NH State Representative Steven Smith

Oct 28 Update – Voting, Tuckaway Tavern, Funding

Posted on October 28, 2020 by Rep. Steven Smith

Vote

It’s too late to mail in an absentee ballot but you can still hand it in

“It’s too late to mail in your absentee ballot and be certain that it will get counted on Election Day, but it’s not too late to vote early in New Hampshire. You just have to hand in the ballot yourself.

You’ll be in good company because lots of people are voting early, partly because changes to election laws prompted by COVID-19 mean that anybody can do it.” More at https://www.concordmonitor.com/absentee-ballot-update-electi-36997595

Governor Chris Sununu Issues Emergency Order #71

Concord, NH — Today, Governor Chris Sununu issued Emergency Order #71 as part of the state’s efforts to respond to COVID-19.

A copy of Emergency Order #71 can be found here .

This order absolves school districts from requirements impossible to meet because of COVID restrictions that would have required the state to withhold the Nov. 1 payments from the Dept. of Education.

New Hampshire records third-highest single-day total of new COVID-19 cases; test positivity rate still low

https://www.wmur.com/article/new-hampshire-records-third-highest-single-day-total-of-new-covid-19-cases-test-positivity-rate-still-low/34499081

Popular Raymond restaurant closed for next 10 days due to employee COVID-19 cases

https://www.wmur.com/article/tuckaway-tavern-closed-coronavirus-october-27-2020/34493772

Of NH’s $1.2 billion COVID-19 cash, all but $38 million committed

https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/coronavirus/of-nhs-1-2-billion-covid-19-cash-all-but-38-million-committed/article_d51c4a4d-329b-5ab1-9741-523d1e99deb8.html

As N.H. Sees New 7-Day High In COVID Cases, Manchester Testing Sites Are ‘Maxed Out’

https://www.nhpr.org/post/nh-sees-new-7-day-high-covid-cases-manchester-testing-sites-are-maxed-out#stream/0

N.H. Restaurants Seek Solutions As Cold Weather Approaches, Potentially Ending Outdoor Dining

https://www.nhpr.org/post/nh-restaurants-seek-solutions-cold-weather-approaches-potentially-ending-outdoor-dining#stream/0

New Hampshire 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Summary Report

(data updated as of October 27, 2020 – 9:00 AM)

Number of Persons with COVID-19 ¹	10,531
Recovered	8,989 (86%)
Deaths Attributed to COVID-19	475 (5%)
Total Current COVID-19 Cases	1,067
Persons Who Have Been Hospitalized for COVID-19	771 (7%)
Current Hospitalizations	31
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)²	334,409
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Antibody Laboratory Tests²	32,004
Persons with Specimens Submitted to NH PHL	51,301
Persons with Test Pending at NH PHL³	373
Persons Being Monitored in NH (approximate point in time)	4,600

¹ Includes specimens positive at any laboratory and those confirmed by CDC confirmatory testing.
² Includes specimens tested at the NH Public Health Laboratories (PHL), LabCorp, Quest, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Mako, certain hospital laboratories, the University of New Hampshire and their contracted laboratory, and those sent to CDC prior to NH PHL testing capacity.
³ Includes specimens received and awaiting testing at NH PHL. Does not include tests pending at commercial laboratories.

NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – October 27, 2020

Concord, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has issued the following update on the new coronavirus, COVID-19.

On Tuesday, October 27, 2020, DHHS announced 140 new positive test results for COVID-19, for a daily PCR test positivity rate of 0.9%. Today’s results include 112 people who tested positive by PCR test and 28 who tested positive by antigen test. There are now 1,067 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire.

Several cases are still under investigation. Additional information from ongoing investigations will be incorporated into future COVID-19 updates. Of those with complete information, there are fourteen individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with 43% being female and 57% being male. The new cases reside in Rockingham (39), Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (19), Strafford (15), Merrimack (13), Grafton (10), Belknap (4), Coos (4), Cheshire (3), Carroll (2), and Sullivan (1) counties, and in the cities of Manchester (12) and Nashua (12). The county of residence is being determined for six new cases.

