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In 2002, the first Harry Potter movie hit the big screen, Gov. Jeanne Shaheen was making her first (unsuccessful) bid for U.S. Senate, and Nelly was singing it is “Hot in Herre.”

And the per-pupil school revenue for a New Hampshire public school student was $14,184.

Twenty years later in 2022, that number was $22, 738 — an increase of 60.3 percent and the third-biggest jump in inflation-adjusted revenue per student in the country. Only Illinois (61 percent) and  New York (81.4 percent) rose more.

And yet, despite the explosion in spending, New Hampshire Democrats at the state and local level say taxpayers need to pay even more.

In Nashua, the school board has approved a new $131,061,021 budget, a 4.49 percent increase over the prior year’s operating budget, on top of record spending.

In Concord, residents will see a 2.9 percent education tax increase thanks to the $107.9 million school budget. That total is 1.58 percent higher than Concord’s previous school budget — once again, already a per pupil record.

Manchester is also considering a record $227.9 million school budget. Mayor Jay Ruias calls the school total a compromise figure, and part of his overall effort to get the school and city budgets under control after years of former Mayor Joyce Craig’s leadership. 

At the state level, both former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig and Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington support even more tax dollars for public schools. Craig is running on a pledge to “boost the state’s investment in public education.” And Warmington wants to shut down Education Freedom Accounts entirely and add that funding to public schools.

Neither Craig nor Warmington responded to a request for comment about soaring school spending, or the fact that it coincides with standardized test scores that are flat or falling.

The reason for New Hampshire’s high rank in per pupil spending is its decline in enrollment.

“Since 2002, student enrollment numbers in the Granite State have dropped from 207,684 to 165,095, which represents a decrease of 42,589 public school students, or about a 20.5 percent decline during the past 21 years,” the state Department of Education reported last year. The state’s public schools lost another 2,262 students (1.4 percent of enrollment) in 2022 alone.

Drew Cline, president of the Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy, says nobody should be surprised by these numbers.

All that spending for public school students comes as the state faces a potentially expensive court case on education funding. The ConVal decision, currently appealed to the New Hampshire Supreme Court, almost doubles the state’s portion of per pupil spending.

The ConVal decision increases the state’s adequacy aid grant $4,100 per student to at least $7,300. If the decision stands, it would represent a minimum $500 million annual tax increase.

Both Craig and Warmington have been endorsed in prior political campaigns by the state’s two teachers unions, the American Federation of Teachers and the National Educators Association. The union presidents, AFT’s Deb Howes and the NEA’s Megan Tuttle, also did not respond to a request for comment.

Warmington, Craig, and the unions, are all staunch opponents of New Hampshire’s Education Freedom Accounts, the school choice program that allows families to opt out of the public school system.

“We don’t take taxpayer dollars to subsidize private schools,” Warmington told WMUR last year. 

Both of Warmington’s children attended the elite Tilton School for secondary education, an independent boarding and preparatory school in New Hampshire. Tilton charges $38,500 for day school and nearly $67,000 for boarding school.

Craig said earlier this year if elected governor, her first budget would see an increase in spending for public schools.

“We need to fund public education in this state,” Craig said. “Right now, we are not.”

A migrant center resident who allegedly molested a 12-year-old Manchester girl had recently finished his probation on a federal identity theft conviction.

Angel M. Rivera-Laureano, 59, was arrested last month at the migrant shelter in Chelmsford, Mass., on the Manchester warrant, according to court records obtained by the Maine Wire. But Rivera-Laureano’s known criminal history goes back to at least 2012, when he was caught cashing counterfeit IRS checks in the Queen City, according to court records.

The Maine Wire quotes a “law enforcement source with knowledge of the case” that Rivera-Laureano is a suspected illegal immigrant using different names and identities since coming to the U.S.

“The source said Jan. 1 is a birthday frequently used for illegal aliens living under assumed identities and that law enforcement isn’t even certain Rivera-Laureano is his real name,” the Maine Wire reported.

Rivera-Laureano’s story adds to the drumbeat of crime news involving migrants. On Monday, two New York City police officers were wounded in a shootout with a Venezuelan man who was in the country illegally. 

According to the New York Post, a judge closed the immigration case against alleged shooter Bernardo Castro Mata, 19 on May 6. Mata illegally crossed the border into Eagle Pass, Texas, where he was caught and arrested but later released in July 2023, according to the report.

