KEENE, N.H. (MyKeeneNow) Attorney and author Andru Volinsky was the featured guest on Good Morning with Dan Mitchell Friday on WKBK Radio, where he sounded the alarm on New Hampshire’s worsening school funding crisis.

Volinsky, who co-counseled taxpayers in the recent Rand v. State of New Hampshire case, said the Claremont school district is on the brink of collapse, calling it a “zombie school district” that exists in name only. The district, already millions of dollars in debt, has canceled teacher contracts, considered closing an elementary school, and is struggling to serve high-need special education students.

“The third grader who can’t read or the child who is getting pulled back from a special ed placement, they didn’t vote for the school board. They didn’t mismanage anything,” Volinsky told listeners.

The Rand ruling last month found the state’s reliance on local property taxes to fund schools unconstitutional and suggested the state should double its annual contribution—from $800 million to $1.6 billion. Volinsky said the governor has offered Claremont only “technical advice,” not financial aid, despite the court decision.

Volinsky argued that New Hampshire must diversify its tax structure instead of leaning further on property owners. He called for income taxes, changes to business taxes, and ending taxpayer-funded vouchers for private schools.

“New Hampshire relies too heavily on the property tax, and that’s what creates the problem,” he said.

With a legislative filing deadline approaching Sept. 19, Volinsky urged residents to press their state representatives to introduce bills addressing the crisis. “It’s a mess,” he said bluntly.

Volinsky, a former member of the Executive Council and past gubernatorial candidate, has long been a central figure in the state’s education funding battles, including the landmark 1990s Claremont lawsuits. He appeared in Keene Friday not only for the WKBK interview but also to speak at Keene State College about his book, The Last Bake Sale: The Fight for Fair School Funding.

When asked if he might make another run for governor, Volinsky was direct: “No. How’s that for being direct?”

Listen to the full interview: