Major Restructuring of RSA 193-A Still Leaves New Hampshire Home Educators Without a Proactive Affirmative Shield
Next week the Senate Education Committee will hold its public hearing on HB 1268 (2026), the bill that passed the House after multiple amendments and proposes sweeping changes to New Hampshire’s home education statute, RSA 193-A.
While the amended bill reduces some formal notification and record-keeping requirements, it does not close the fundamental gaps that leave families in a reactive posture when facing truancy notices, school enrollment questions, DCYF referrals, or other enforcement investigations.
WHAT: Public Hearing for HB 1268 to NH’s Home Education Law
WHERE: Senate Education Committee, State Library map room, 20 Park Street, Concord
WHEN: Tuesday, April 21, 2026 at 9:45am
Link to bill as amended by the House: https://gc.nh.gov/bill_status/pdf.aspx?id=28481&q=billVersion
SUMMARY:
As we explained in our earlier analysis, the core problem is that New Hampshire remains a compulsory-attendance state (RSA 193:1). Home education serves as an exemption from that requirement, but the underlying truancy and child-protection statutes are left untouched. Without a clear, proactive tool that families control, officials can still treat home-educating children as presumptively truant or unenrolled until the family produces evidence—often subjective portfolios, curricula, or test results—under more ambiguous standards.
The bill eliminates the current one-time notification and acknowledgment process that many families have used as quick, official documentation to resolve inquiries. In its place, families may be left defending compliance through ad-hoc records when challenged. The current conditional declaration is narrowly tailored (primarily for Equal Access or withdrawal contexts) and carries no statutory weight as presumptive proof. It does not function as the simple, optional self-certified notarized declaration we have repeatedly recommended: a private, time-stamped instrument families could create once, keep in their own files, and present immediately if needed—without any new government filing or approval.
This reactive burden is exactly what we warned about. In “What HB 1268 Could Mean for New Hampshire Home Education Families,” we highlighted how removing the straightforward notification process could complicate proof of lawful exemption under compulsory attendance and truancy laws (RSA 189:35-a), forcing families into more invasive or subjective demonstrations of their program. We noted the positive carve-out protecting against neglect findings based solely on home education status, but emphasized that educational neglect definitions remain broad and that the bill still leaves families without proactive documentation to defuse situations quickly—especially in private disputes, custody matters, or routine official inquiries.
Our position has always been rooted in the same principle: parents—not the state—are the primary and rightful authority over their children’s education. True liberty demands more than reduced paperwork; it requires affirmative tools that families can deploy instantly to affirm their independent home education program and restrain government overreach.
Genuine empowerment comes from statutes that recognize parental authority proactively rather than forcing families to defend it after the fact.
The optional notarized self-declaration we have advocated for would do precisely that. It would require no additional reporting burden, create no new state oversight, and give every home-educating family a durable, presumptive evidentiary shield they control. Without it, even a bill that reduces certain obligations still tilts the balance toward state presumption instead of parental liberty.
As the Senate Education Committee prepares to hear testimony, we urge New Hampshire home education families to contact your senators and committee members. Ask them to strengthen HB 1268 by adding an explicit, optional self-certified notarized declaration provision. This single addition would complete the work of placing families and children first—without inviting new bureaucracy or entanglement.
ACTION STEPS:
1. Sign in using the Senate’s remote sign in sheet. The portal does not have a way to submit written testimony.
2. Send testimony to the committee; emails are available on the GSHE website here and below for an easy copy/paste.
[email protected]
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[email protected]
3. If possible, attend in person to register your position on the bill – there’s a sheet of paper on a table near the door. If you wish to address the committee, fill out the sheet that has this bill number. This is the most effective option.
TESTIMONY TIPS:
- if you are attending the hearing and wish to speak, keep your remarks to 2 to 3 minutes which is roughly one page of written comments, practice reading it a couple times so you’re comfortable
- clearly state your name and town (so they know you live in NH)
- clearly state you are a traditional, independent home ed family (RSA 193-A)
- if you can’t attend in person, email your testimony to the entire Senate Education Committee, we have their emails on our website for an easy copy/paste https://gshenh.org/courses/make-a-difference/lessons/nh-legislators/
- if you are emailing the committee, indicate the bill number and your position in the subject line
Location: Due to State House renovations, the New Hampshire Senate holds many committee hearings at the State Library’s map room, 20 Park Street, Concord. There is on-street parking available. Here is information about Concord parking. https://www.concordnh.gov/844/Downtown-Parking?nid=844
More Background on HB 1268
- What HB 1268 Could Mean for New Hampshire Home Education Families
- Public Hearing Notice: HB 1268 (2026) re Major Changes to Home Education
- Home Education Freedom Respects Parents’ Rights
Stay informed and engaged. Parents’ rights are non-negotiable—let’s make sure New Hampshire law reflects that reality.
GSHE Advocacy Resources
Join GSHE to access all of our how-to guides, community forums, and receive our newsletter to stay informed.
Sign up for our newsletters and periodic special alerts at our website. Members automatically receive our monthly newsletters directly to your emails.
Members can access our Making a Difference how-to guide that includes a video on how to be an effective advocate in Concord — how to follow bills, prepare testimony, and coordinate with others.
Members can also find news and updates in our GSHE Action Forum that is focused on advocacy for traditional, unfunded home education, open to NH home education families and supporters not legislators or special-interest organizations and their representatives.
About GSHE
Granite State Home Educators (GSHE) is a 501(c)(4), all-volunteer, statewide grassroots organization dedicated to supporting and empowering families who choose independent home education under RSA 193-A. We provide guidance, resources, community connections, and legislative monitoring focused exclusively on independent home education.