President Joe Biden is finally bowing to pressure on the border. On Tuesday, he announced an executive order closing down ports of entry to those seeking asylum. But Biden’s move after years of stalling is not enough, says Republican gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte.

“Joe Biden’s open-border policies have allowed millions of unvetted illegal immigrants into our nation and made our country less safe. Biden’s political move today is too little too late and does not do enough to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into our country” Ayotte said.

Ayotte, a former U.S. senator, is facing former state Senate President Chuck Morse in the GOP primary for governor.

“This horrific example illustrates how weak border policies make every state a border state, inviting drugs, crime, and gang activity to New England,” Morse said. “Candidates like Kelly Ayotte, who voted to give amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants, are no better than Joe Biden and can’t be trusted to suddenly grow a backbone on this issue. As governor, I will always protect New Hampshire families and will not back down from maintaining strong stances on immigration.”

The Ayotte campaign pushed back against Morse’s claim.

“Kelly Ayotte has never and will never support amnesty. Chuck Morse can’t rewrite history — he killed the sanctuary city ban and didn’t use E-Verify at his own company,” said spokesperson John Corbett.

Neither of the two major Democratic candidates for governor, former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig or Executive Councilor Cindy Warmington, responded to a request for comment. Craig’s previously expressed openness to so-called sanctuary cities. Warmington has said that while she’s not a fan, she would not seek to ban them. Ayotte said Craig and Warmington are not going to protect Granite Staters.

“Joyce Craig and Cinde Warmington support [Biden’s] disastrous policies and would turn New Hampshire into a sanctuary state. As Governor, I’ll never allow that to happen, and I will work every day to protect Granite Staters.”

U.S. Marshals caught Rivera-Laureano at a taxpayer-funded shelter operated by the state of Massachusetts, according to the Maine Wire. The converted Best Western hotel is now a shelter for illegal aliens or homeless U.S. citizens. Why Rivera-Laureano was living at the shelter is unknown. Court records list two addresses, the shelter and a home in Chelmsford, Mass. 

Rivera-Laureano was sentenced to three years in federal prison after he pleaded guilty to several counts including aggravated identity theft and fraud in 2013. He reportedly had fake drivers licenses made for an accomplice he recruited in New York, and the pair went north to cash the fake IRS checks in Manchester where they were caught.

Rivera-Laureano’s exact immigration status isn’t clear from available court records. His plea agreement and sentencing memorandum do not reference his immigration status being put at risk for the plea. There is a note in the sentencing order written by Judge Joseph Laplante recommending that Rivera-Laureano be allowed to serve his incarceration as close to Manchester as possible.

After his release in 2016, Rivera-Laureano was ordered to be on supervised probation for another three years, according to the sentencing order. That means Rivera-Laureano was free and clear as of spring 2019.

Rivera-Laureano came to live with an aunt in New York at age 16 after suffering abuse from his heroin-addict mother and her family, according to his sentencing memo. His father had abandoned the family when he was a small child, the memo states.

“It is clear that the defendant experienced a deeply deprived upbringing which left him unprepared for adulthood, the ramifications of which continue to this day,” the memo states.

Rivera-Laureano’s now being held without bail at Valley Street Jail in Manchester. He’s due in court for an arraignment in July. 

For state Rep. Keith Ammon (R-New Boston), Tuesday’s ruling striking down the state’s anti-discrimination in education law meant one thing.

“Judge Barbadoro just put stopping Critical Race Theory back on the ballot in November.”

New Hampshire Democrats, teachers unions, and the state chapter of the ACLU all celebrated United States District Court Judge Paul Barbadoro’s decision to declare the law unconstitutional. The Right to Freedom from Discrimination in Public Workplaces and Education law — often referred to by the judge and its critics as the “divisive concepts” law — was passed in 2021 in response to concerns about Critical Race Theory (CRT) content in classrooms. It barred any public employee from teaching or training others that race, sex, or other inherent characteristics made an individual racist, sexist, etc.

Democrats are delighted to see the law go.

“I am pleased that Judge Barbadoro recognized today what the Senate Democrats have said for years: the Republican’s ‘divisive concepts’ law is an unconstitutional infringement on the rights of Granite Staters,” said state Senate Democratic Leader Donna Soucy (D-Manchester).

And both Democrats running for governor confirmed Ammon’s prediction that the ruling would result in a partisan political battle.

