access the freedom to choose what works best. This isn’t about politics. It’s about possibility.”
Opponents of the program lined up in the hall outside to denounce it as a giveaway to the rich that is draining money from underfunded public schools. Some waved signs reading “Voucher Vultures.”
Ayotte dismissed that complaint, noting the EFA program is a tiny slice of the more than $4 billion New Hampshire spends each year on K-12 education.
“In fiscal year 2026 (EFA spending) is $39.3 million. In fiscal year 2027, it’s $47.8 million,” Ayotte said. “But also, if you look at my budget, if you look at the Senate’s budget, we’re spending more on education per pupil and overall than we have historically — a record amount.”
Ayotte also invited outgoing Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut, an outspoken school choice advocate, to speak to the crowd.
“The research supports — and we all know — that active engagement of families and caregivers in the education of children results in better outcomes,” Edelbut said. “Education freedom accounts empower parents and caregivers to be engaged, active participants in creating these bright futures for the next generation of Granite Staters.”
Later in the day, Ayotte announced her nominee to replace Edelblut is the department’s current Director of Education Analytics and Resources, Caitlin Davis. Ayotte will present her nominee to the State Board of Education on Thursday.
Davis is a career member of the department, unlike Edelblut, who is a former political candidate. She doesn’t have a track record of publicly speaking out on school choice issues, a fact several conservative activists noted to NHJournal on background. However, they also added that Edelblut’s strong endorsement of Davis went a long way toward easing their minds.
“Caitlin is a respected peer within the state’s education field and a pivotal member of our leadership team. We are proud to have this nomination from within our own pool of talented professionals,” Edelblut said in a statement.
New Hampshire is now the 19th state with a universal school choice program and only the fifth in the country to offer “true educational freedom and choice,” according to the organization EdChoice.
“The Granite State goes further than most, offering families not just access, but real autonomy through broad spending flexibility and guaranteed funding for every eligible student,” the organization said in a statement.
As Ayotte signed the EFA law, she was surrounded by school-aged children.
“Isn’t this exciting?” she asked the kids as the crowd applauded. A young boy noticed Ayotte was using three different pens to sign the law and asked why.
“I need these pens to give them out to people who worked on the bill,” Ayotte explained. “but even if I signed every letter (with a separate pen), there are so many people who worked on this, I wouldn’t have enough to give one to all of them.”
One of those lawmakers was Rep. Valerie McDonnell (R-Salem).
“Our children are our future, and this is a critical step we needed to take going forward. I’m glad we did.”
