CACR 24 New Hampshire House · 2026 Regular Session

relating to the right to educate children.Providing that parents and guardians have a right to direct the education of their children.

CACR 24 proposes adding a constitutional right for parents and legal guardians to direct their children's education in New Hampshire. If approved by voters in 2026, it would insert a new Article 2-c into the state constitution stating this right cannot be violated. The amendment requires a 2/3 vote in favor at the 2026 general election to take effect. It directly affects parents/guardians by establishing a constitutional basis for their authority over educational decisions, without specifying curriculum or school policies. This is a procedural constitutional amendment requiring voter approval, not an immediate law.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Dec 2025
Committee Review
Mar 2026
House Passage
Mar 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Dec 1, 2025 Last action Mar 11, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced As Amended by the House · 1 edit
MINOR
The only substantive change is a single word substitution: 'violated' was replaced with 'infringed' in two places where the proposed constitutional amendment states that parents' right to direct their children's education shall not be [violated/infringed]. This is a minor drafting preference rather than a policy shift, as both words carry essentially the same legal meaning. The bill's scope, purpose, and operative provisions remain unchanged.
TECHNICAL

The phrase 'right shall not be violated' was changed to 'right shall not be infringed' in two locations (the proposed amendment text and the reenacted article). This is a stylistic/legal drafting choice; 'infringed' is more commonly used in constitutional language (e.g., echoing the First Amendment's 'shall not be infringed'). No substantive policy change results from this word swap.

Floor votes · House Mar 11, 2026

How they voted

10094
Passed · 28 other
Total votes 222
Mar 11, 2026
D Democratic107
94 Nay 13
87% Nay
I Independent2
1 Yea 1
50% Yea
R Republican113
99 Yea 14
87% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
8
Key actions
4
Committee
3
Amendments
1
Mar 11, 2026
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (100-94-28)
house
Mar 11, 2026
Lower · Passed
Ought to Pass with Amendment 2026-0941h: MF RC 181-156 Lacking Necessary Three-Fifths Vote 03/11/2026 HJ 7 P. 112
lower
Mar 11, 2026
Introduced
Amendment # 2026-0941h: AA DV 184-149 03/11/2026 HJ 7 P. 110
lower
Mar 4, 2026
Lower · Passed
Minority Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate
lower
Mar 4, 2026
Lower · Passed
Majority Committee Report: Ought to Pass with Amendment # 2026-0941h 03/02/2026 (Vote 10-8; RC) HC 10 P. 35
lower
Dec 1, 2025
Introduced
Introduced 01/07/2026 and referred to Education Policy and Administration HJ 1 P. 41
lower
1 primary · 8 co-sponsors

Sponsors