Former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig promised to shut down any Republican who tries to revive the law.

“As governor, I’ll stop any bill that threatens teachers’ ability to teach and prevents students from receiving an honest education,” Craig said.

Her fellow Democratic candidate for governor, Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington, said the law “sought to undermine public education by subjecting educators to arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement and penalties. I am relieved to see the court’s ruling today declaring this law unconstitutional.”

And House Democratic Leader Rep. Matt Wilhelm (D-Manchester) linked the law to GOP-backed legislation for keeping boys out of girls’ bathrooms and off of girls-only sports teams.

“Make no mistake—the Republican Party will stop at nothing to infringe upon our children’s freedom with nonsensical culture wars like their “divisive concepts” ban, book bans, sports bans, and bathroom bans,” Wilhelm said.

But Republicans blasted the ruling. Sen. Tim Lang (R-Sanbornton) said it will allow teachers to promote racist CRT-inspired ideology in public classrooms.

“Seems odd the court thinks it’s OK to allow teachers to teach, based on your race, you are inherently a victim or a perpetrator of racism. Which is what the ‘divisive concepts’ law prohibited, no person is inherently racist based on race,” Lang said. 

Chuck Morse, who’s running in the GOP primary for governor, helped craft the legislation and get it to Gov. Chris Sununu’s desk. He said he will work to push through a law that passes constitutional muster if elected.

“We must equip our students with the tools to think critically and engage with each other respectfully, without the influence of biased and discriminatory teachings,” Morse said. “My administration will prioritize transparency, and adherence to constitutional principles to ensure that any new legislation will stand up to judicial scrutiny and serve the best interests of our students.”

Teachers union president Deb Howes with the New Hampshire American Federation of Teachers disagrees, saying Tuesday’s ruling should be the end of the lesson. 

“This decision should put to rest the issue, and New Hampshire teachers will no longer have to live under a cloud of fear of getting fired for actually teaching accurate, honest education.” Howes said. 

Ironically, the ruling may boost support for the Education Freedom Account program Howes and her Democratic allies oppose. Parents who discover they can’t prevent their children from being labeled “racist” or “privileged” by their local public school may turn to the EFA program to send their kids elsewhere.

Before the law passed, CRT-based content was being used in school districts like Manchester, Laconia, and Litchfield. However, there is no record of any teacher or administrator being subjected to enforcement under the law.

Manchester School District’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Director Christina Kim Philibotte and Andres Mejia, the former DEI director at SAU 16, said the ruling will let teachers get back to caring for “students of color, students from the LGBTQ+ community, and students with historically marginalized identities.”

“It is critically important that students see themselves in the books they read and in the classroom discussions they have to ensure that they feel cared for and valued,” Philibotte and Mejia said in a joint statement.

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that New Hampshire’s law barring the teaching of discriminatory content in schools is too vague and, therefore, violates the constitutional rights of educators. 

“The Amendments are viewpoint-based restrictions on speech that do not provide either fair warning to educators of what they prohibit or sufficient standards for law enforcement to prevent arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement,” wrote United States District Court Judge Paul Barbadoro. The judge based his ruling on the 14th Amendment protection against vague laws, and declared New Hampshire’s legislature passed a law that was nearly “unintelligible.”

The law’s supporters disagree.

Under the law tossed out by Judge Barbadoro:

• You can’t “teach, advocate, instruct, or train” people that one group is inherently superior or inferior to another.
• You can’t teach that people are inherently racist, sexist, etc., based on the group they’re in.
• You can’t teach that people should be discriminated against based on their group.
• You can’t teach people not to even try to treat people in other groups equally (the “race shouldn’t matter/colorblind” approach)

As a result, school districts like Manchester, Litchfield and Laconia could no longer use Critical Race Theory-based curriculum in their classrooms. Striking down the law will allow that content to return.

Barbadoro said the attempt to prevent teachers from telling students they are racist, sexist, etc. crossed the line into viewpoint discrimination.

“The most obvious vagueness problem is presented by the fourth concept, which prohibits teaching that individuals of one group ‘cannot and should not attempt to treat others without regard to’ their membership in another group. As other courts have observed, this language is ‘bordering on unintelligible’ because it employs the dreaded triple negative form,” Barbadoro wrote.

The judge argued the law created an untenable mix of subjective instructions and severe punishment under the law.

