In response to letter writer Ryan Bilodeau’s thinking that EFA’s create fairness: While HB 115 claims to provide universal access to education, it unfairly shifts funds from already-underfunded public schools to private and home school options. These alternatives often benefit families who don’t need financial assistance. How is that fair?

Education Freedom Accounts (EFAs) offer flexibility, but they mainly benefit private schools that can choose which students they enroll, leaving public schools to educate the remaining children, including those with the greatest needs. This is not an equal playing field. You argue that EFAs could save the state money, but expanding this program adds $100 million in new expenses, draining public school funds and creating a greater financial burden for taxpayers, who are already struggling. How is that fair?

Educational choice has always existed through private schools and homeschooling. True fairness means strengthening public education to serve every student, not diverting resources to alternatives that only serve a few. If we truly want to invest in the future of New Hampshire’s children, our focus should be on supporting public education, where most students are educated, ensuring every child has the resources they need to thrive.

Kathleen Malsbenden

Newmarket