HB 129-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2025 SESSION
25-0205
11/02
HOUSE BILL 129-FN
AN ACT relative to the definition of the term "evidence-based" within public education.
SPONSORS: Rep. Belcher, Carr. 4; Rep. Corcoran, Hills. 28; Rep. Drye, Sull. 7; Rep. Noble, Hills. 2; Rep. Peternel, Carr. 6; Rep. Sabourin, Rock. 30
COMMITTEE: Education Policy and Administration
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ANALYSIS
This bill defines "evidence-based" as applied to pedagogical methods and requires the department of education and all local school districts to conform with such definition in all communications.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
25-0205
11/02
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five
AN ACT relative to the definition of the term "evidence-based" within public education.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Short Title. This act shall be known as the Science in Education Act.
2 Legislative Findings. It is the intent of the general court that the term “evidence-based” is either poorly defined or undefined in both law and educational practice. The scientific method relies on the concept of falsifiability and testing of theorems in properly designed experimentation to test truth claims. The paramount metric and standard for evaluation of theorems is resistance to falsification by achieving repeatedly consistent results over multiple experiments. The general court believes that while peer review of studies has uses, including evaluating the proper design of studies, peer review alone has no weight in evaluating or falsifying truth claims. A rigorously scientific approach to education will give substantial weight to repeatability of studies confirming theorems of educational praxis while affording relatively little weight to peer review alone.
3 New Section; Evidence-Based Methods Required. Amend RSA 193-E by inserting after section 1 the following new section:
193-E:1-a Evidence-Based Methods Required.
I. All methods of delivering public education shall be evidence-based, including educator training, policies, and any pedagogical methods attached to or accompanying curriculum (though not to the content of the curriculum itself) adopted by the department of education, local school districts, and any other regulatory body that may prescribe teaching methods.
II. "Evidence-based" under this section shall exclude surveys and other self-reported data sets, and other subjective measurements such as reports of student progress and learning. "Evidence-based" under this section means methods or techniques that meet at least one of the following requirements, without regard to peer review status:
(a) Reproducibility in multiple, well-designed studies within a single discipline.
(b) Independent confirmation by well-designed studies across multiple disciplines.
III. Any use of the term "evidence-based" in communications by the department or local school districts shall conform to the definition in paragraph II.
IV. The department and all local school districts shall make publicly available the scientific studies on which they relied to assure the methods meet the definition of "evidence-based." If the curriculum provider is a third party, the department or school board may require the provider to furnish it to them.
V. The department shall adopt rules pursuant to RSA 541-A to implement the provisions of this section.
4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
25-0205
12/11/24
HB 129-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT relative to the definition of the term "evidence-based" within public education.
FISCAL IMPACT: This bill does not provide funding, nor does it authorize new positions.
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Estimated State Impact | ||||||
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | FY 2028 | ||
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Revenue Fund(s) | None | |||||
Expenditures* | $0 | $118,000 | $123,000 | $127,000 | ||
Funding Source(s) | General Fund | |||||
Appropriations* | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Funding Source(s) | None | |||||
*Expenditure = Cost of bill *Appropriation = Authorized funding to cover cost of bill | ||||||
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Estimated Political Subdivision Impact | ||||||
| FY 2025 | FY 2026 | FY 2027 | FY 2028 | ||
Local Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | ||
Local Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase | ||||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill defines "evidence-based" as applied to pedagogical methods and requires the Department of Education and all local school districts to conform with such definition in all communications.
The Department states it would need one (1) new education consultant position (SOC 25-7, step 3) to execute the requirements, to conduct the reviews and provide technical assistance to the local education agencies on how to evaluate and implement the requirements. In addition, the position would work on removing and revising all state requirements that conflict with the proposed legislation. The Department’s estimated cost for this position, including salary, benefits, and other costs, is $118,000 in FY 2026, $123,000 in FY 2027, and $127,000 in FY 2028. It should be noted this bill provides neither authority nor funding for new personnel.
The Department states this bill will increase local school district administrative costs relative to reviewing all education methods, as well the replacement and implementation of new education methods (including materials and training). In addition, the Department states at the local and state levels to ensure they meet the definition of evidence-based proposed in this legislation, there are several potential revisions to current practices, laws and rules, educator training programs, policies, and pedagogical methods for a wide variety of actors in public education. Given the depth and scope of these administrative and implementation processes, the Department states this bill will increase local expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2026 and each year thereafter. Impacts would vary from district to district.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Education