“Potential disciplinary sanctions include reprimand, suspension, and revocation of the educator’s certification,” Barbadoro wrote. “In other words, an educator who is found to have taught or advocated a banned concept may lose not only his or her job, but also the ability to teach anywhere in the state.”

New Hampshire Department of Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut’s office declined to comment.

Nixon Peabody attorney Morgan Nighan, who represented the plaintiffs, said a law so unclear that it cannot be followed is a clear violation of the 14th Amendment.

“No ordinary person can understand what is banned,” Nighan said. “Laws like this have been routinely struck down across the country.”

Teachers could not speak about affirmative action legal cases, Israel’s war against Hamas, or any potentially hot button current events issue for fear of breaking the law, Nighan claimed. That meant teachers avoided large sections of history or current events out of fear that could lose their licenses without knowing why.

“For example, teachers may attempt to stimulate discussion by asking students pointed questions or encourage debate by presenting students with ideas contrary to their own. When such techniques are used to explore a banned concept, it is impossible to know whether a banned concept has been impermissibly taught,” Barbadoro wrote.

Supporters of the law dismiss that claim, saying the line between teaching that racism exists and actually advocating racism is easy to see.

Attempts by Edeblut to clarify the law backfired, according to Barbadoro’s ruling. Edelblut tried to explain his views in a June 2021 newspaper oped, but that only added to the confusion and fear, Barbadoro said.

“The threat of arbitrary enforcement based on Edelblut’s personal views has impacted teachers even in the absence of a formal complaint,” Barbadoro wrote.

One incident noted in Barbadoro’s ruling involved Keene Middle School scrapping a plan to teach Ibrahim X. Kendi’s “Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and  You” after the district bought 250 copies of the books. According to the ruling, Edelblut’s column was why Keene abandoned Kendi’s book.

According to Kendi, “There’s no such thing as a ‘not racist’ or ‘race neutral’ policy,” and any person who doesn’t embrace what he calls “antiracism” — overtly treating white people differently from people of color — is engaged in racism. Some parents objected to the notion that their children would be taught that their skin color makes them inherently privileged and racist.

New Hampshire passed the anti-discrimination law as a set of amendments to the biennial budget in 2021. Rather than banning specific “divisive concepts,” the amendments sought to bar teachers from “teaching, advocating, instructing, or training” students that one group is inherently superior or inferior to another; that people are inherently racist, sexist, etc., based on the group they’re in; that people should be discriminated against based on their group; to stop people from treating other equally.

While the law allowed for teachers to discuss issues like racism and sexism in class, there was no clear legal line that distinguished such discussions from actual teaching, opponents complained.

Megan Tuttle, president of the New Hampshire NEA teachers union, said the law “stifled New Hampshire teachers’ efforts to provide a true and honest education. Students, families, and educators should rejoice over this court ruling which restores the teaching of truth and the right to learn for all Granite State students.”

Michael Garrity, spokesman for New Hampshire’s Department of Justice, said the state is reviewing Barbadoro’s ruling.

“The state is currently reviewing the court’s order and will consider next steps, including whether to appeal.”

Manchester’s neighborhoods are struggling to keep up with the revolving door criminal justice system that’s releasing violent suspects even before their arrest reports are complete.

Mayor Jay Ruais said Monday city residents are fed up with a system that allows people charged with violent crimes to get out with no cash or personal recognizance bail within hours. In many cases, those same people are arrested again on new charges.

“The safety of our city is non-negotiable, and the men and women of the Manchester Police Department are heroes, full stop. Unfortunately, the state’s current bail system is undermining their efforts to make Manchester safe. When 40 percent of those arrested are ending up back on our streets, and 27 percent of those arrested are already out on bail, our police are fighting an uphill battle,” Ruais said.

Since the start of the year, Manchester Police have arrested 1,646 people, and at least 40 percent — more than 650 of those suspects — were released almost immediately on PR bail. The state needs to finally step in and fix the bail system that’s fueling the problem in Manchester, Ruais insists.

“There is not a single thing that would have a more transformative impact on the quality of life in our city than passing bail reform. It’s crucial for our legislators to take action to ensure the safety of our community and prevent repeat offenders from cycling through arrest, release and rearrest,” Ruais said.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte got a look at the problem up close during her recent ride-along with Manchester police. The officer she rode with had just returned to work after a violent encounter with a suspect who was out on bail, she said.