Three new hospitalized cases were reported. There are currently 31 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. This census may include out of state residents hospitalized in NH and/or individuals readmitted to the hospital, therefore increases in the daily hospital census may not always equal the number of new hospitalizations reported in a given day. Community-based transmission continues to occur in the State and has been identified in all counties. Of those with complete risk information, most of the cases have either had close contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis or have recently traveled.

In New Hampshire since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 10,531 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed with 771 (7%) of those having been hospitalized.

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Education Funding Bills

Posted on October 27, 2020 by Rep. Steven Smith

2021-0076	HB	Title:	relative to the formula for determining funding for an adequate education.
		Sponsors: (Prime) Steven Smith, Rick Ladd, Skip Rollins, John Potucek, Walter Stapleton, Judy Aron

2021-0077	HB	Title:	relative to the distribution of adequate education grants.
		Sponsors: (Prime) Steven Smith, John Potucek, Douglas Thomas, Chris True, David Love, Ruth Ward, Bob Greene, Judy Aron

2021-0127	HB	Title:	relative to state aid to school districts with special education pupils.
		Sponsors: (Prime) Rick Ladd, Barbara Shaw, Steven Smith, James Gray, Ruth Ward, James Allard, Judy Aron

I have written before about separate issues regarding state education funding, and how they should not be mixed up. If it was as simple as pumping more money in, the coonversation would be simpler and many think that is the extent of it. It isn’t. While that political fight happens, you lose more money every year.

Stop the Bleeding

Several towns here have a crippling problem. You actually receive less funding each year than the previous year. To catch up on the history of why this happens, see https://steve4nh.com/2020/03/02/what-is-a-stabilization-grant/ In my district, Charlestown is hit the hardest.

I filed LSR 2021-076 “relative to the formula for determining funding for an adequate education” to replace the current distribution formula with one that ends the grant reductions, and restores most of the lost funding. This is a standalone bill that can be passed regardless of the larger arguments about education funding sources and is critical to towns hit the hardest, like Charlestown and Langdon.

This new formula is the product of a two year bipartisan study committee. You can read the committee documents and reports for yourself at http://gencourt.state.nh.us/statstudcomm/committees/1365/ For some unknown reason, the current Legislature declared it “dead on arrival” and opted for another 2 year study. The result was that Charlestown lost another $100,000 each year while they formed their new commission and punted the fix another two years down the road, at least. Whatever else happens with education, we need to pass this bill to stop the bleeding. Every year that goes by without this costs Charlestown another $100,000.

Special Education Funding

Everyone agrees that special education funding is a burden on school districts. This is why I cosponsored “relative to state aid to school districts with special education pupils“. This will save districts money by altering just one number in statute.

In calculating the cost of a student whose special education requires additional resources beyond that of a general education student, Special education aid support from the state is based upon the following formula. (Note: that figures used are approximations and rounded to the nearest 1,000.)

Now apply the change of 3.5 > 2.5

As demonstrated above, by reducing the initial multiplier of 3.5 x’s the estimated state average expenditure, the district’s cost per pupil is reduced, netting a savings to the district. The current Commission for the purpose of Studying the Cost for the Opportunity of an Adequate Education is working with a cost figure that will most likely exceed the $16,000 figure per pupil as approximated in this communication. As this figure increases, so will district costs for special education. Although the commission has not made any recommendations as of this date, it appears likely that the costing of a special education student (student with IEP) will increase significantly and possibly by a weighted amount of 4 times the cost of a general education pupil + the general education cost. A district paying 3 x’s that amount prior to receiving the 80% support from the state, will be very expensive. The reduction to 2.5 x’s will work to better assist the local district serve to reduce funds needed from local property tax.

Transparency

Currently, state aid goes to the district. The district figures out how much incoming fundng they receive, and then bills the towns for the balance. It would be much simpler for the district to figure the cost and have the town pay the bill. Sometimes we manage to claw some of your money back from the state. Sometimes we offset costs with grants. Without this process being more visible, it is hard for the recpients to see the impact clearly. I want that $100,000 reduction to be crystal clear. There has been surprisingly little public outrage over this. My hope is that by making the grant reductions more transaprent, people will help make some noise and support any bills that stop the grant reductions. This is why I have filed “relative to the distribution of adequate education grants“. I met with the Dept. of Education and they report that this is easy to implement, and may realize an efficiency for them.

