Sponsor seeks to extend high‑school civics exam to public college graduates; universities warn of costs and autonomy concerns

Representative Mike Moffett introduced House Bill 112, describing it as a “sister measure” to an existing high‑school civics requirement and saying it would require public college graduates to pass the same naturalization‑style civics examination now required of New Hampshire high‑school graduates.

Moffett, who identified himself as a longtime postsecondary educator, said the bill addresses what he described as an “ignorance crisis” among some college graduates about how government works and argued the test would raise the value of a New Hampshire degree. He disputed figures in the bill’s fiscal note, telling the committee that he was told by the Office of Strategic Initiatives that some institutions estimated $130,000 per‑institution staffing costs to administer the test. “How is it that every high school in…