“Last week, I did a ride along with the Manchester Police Department, and the officer I accompanied had previously been injured by a criminal let out on bail, resulting in him being out of work for six months. Our state’s failed ‘bail reform’ experiment has created a revolving door that allows violent criminals back into our communities, putting officers at risk and undermining their efforts to protect Granite Staters,” Ayotte said.

Ruais is focused on seeing bail reform happen. On his first day as mayor, he traveled to Concord to lobby state lawmakers to the cause. It’s a more direct approach than that of his predecessor, Democrat Joyce Craig, who advocated for the lower standards for bail that have released so many repeat offenders on the the streets.

Craig did not respond to a request for comment about her current view of bail reform. Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington, the other Democratic gubernatorial hopeful, also declined to comment.

A proposal to change the bail system is currently under debate in the legislature. After the House passed a bill to tighten up the bail system and create a new bail magistrate position, the Senate weighed in with amendments to require that people charged with certain violent crimes have a hearing before a judge before being allowed out on PR bail. Reforming bail is now splitting Democratic unity in the Senate.

One of the three contenders in the Democratic primary for U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster’s seat in Congress, state Sen. Becky Whiteley (D-Hopkinton), opposes pretrial detention, saying it increases the odds an innocent person will plead guilty to a crime they did not commit. 

“Do we want that?” Whitley said during a recent Senate debate. “That’s really troubling.”

But Senate Minority Leader Donna Soucy (D-Manchester) said lawmakers must act as the problem is only getting worse.

“Doing nothing can’t happen,” Soucy said. “We’re never going to get it perfect. We have to get it as close to right as we can.”

Ayotte said as governor she’d protect police officers and citizens by keeping violent offenders in jail.

“As governor I will shut and lock the revolving door to keep our officers – and our communities – safe. I thank Mayor Ruais for fighting on this issue for the people of Manchester and the brave men and women of the Manchester Police Department,” Ayotte said.

Mayor Jay Ruais is moving to address Manchester’s homeless crisis, announcing a new initiative Tuesday to connect homeless residents with the help they need to get into stable housing and improve their lives.

“We got to make sure we’re getting people what they need,” Ruais said. “The ultimate goal is getting them out of this and breaking the cycle.”

While Ruais’ clashes with Adrienne Beloin, former director of the city’s Housing Stability program, dominated headlines in recent weeks, the mayor has been focused on rolling out his pragmatic plans to alleviate homelessness.

Ruais’ proposal for new Resource Fairs at the Beech Street Engagement Center will feature dozens of partner agencies sending representatives to meet with homeless people, connecting them to healthcare and recovery services, as well as education and employment opportunities. 

Ruais has 10 organizations like Hope for NH Recovery, Anthem, Amoskage Health and Workpath joining the new effort, along with long-time partners like Catholic Medical Center, Easter Seals, and the Farm Center. Those providers will be at the weekly Resource Fairs, meeting with people who need help. 

The fairs will be held Thursdays from 9 to 11 a.m. Ruais hopes to expand the times and days. There will also be a new database of contact information that people can access outside of the fairs to get connected with participating agencies.

The city is focused on addressing homelessness as a solvable problem where people can have hope to get into a better life. Ruais said that requires addressing the reason why people ended up on the streets, and working with them to find realistic solutions.

“Homelessness should be rare, brief, and one time,” Ruais said. “A stay at a shelter should be temporary.”

Beloin took a $57,000 payout to leave her job last month after she publicly fought with Ruais and members of the Board of Aldermen. Beloin accused them of interfering with her job when they raised questions about her effectiveness, while she advocated a slow approach to getting people off the streets. 

Beloin was a holdover from Mayor Joyce Craig’s administration which saw the city’s homeless crisis worsen. After a number of homeless people died in December 2022, Craig called on Gov. Chris Sununu (R) to send in National Guardsmen to fix the city’s problem. 

Sununu declined.

Ruais won the mayor’s race by defeating Craig’s handpicked successor, Kevin Cavanaugh. Ruais made addressing the homeless crisis a top priority. He said Tuesday the drive has been to quickly enact policies that will help people and lift the quality of life for the whole city.

The resource fair announced Tuesday is just part of Ruais’ response. A major barrier for some homeless people seeking services or employment is the lack of a driver’s license or state ID. The city is addressing that by partnering with Catholic Charities and Members First Credit Union. Ruais said 19 people have already been able to get copies of their birth certificates and then state IDs.

