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Granite Staters are about to get more information about school spending thanks to the pro-transparency Students First Act that Gov. Chris Sununu signed into law this week.

The law requires school districts to detail basic information like the average cost per pupil, average teacher salary, and the salaries of the top administrators in their public reports. Too often, these details are not broken out before voters are asked to pass budgets at the ballot box, according to lawmakers.

“I think that parents are looking for accountability and transparency in education, and this bill takes us further in that direction,” said bill co-sponsor and House Education Committee Vice Chair Rep. Glenn Cordelli, (R-Tuftonboro.)

The Students First Act was originally introduced as SB 219, which ended up getting defeated during a House vote in May. It was subsequently added to HB 1265 which passed and was signed into law.

Another cosponsor, Sen. Keith Murphy (R-Manchester,) called the bill a common-sense law that gives taxpayers and parents the information they need to make informed decisions about budgets and tax rates.

“It’s so taxpayers can see where the money is going in their districts,” Murphy said during his testimony for the bill earlier this year.

New Hampshire’s public education system is spending more money to educate fewer students than ever before, according to Murphy. And the bulk of that money isn’t going to teachers in the classrooms, he said.

“Over the last two decades our cost per pupil is up 77 percent adjusting for inflation, while our teacher salaries are only up one percent,” Murphy said. “In the same 20-year period [the number] of our non-teaching staff is up 80 percent, the number of teachers is up only 23 percent.”

In the last 20 years, New Hampshire’s student population has declined more than 11 percent throughout the state, while the cost per pupil is at a record average of more than $20,000. 

The Students First Act mandates that school districts make public annual reports that show a 10-year history of average cost per pupil in that district, average teacher salary, and total administrator salaries, all adjusted for inflation. Additionally, districts must include a table listing the top four highest-paid administrators.

Murphy said it is possible for the average parent or taxpayer to find this information, but only with hours of research through district documents. 

Shannon McGinley, executive director at conservative advocacy group Cornerstone Action, said the bill will let parents know how much they are paying for district staff who don’t actually teach.

“These non-teaching staff include DEI consultants and auxiliary superintendents who enjoy six-figure salaries while often failing to demonstrate any return on the taxpayers’ considerable investment in their hiring,” McGinley said in a Cornerstone oped.

“By requiring school districts to report salaries for administrative positions and DEI consultants ahead of local school budget meetings, (the law) would shed light on these obfuscated costs for taxpayers before they are forced to foot the bill.”

One example: Rachael Blansett was hired in 2022 by the Oyster River School District in Durham, N.H., for a salary somewhere between $95,000 and $105,000 as a DEI officer.

Cordelli thinks the bill will clear away misinformation about what is really going on in school by making the numbers clear and available for everyone.

“A lot of people have no idea how much is being spent in public schools per student, even among teachers,” Cordelli said. 

Cordelli hopes showing how many non-teaching administrators there are and how much they earn will help explain the New Hampshire education spending paradox.

“At some point, parents and voters are going to say ‘why is the budget continuing to go up when the enrollment keeps going down,’” Cordelli said.

Republican state Sen. Keith Murphy of Manchester faces charges of simple assault and criminal threatening after a fracas at his eatery, Murphy’s Taproom.

According to Manchester police, Murphy turned himself in Monday on a warrant for the charges stemming from the April incident.

According to Manchester police, Murphy was involved in an argument with an employee at his restaurant. When he filed a complaint with the police, the employee alleged Murphy menacingly used a chair, slapped him, and spat on him. Manchester police officials said the surveillance video they reviewed was consistent with the employee’s report.

Murphy, 47, used his Facebook page to comment on his arrest.

“I am innocent of these charges and look forward to my day in court. When the facts are known, it will be clear that the police have charged the victim in this case. I will be defending my name, reputation, and business through the legal process, and I defer all further questions to my attorney, Donna Brown.”

Murphy added, “The truth will come out in a few weeks. Withhold judgment until that happens.”

New Hampshire Democratic Party chair Ray Buckley called on Murphy to resign if convicted of the charges. But earlier this year, when previously convicted repeat offender Rep. Stacie Laughton (D-Nashua) was behind bars yet again, on stalking charges, Buckley did not demand a resignation until after the House held Organization Day.

Once it was clear Laughton would be unable to add to the party’s numbers in a closely-divided House, Buckley then called for the Democrat to resign.

State Senate President Jeb Bradley expressed his support for Murphy late Monday.

“I want to express my strong support for our colleague Sen. Keith Murphy following news of a workplace dispute with an employee,” Bradley said in a statement. “Sen. Murphy has been a leader in the business community and someone that has demonstrated the highest of character while serving in the Senate.

“Like every American, Sen. Murphy has the right to be presumed innocent, and we all look forward to a speedy resolution of this matter.”

Murphy, a former state representative, was elected to the state Senate in 2022 as a fill-in candidate. Republican Rep. Michael Yakubovich, a two-term state representative from Hooksett, won the primary and immediately dropped out of the general election due to health issues. Party officials named Murphy to be his replacement.

Murphy’s allies insist the employee, not Murphy, was at fault and that when the case is fully investigated, Murphy will be cleared.

Murphy is no stranger to brushes with the law. He told NHJournal last year he could potentially be called as a witness in the Ian Freeman money laundering trial after federal law enforcement agents seized a Bitcoin ATM inside Murphy’s Taproom connected to Freeman’s illegal business.

Freeman was convicted last year on numerous federal felonies related to his multi-million money laundering scheme that helped facilitate online scammers, according to court documents. Freeman is due to be sentenced later this year.