NM
New Mexico House Bill HB365

New Mexico 2025 Regular Session

New Mexico House Bill HB365 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
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2828 HOUSE BILL 365
2929 57
3030 TH LEGISLATURE
3131 -
3232
3333 STATE
3434
3535 OF
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3737 NEW
3838
3939 MEXICO
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4242 FIRST SESSION
4343 ,
4444
4545 2025
4646 INTRODUCED BY
4747 Joy Garratt
4848 AN ACT
4949 RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; PROVIDING STAFF TO THE PUBLIC
5050 EDUCATION COMMISSION; TRANSFERRING THE CHARTER SCHOOLS DIVISION
5151 FROM THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO THE COMMISSION.
5252 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
5353 SECTION 1. Section 9-24-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2004,
5454 Chapter 27, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:
5555 "9-24-4. DEPARTMENT CREATED.--
5656 A. The "public education department" is created in
5757 the executive branch. The department is a cabinet department
5858 and includes the following divisions:
5959 (1) the administrative services division;
6060 (2) the assessment and accountability
6161 division;
6262 [(3) the charter schools division;
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9090 (4)] (3) the educator quality division;
9191 [(5)] (4) the Indian education division;
9292 [(6)] (5) the information technology division;
9393 [(7)] (6) the instructional support and
9494 vocational education division;
9595 [(8)] (7) the program support and student
9696 transportation division;
9797 [(9)] (8) the quality assurance and systems
9898 integration division;
9999 [(10)] (9) the rural education division; and
100100 [(11)] (10) the vocational rehabilitation
101101 division.
102102 B. The secretary may organize the department and
103103 divisions of the department and may transfer or merge functions
104104 between divisions and bureaus in the interest of efficiency and
105105 economy."
106106 SECTION 2. Section 9-24-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2004,
107107 Chapter 27, Section 9) is amended to read:
108108 "9-24-9. PUBLIC EDUCATION COMMISSION.--
109109 A. The "public education commission" is created
110110 pursuant to Article 12, Section 6 of the constitution of New
111111 Mexico. [The commission shall be administratively attached to
112112 the department, with administrative staff provided by the
113113 department. Additional requests for staff services shall be
114114 made through the secretary. ] The commission shall advise the
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143143 department on policy matters and shall perform other functions
144144 as provided by law.
145145 B. The commission shall consist of ten members
146146 elected from public education districts as provided in the
147147 decennial educational redistricting act. Members shall be
148148 entitled to receive per diem and mileage as provided in the Per
149149 Diem and Mileage Act, but shall receive no other perquisite,
150150 compensation or allowance.
151151 C. The commission shall annually elect a [chairman ]
152152 chair, vice [chairman] chair and secretary from among its
153153 membership. A majority of the members constitutes a quorum for
154154 the conduct of business. The commission shall keep a record of
155155 all proceedings of the commission.
156156 D. The commission shall meet at the call of the
157157 [chairman] chair at least quarterly. Meetings of the
158158 commission shall be held in Santa Fe and at other sites within
159159 the state at the direction of the commission. The [chairman ]
160160 chair in consultation with the secretary shall call a meeting
161161 at the request of a majority of the members. Commission
162162 members shall not vote by proxy.
163163 E. No member of the commission shall be appointed
164164 secretary or be employed by the department on either a full- or
165165 part-time basis.
166166 F. The "state charter schools office" is created to
167167 staff the commission in carrying out its statutory duties as
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196196 the state chartering authority. The commission shall appoint a
197197 director of the office, and the director shall recommend to the
198198 commission the employment of such technical and other staff as
199199 necessary to carry out the duties of the office. The director
200200 is exempt and technical and clerical staff are classified as
201201 provided in the Personnel Act. The commission and office shall
202202 be provided with adequate quarters by the department. The
203203 office shall provide objective, nonpartisan advice to the
204204 commission regarding state chartering of public schools,
205205 monitor state-chartered charter schools for compliance with the
206206 Public School Code and the charter schools' charter contract,
207207 make periodic reports to the commission on the activities of
208208 the office and perform such other duties as required by the
209209 commission."