The macro-economic challenge facing the homeless is the lack of affordable housing — a problem that impacts the entire state.

To promote the creation of more affordable housing in the city, the Board of Aldermen is set to declare 15 parcels zoned in residential and mixed-use areas as surplus, meaning that property can be auctioned off. Ruais plans to use the auction proceeds to fund affordable housing initiatives in the city. 

He’s also pushing for changes in Manchester’s zoning ordinances to make it easier for people to add so-called in-law apartment units and build multi-family homes. More housing stock would help drive down rental costs and make it easier for people to get their lives on track, he said.

Hours before her termination hearing in front of Manchester’s Board of Aldermen, Housing Stability Director Adrienne Beloin took a deal to resign her post and end her public spat with elected officials.

Beloin walks away with a $57,000 payment, according to sources, after she spent weeks trashing board members in public when they began questioning her management of the city’s Beech Street shelter. Aldermen complained about Beloin’s condescending answers to their questions and her refusal to follow the board’s guidance.

When asked for comment, Mayor Jay Ruais’ office released a statement: “The personnel matter has been resolved, and the mayor has received Ms. Beloin’s resignation effective tomorrow, April 12, 2024. The mayor will not be commenting on personnel matters.”

Beloin refused to accept the board’s policy and said it lacked the necessary experience to set the agenda for her department.

“I know it’s very hard for you to understand what the work is that we’re doing, because this is not your field of work,” she told Aldermen at a public meeting last week.

Beloin doubled and tripled down, going to the media and blasting the board for pushing her out and claiming it lacked the expertise to instruct her regarding homeless policy.

At one point, she claimed the board giving her an office in the Beech Street shelter was retaliation.

Beloin’s lack of a permanent office in city hall was something she wanted corrected, but apparently balked when given an office in the shelter she oversaw.

While Beloin tried to turn the controversy into a personal issue between herself and individual board members, a source close to the negotiations told NHJournal the real problem came down to policy.

It was Beloin’s refusal to be accountable to elected leaders and to follow their policy directive that ultimately ended her tenure.

“This isn’t personal; it’s policy. She refused to do what the board wanted. What else were they supposed to do?” the source said.

Another city insider told NHJournal Beloin was protected by former Mayor Joyce Craig, who kept her away from aldermen who questioned how she did her job.

According to a report by the Union Leader, Beloin’s settlement included $27,064.36 in wages, $25,000 for compensatory damages, and $5,000 for attorney fees.

Manchester’s homelessness crisis, and Craig’s mishandling of that crisis, is seen as a primary reason for Ruais’ win in the mayoral race last year. The Republican ran on a promise of fixing the problem.

Beloin is now the city’s second Housing Stability Director to leave since the position was created a few years ago. The first director, Schonna Green, suddenly quit in 2022 after about a year and a half on the job, citing personal reasons.

Manchester’s homelessness crisis peaked in the winter of 2023 when a homeless woman gave birth to a child at an outdoor camp, and two people died in their tents. Homeless camps dominate parts of Manchester’s downtown, and those camps account for at least half of the city’s opioid overdose calls.

Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais presented his first budget to city leaders Thursday night, telling them he is grappling with lower city revenue, funding shortfalls created by the last administration, and exploding healthcare costs.

But, he added, it’s still a budget that will help the city grow.

“If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: Ours is a city filled with undeniable and unquantifiable promise, and this budget responsibly funds our potential,” Ruais said.

He presented his proposed $189 million city budget and $227 million school budget Thursday night in the aldermanic chambers. Despite economic pressures that include a more than $3 million hole, Ruais’ spending proposal comes in with a 3.86 percent increase, well under the 5.6 percent tax cap limit.

“We had to make tough decisions,” Ruais said.

Ruais’s predecessor, Democrat Joyce Craig, left him with a $1.7 million funding gap after she used federal COVID relief funds to cover ongoing expenses in her last city budget. Add to that an overage in city employee healthcare costs of $1.4 million, and a dramatic drop in new revenue from $4.5 million last year to $166,000 this year.

Craig is now running for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination.

Ruais’s proposal freezes hiring in the city, eliminates funding for vacant positions, and cuts city department requests by almost $2 million. Ruais said his budget focuses on growing the city and strengthening its finances for the future. That means he’s also cutting the bonding that future generations will pay by 10 percent and leveling funding of city departments.

