The Power of the Concord School Board

There has been much discussion about the “autonomous” nature of the Concord School Board. But what exactly does this mean? And is it a good thing? At the Patch/Concord TV Candidates Forum on September 30th, I said:

The possibility of serving on the Concord School Board is actually quite terrifying because it’s known as the only "autonomous" school district in the state. I tried researching whether any school district in the country has the same unchecked tax and spending authority. There probably is, but I couldn’t find one. To have that level of authority—on what is essentially a volunteer board made up of people with full-time jobs and busy lives—is an awesome responsibility. (edited for clarity in text)

What I meant by this is that while it’s important for any elected official to approach their duties with humility and a sense of responsibility, this is all the more critical when there are no checks and balances on the decisions being made. While people often complain about having their decisions second-guessed or needing approval in their personal lives, at work, or in group decision-making, there’s a certain comfort in knowing that your decision isn’t final. There’s a double-check in most situations. But when it comes to the Concord School Board, that comfort doesn’t exist.

A good summary of the unique nature of the Concord School District can be found just yesterday in a Concord Monitor article, where it was stated: "Concord is believed to currently be both the only local district in the state that has its own charter and the only one that operates entirely independently, meaning it doesn’t need approval from a city council or voters to pass its budget, raise taxes, or issue bonds to build new schools."

Let's define "autonomous" as meaning a school district that can independently tax, spend, and issue bonds without needing approval from voters or any other governing authority. It’s hard to definitively prove that Concord is the only district in the state that meets this standard because there are numerous small districts, each with its own unique structure. That’s probably why the Monitor stated the district is “believed to be” the only one of its kind in New Hampshire. However, there’s certainly no other district of significant size in the state with this kind of authority.

This made me wonder: Is there any school district in the entire country with a similar level of independence, especially in localities with a population comparable to Concord? If one could be found, it would be easy to disprove the claim, but proving the negative is much harder. Still, I decided to do some research to see if I could find one.

In many states, much of the funding comes from state sources, giving the state government more control over revenue allocation. This inherently reduces the independent taxing authority of local school boards in many states.

Upon investigation, one example of a potentially similar system to Concord’s—pointed out by an thoughtful voter that I have corresponded with —is found in many locations in Texas. In Texas, local school boards can independently levy taxes, set a budget, and issue bonds without voter or local government approval, which sounds similar to Concord. However, Texas state law imposes a significant limitation. The state has a "rollback rate" for taxes, meaning if a school board wants to exceed a set tax rate, voter approval is required. Additionally, bonds for capital expenditures must also be approved by voters. These state laws create a tax cap, making the situation in Texas different from Concord’s.

Florida has a similar state law called the “Truth in Millage” Act. This law requires local governments, including school boards, to publicly announce any proposed tax increases, calculate the impact on taxpayers, and hold public hearings. A formula is used to calculate a maximum rate that the taxing authority can impose. If the taxing authority wishes to go higher than this maximum rate, a two-thirds or even unanimous vote of the governing body is required, depending on how much the rate exceeds the cap. While voters in Florida don’t directly get a vote on the tax, and the school boards still have considerable budgetary discretion, this system provides significantly more oversight than found in Concord. The public hearings and heightened voting requirements make it much harder to exceed the cap and put a much clearer spotlight on any elected official who votes to do so. This ensures they will only approve higher taxes for a compelling reason that they can justify to the electorate.

I can’t claim exhaustive research, but personally so far, I have not found another school system in the country that operates with the same level of independent tax, spending, and bond authority as the Concord School District. If anyone knows of or can find an example of a school district with the same level of power as Concord’s, please reach out and let me know. Your reward will be a free "Winters for School Board" yard sign!