Here’s what you need to know:
SWEPT is part of a home or business property tax bill, which means it is remitted to the home or business owner’s town or city. The town or city does not give SWEPT money to the state, despite being called a “state tax.”
Since it is a “state tax,” it appears on the state budget as a part of the education trust fund. In practice and for accounting purposes, SWEPT money is counted as state funds. In reality, these funds are all locally raised dollars.
State law has required NH property owners to raise $363 million per year in SWEPT funds since 2005.
Whatever a town raises in SWEPT, is deducted from what the state would pay the town in adequate education grants and stabilization grants for their schools.
Most communities have additional local education taxes, since SWEPT funding and state funding (including adequate education grants and stabilization grants) do not cover the total cost for their local schools.
There is a legislative proposal this year to eliminate SWEPT all together.
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