The budget does not include any layoffs, however. City employees will be receiving a 4 percent cost of living adjustment. Ruais’ budget focuses on education, public safety, quality of life, and ending the homeless crisis.

He wants to use $1.65 million in federal funds to build 45 affordable housing units, as well as funding for programs like Families in Transition, which would receive $70,000 for family emergency housing; WayPoint would receive $89,000 for its homeless youth shelter; YWCA would receive $70,000 for Emily’s Place; and 1269 Café would receive $50,000 to double its residential room capacity.

Those investments would help prevent the city from relying on emergency shelters, which are expensive and not long-term solutions for homeless people.

Importantly, Ruais does not want to keep using limited funding to create new and ongoing expenses for taxpayers. The city’s homeless engagement center came together with federal funds which are now running out. Instead of putting that expense onto the tax rolls, Ruais wants to use remaining ARPA funds to keep the center as a non-profit not funded by the city.

“ARPA has fully funded the engagement center since its inception; and those funds run out on June 30. I don’t believe cities should be in the shelter business, and we do not have the resources to fund this in the long term. We should take this opportunity to transition from a city run shelter, to that of a nonprofit,” Ruais said. “What I am proposing today is that we take a portion of the ARPA money we have left to build a transitional bridge to the nonprofit that will take over. This is an important strategy allowing us to address these real challenges without having the taxpayer bear the full burden.”

Ruais also wants to see increased spending in the city welfare department to keep people from falling through the cracks and ending up homeless. This type of humane investment in people is good for the community and the taxpayer, he said.

Manchester’s police and fire departments aren’t expected to shoulder any cuts. Ruais is making sure 10 officers funded through a federal COPS grant will continue, as will the six new officers hired since January. Mental health funding for officers will also continue. Firefighters are getting $100,000 in new protective gear to keep them safe on the job.

“You have our back, and this budget has yours,” Ruais said.

While the school part of the proposal, $227 million, may not be everything the district is seeking, Ruais said it is a solid compromise and a generous allocation.

“We were able to invest an additional $1 million into our school district. The $227 million we are proposing to allocate this evening represents the most ever allocated by the City of Manchester,” Ruais said.

The budget includes more than $5 million in funding for road repairs and funding to incentivize property owners to beautify their downtown buildings with the aim of attracting people and businesses to the city. Additionally, Ruais proposes investing in parks and youth sports to enhance the quality of life.

Hours after Nashua’s James Morris was charged with senselessly assaulting police officers during a traffic stop, he made bail and was back on the streets.

“It’s certainly frustrating for the officers,” said Nashua Sgt. John Cinelli. 

James Morris

Morris, 32, is just one of the alleged violent offenders who have caused mayhem in recent days in incidents throughout the state, incidents abetted by New Hampshire’s reformed bail system. 

The 2018 bail reform was meant to eliminate the unintended consequence of the cash bail system that resulted in cases of poor people charged with relatively minor, nonviolent crimes but who were unable to afford bail.

People like Jeffrey Pendleton, a 26-year-old Nashua panhandler arrested in 2016 on a marijuana possession charge. Pendleton ended up in Valley Street Jail in Manchester when he couldn’t come up with the $100 cash bail. Five days later, he was found dead in his cell from a drug overdose.

But now, instead of protecting poor, nonviolent offenders, bail reform is letting people charged with violent felonies stay on the street.

Police stopped Morris’ car near School Street Friday night, and he refused to give the officers his identity before he decided to start fighting with them, according to Cinelli.

“We have no idea why he did that,” Cinelli said.

On Thursday, Concord homeless man Victor Manns, 23, allegedly stabbed two tourists on South Main Street and led officers on a prolonged manhunt. Manns’ was walking around despite being charged with assault in June and again in August in separate incidents.

Victor Manns

According to police, the couple were in their car parked in front of a business on South Main Street when Manns, wearing a mask and a hood, approached and began hitting the car. The alarmed couple got out of the car. Manns reportedly brandished his knife, threatened the pair, and then stabbed them, according to police.

Manns ran from the scene of the attack, kicking off a two-hour police search of the downtown area before he was captured.

On Friday, Claremont woman Brandie Jones, 33, allegedly hit a Nashua police officer with her car to avoid a felony arrest. At the time of the incident, Jones was wanted in Londonderry on warrants, including a breach of her previous bail in another case.

