MANCHESTER, N.H. – Following a special meeting on Feb. 18, 2026, the Manchester Board of School Committee has approved five Fiscal Year 2027 proposed budgets to go before the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen, , three of which reflected options on the potential Manchester School District budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
As required by the Manchester City Charter, a proposed district budget not exceeding the city’s tax cap was proposed, with a bottom-line figure of $235,507,700; which is the maximum allowed under the tax cap calculations for this fiscal year. The two other district budget figures included a “baseline” budget of $251,405,787 and a “fully-funded” budget of $265,290,787.
The other two budgets considered included the School Food and Nutrition Budget ($6,300,000) and Capital Improvement Projects Priority Listing Budget ($7,850,000).
During last week’s Board of School Committee Finance and Facilities meeting, Manchester School District Superintendent Jenn Chmiel described the baseline budget as the amount needed to avoid potential layoffs or other significant budget reductions following the loss of various revenue sources over the past year and the fully-funded budget as the amount recommended to meet the district’s needs.
The evening began with required public hearing on the budget, where 10 people including such as Manchester West High School senior Okiona Neptune testified on the importance of properly funding the Manchester School District.
Neptune stated that the result of not properly funding Manchester’s schools would reverberate far into the future, impacting the entire city.
“Struggling readers become struggling graduates. Gaps in math become gaps in workforce readiness and our future generations will pay that price. Manchester has extraordinary potential, but potential requires belief and belief requires action,” she said. I urge you to see our education budget, not as an expense, but as an investment in the intellectual and economic future of this city. If we want Manchester to thrive tomorrow, we must choose to strengthen our schools today.”
Members of the board echoed the sentiments of Neptune and others who testified earlier in the evening, stressing the importance of properly funding the district’s budget.
Ward 7 Board of School Committee Member Chris Potter stated that the difference between the tax cap budget and the baseline budget is roughly equivalent to the combined amount below the tax cap maximum approved by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen over the past two years. He urged those that testified to testify once again to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen when they deliberate on the budget since they have the final decision on the matter.
“(The Board of Mayor and Aldermen) need to know that the cost increases are from inflation and from legally required services (and) that we spent $4,500 less per pupil than the state average. The city’s contribution to the school district went down last year,” he stated.
Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais expressed concerns over the baseline budget and fully-funded budget, which he stated would increase taxes by 9 percent and 14 percent, respectively. The tax cap-compliant maximum budget would be a 3 percent increase. He also challenged assertions that budgets provided to the Manchester School District were cuts, stating that they were increases from the previous fiscal year budgets that did not rise to the level of the Board of School Committee’s requests.
Under the city’s charter, Ruais is also required to submit his own budget proposal, which is expected to be released in March, after which that proposal and the Board of School Committee’s proposals will go before the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.
“Moving forward, the Board of School Committee and the Board of Mayor and Aldermen must work together to produce a sustainable budget that balances the needs of the City and the Manchester School District without overburdening taxpayers,” he said in a released statement.
The School Food and Nutrition Budget, Capital Improvement Projects Priority Listing Budget and tax cap budget were recommended unanimously by Ruais and other members of the Board of School Committee in attendance. The baseline budget and fully-funded budget were recommended unanimously by those in attendance with the exception of Ruais. Ward 3 Board of School Committee Member Sarah Georges and Ward 6 Board of School Committee Member Dan Bergeron were absent.
The next day, the New Hampshire House of Representatives took up a bill designed to stop what would be an additional $10 million cut in state aid and potentially impact deliberations by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen on how to proceed on the school budget.
State Rep. Katy Peternel (R-Hudson) made a motion to table the legislation, which passed 187-158 on a roll call vote.
Manchester’s delegation of 32 state representatives voted 22-7 to oppose the motion. Republican Brian Cole (Ward 7) and Democrat Karen Hegner (Wards 2,4,5,7) did not vote but had received excused absences. Democrat Nicole Leapley (Ward 11) did not vote and had not received an excused absence.
Democrats in the delegation voted unanimously in opposition to the tabling motion except for Dan Bergeron (Ward 6), who is also a member of the Board of School Committee. All of the delegation’s Republicans voted for the tabling motion with the exceptions of Kathleen Paquette (Ward 5), Mark Proulx (Ward 8), and Pierre Dupont (Ward 9).
A full list of Manchester’s state representatives can be found here.
