Senate Education Committee
Trevor Currier 271-4151
HB 1093, relative to public charter schools and governmental land use exemptions.
Hearing Date: April 14, 2026
Time Opened: 9:16 a.m. Time Closed: 9:21 a.m.
Members of the Committee Present: Senators Ward, Sullivan, Abbas and Prentiss
Members of the Committee Absent : Senator Altschiller
Bill Analysis: This bill grants chartered public schools governmental-use status for land-use purposes and subjects them to the same municipal notification requirements as other governmental entities.
Sponsors:
Rep. Donnelly | Rep. Harvey-Bolia | Rep. Janigian |
Rep. D. Mannion | Rep. Mooney |
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Who supports the bill: Representative Tanya Donnelly, Jessica Wachsman, Emily Whalen, Beth McClure, Amy Bottomley, Christopher O’Reilly, Spring McKenney (Northeast Woodland Chartered Public School), and Daniel Richardson.
Who opposes the bill:William Copeland Jr, Carol Wright, Priscilla Dube, Joyce Weston, Julie Retelle, Stephanie Osborne, Richard Osborne, Suzanna Derynioski, Carol Lenahan, Sally Widerstrom, Janet Lucas, Karen Burnett-Kurie, Rose LaRochelle-Colby, Sheila Donahue, Nancy Donahue, Erin Kerwin, Lisa Willis, Steven Zeimetz, Tami Lanzillo Zeimetz, Lisa Day-Copeland, Anne Hunnewell, and Gary McCool.
Who is neutral on the bill: No one.
Summary of testimony presented in support:
Senator Daryl Abbas – Senate District 22
- Senator Abbas introduced House Bill 1093 on behalf of Representative Tanya Donnelly.
- Senator Abbas explained that public charter schools have fallen outside the law regarding governmental land use and that there have been inconsistent interpretations of the current law by municipalities.
- He stated that the RSAs are inconsistent and that this bill looks to address those concerns.
Jessica Wachsman
- Ms. Wachsman stated that this bill addresses roadblocks that were raised when public charter schools wanted to make renovations.
- Ms. Wachsman explained that different municipalities have been interpreting the law related to public charter schools inconsistently.
- Ms. Wachsman stated that after working with attorneys, they settled on RSA 674 as the accurate place to make these changes.
- She explained that the bill recognized that charter schools are public schools and are granted all the rights that are afforded to public schools.
- She explained that the bill addresses concerns about permitting fees, zoning areas, and property taxes. She stated that the bill does not include changes to code requirements.
Summary of testimony presented in opposition: None.
TC
Date Hearing Report completed: April 15, 2026