Brandie Jones

Nashua police had previously stopped Jones but gave a false name to officers as she had been convicted of being a habitual traffic offender by the state. If caught driving, habitual offenders face new felony charges.

After getting stopped for the second time on Friday night, Cinelli said Jones was getting out of her car as instructed by police when she changed her mind. With the door still open, she got back in the driver’s seat and sped off. The open car door hit one officer, Cinelli said.

Jones made it to Londonderry, where she ditched her car and ran. Londonderry Police eventually found her with the help of a police dog and took her into custody. 

Cinelli said that none of the Nashua officers suffered any serious injuries from the incidents involving Jones and Morris. The couple attacked by Manns both suffered lacerations, and one sustained minor injuries, which required a trip to the hospital. 

Cinelli said the 2018 bail reform law makes it easy for people charged with a crime to avoid jail, get back out, and re-offend. 

“When these guys are getting bail and getting out that quickly, what is going to stop (them) from doing it to more officers or civilians who don’t have the ability to defend themselves,” Cinelli said.

Jay Ruais, the Republican running to replace Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig, has been demanding changes to the state’s bail system as crime becomes a bigger problem in the Queen City. In recent weeks, two men charged in an Elm Street shooting got released on relatively low cash bail. In another incident, 10 people were arrested for being part of a street fight in the area of Auburn and Cedar Streets, where two men were stabbed. Most of those suspects were quickly released on bail.

“Violent, dangerous, and repeat offenders should never be on our streets,” Ruais said. “As mayor, I will make sure our police have the resources and tools they need to make our community more safe.”

The issues of homelessness, crime, and opioid addiction dominated the conversation at the first mayoral forum in Manchester on Wednesday night. They also revealed a divide between the approach the candidates would take to address them, with Republican Jay Ruais urging more policing, while the three Democrats raised concerns about equity and discrimination.

“Structural racism does play a role in this city; we are not immune from that,” warned Alderman Will Stewart (D-Ward 2) in front of a crowd of several hundred people at the Rex Theatre. Ruais and Stewart were joined on stage by Ward 1 Alderman Kevin Cavanaugh and At-Large Alderman June Trisciani.

Jay Ruais

As mayor, Ruais said he would increase public safety by giving police the tools they need to protect the Queen City. “We have got to get violent criminals off our streets,” Ruais said. He also supported closing a loophole and allowing police to prevent more people from camping in public spaces.

One striking difference was in the responses to a question about Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg’s plans to use data to focus police activity in neighborhoods considered crime hotspots.  

Stewart and Trisciani worried that policing focused on tacking criminal hotspots would lead to racial profiling.

“Over-policed neighborhoods based on hotspot data, those are marginalized communities,” Stweart said.

Rather than targeted policing in high-crime areas, Stewart proposed efforts to get people to know one another in their neighborhoods, like block parties and other social events.

Triciani favors a community policing approach incorporating hotspot data while striving for equality. “We still need to treat everyone equally,” Trisciani said.

Manchester At-Large Alderman June Trisciani

Cavanaugh suggested there could be some creative ways for people in non-hotspot neighborhoods to still feel safe while police were tackling crime.

For Ruais, the solution is filling the 22 empty positions in the Manchester Police Department and letting those officers do their jobs. “We have to create a better environment for our police,” Ruais said.

Ruais viewed to help get rid of the state’s bail system, which he said is keeping violent criminals on the streets. “We need to fix our broken PR bail system,” Ruais said.

When asked about issues of diversity in the city, Ruais was the only candidate to answer part of the question in Spanish.

Taxes and spending were also part of the conversation. Cavanaugh and Stewart both said they supported letting voters decide whether to give the Manchester School Board the power to create their own budget, independent from city government. Ruais opposed it, saying Manchester taxpayers were already under too much stress.

Manchester Ward 1 Alderman Kevin Cavanaugh

On the proposed $800 million commuter rail project, all three Democrats supported the idea, and Trisciani wants it to extend to include Concord. Ruais said none of the proposals for a rail line connecting Manchester to Boston made fiscal sense. “I understand the why; I have yet to see the how,” Ruais said.

A financial analysis of the rail proposal anticipates the construction and operation of a Manchester station at an estimated $51 million, all from city coffers.

Manchester can’t afford a rail line given the school district’s aging buildings, unaffordable housing, and a city budget Ruais called a ticking time bomb that uses one-time federal grants to pay for ongoing expenses.

“When do the taxpayers get a break?” he asked.