Math and Transparency over Politics

There were some years where we were able to get enough supplemental municipal grants to almost offset the stabilization grant reductions. Those are not guranteed and you can’t count on them. You deserve to know what the numbers are and be able to count on them. I have heard too any times “I wonder what the Legislature will do wth our funding this time”. Who ever you are voting for, tell them to stop the bleeding and pass the formula.

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Oct 26 Update

Posted on October 26, 2020 by Rep. Steven Smith

Saturday

Saturday was not a great day. New Hampshire recorded the most cases in a single day (129) since May and there were two more deaths. Despite this, we are still in a favorable condition compared to other states.

“It’s going up, and I think it’s going to keep going up, frankly,” Gov. Chris Sununu said Friday. “We might not get the drastic spikes you’re seeing in the Midwest right now. Folks need to be prepared over the holidays and into the winter. We’re not out of this yet.”

While our current situation is managable, it is important to remain careful to avoid an exponential increase in cases. Please, do what you can to stop the spread. ~ Steve

See How All 50 States Are Reopening (and Closing Again)

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/states-reopen-map-coronavirus.html

2020 Severe Drought Likely to Slow Tree Growth Next Year

Red oak and white pine trees could experience slower growth next year as a result of the severe drought in New Hampshire and most of New England that began in mid-August, according to a researcher with the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station in the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture. Learn More

https://colsa.unh.edu/nhaes/article/2020/10/2020drought

COVID tracker: Coming of winter and flu season make it hard to control

“In some ways, late October is looking alarmingly like late April when it comes to COVID-19 in New Hampshire. The number of new cases each day is rising just as fast now as it did then and will probably go higher than it ever did in the spring, although that’s partly due to increased amounts of testing.” More at https://www.concordmonitor.com/covid-coronavirus-nh-new-hampshire-36936311

New Hampshire 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Summary Report

(data updated as of October 25, 2020 – 9:00 AM)

Number of Persons with COVID-19 ¹	10,328
Recovered	8,823 (85%)
Deaths Attributed to COVID-19	473 (5%)
Total Current COVID-19 Cases	1032
Persons Who Have Been Hospitalized for COVID-19	766 (7%)
Current Hospitalizations	23
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)²	331,561
Total Persons Tested at Selected Laboratories, Antibody Laboratory Tests²	31,995
Persons with Specimens Submitted to NH PHL	51,194
Persons with Test Pending at NH PHL³	896
Persons Being Monitored in NH (approximate point in time)	4,450

NH DHHS COVID-19 Update – October 25, 2020

Concord, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has issued the following update on the new coronavirus, COVID-19.

On Sunday, October 25, 2020, DHHS announced 92 new positive test results for COVID-19, for a daily PCR test positivity rate of 0.8%. Today’s results include 69 people who tested positive by PCR test and 23 who tested positive by antigen test. There are now 1,032 current COVID-19 cases diagnosed in New Hampshire.

Several cases are still under investigation. Additional information from ongoing investigations will be incorporated into future COVID-19 updates. Of those with complete information, there are twelve individuals under the age of 18 and the rest are adults with 49% being female and 51% being male. The new cases reside in Rockingham (23), Hillsborough County other than Manchester and Nashua (20), Merrimack (10), Strafford (7), Belknap (5), Carroll (2), Coos (2), Grafton (2), Cheshire (1), and Sullivan (1) counties, and in the cities of Nashua (9) and Manchester (5). The county of residence is being determined for five new cases.

One new hospitalized case was reported. There are currently 23 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. Five of the new cases had no identified risk factors. Community-based transmission continues to occur in the State and has been identified in all counties. Of those with complete risk information, most of the cases have either had close contact with a person with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, are associated with an outbreak setting, or have recently traveled.

DHHS has no additional deaths to report.

In New Hampshire since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 10,328 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed with 766 (7%) of those having been hospitalized.