210210 SECTION 3. Section 22-2-2.2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2004,
211211 Chapter 27, Section 17) is amended to read:
212212 "22-2-2.2. COMMISSION--DUTIES.--
213213 A. The commission shall oversee and direct the
214214 activities of the state charter schools office and shall:
215215 (1) be the chartering authority for state-
216216 chartered charter schools;
217217 (2) cooperate with the department and enter
218218 into data-sharing agreements as necessary to provide seamless
219219 administration and oversight of public schools and give the
220220 office access to relevant data and reports of the department;
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249249 and
250250 (3) make recommendations to the department.
251251 [A.] B. The commission shall work with the
252252 department to develop the five-year strategic plan for public
253253 elementary and secondary education in the state. The strategic
254254 plan shall be updated at least biennially. The commission
255255 shall solicit the input of persons who have an interest in
256256 public school policy, including local school boards, school
257257 districts, charter school governing bodies and charter schools
258258 and school employees; home schooling associations; parent-
259259 teacher associations; educational organizations; the
260260 [commission on] higher education department ; colleges,
261261 universities and vocational schools; state agencies responsible
262262 for educating resident children; juvenile justice agencies;
263263 [work force] workforce development providers; and business
264264 organizations.
265265 [B.] C. In addition to the duty provided in
266266 Subsection [A] B of this section, the commission shall:
267267 (1) solicit input from local school boards,
268268 school districts and the public on policy and governance issues
269269 and report its findings and recommendations to the secretary
270270 and the legislature; and
271271 (2) recommend to the secretary conduct and
272272 process guidelines and training curricula for local school
273273 boards."
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302302 SECTION 4. Section 22-8B-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1999,
303303 Chapter 281, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:
304304 "22-8B-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Charter Schools
305305 Act:
306306 A. "charter school" means a conversion school or
307307 start-up school authorized by the chartering authority to
308308 operate as a public school;
309309 B. "chartering authority" means either a local
310310 school board or the commission;
311311 C. "commission" means the public education
312312 commission;
313313 D. "conversion school" means an existing public
314314 school within a school district that was authorized by a local
315315 school board to become a charter school prior to July 1, 2007;
316316 [E. "division" means the charter schools division
317317 of the department;
318318 F.] E. "enrollment preference" means filling a
319319 charter school's openings with students, or siblings of
320320 students, who have already been admitted to the school through
321321 an appropriate admission process or are continuing through
322322 subsequent grades;
323323 [G.] F. "governing body" means the governing
324324 structure of a charter school as set forth in the school's
325325 charter;
326326 [H.] G. "governing body training" means the
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355355 training required pursuant to Section 22-8B-5.1 NMSA 1978 to
356356 educate governing body members and ensure compliance with all
357357 applicable laws, which training may be obtained from any
358358 source, individual or entity that has been approved by the
359359 department;
360360 [I.] H. "management" means authority over the
361361 hiring, termination and day-to-day direction of a school's
362362 employees or contractors, whether they are licensed or not;
363363 [J.] I. "material violation" means the act of
364364 failing to accomplish a requirement of a law, rule or contract
365365 or a charter school's bylaws that substantially affects the
366366 charter school's employees' or students' rights or privileges;
367367 [K.] J. "nondiscretionary waiver" means a waiver of
368368 requirements or rules and the provisions of the Public School
369369 Code that the department shall grant pursuant to Section
370370 22-8B-5 NMSA 1978 and for which a charter school shall not
371371 require separate approval by the department;
372372 K. "office" or "division" means the state charter
373373 schools office;
374374 L. "performance indicator" means a measurement tool
375375 that enables selected issues or conditions to be monitored over
376376 time for the purposes of evaluating progress toward or away
377377 from a desired direction;
378378 M. "performance target" means the specific rating
379379 to which the data from a school's performance indicators shall
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408408 be compared to determine whether the school exceeds, meets,
409409 does not meet or falls far below that rating;
410410 N. "siblings" means:
411411 (1) students living in the same residence at
412412 least fifty percent of the time in a permanent or semipermanent
413413 situation, such as long-term foster care placements; or
414414 (2) students related to each other by blood,
415415 marriage or cohabitation; and
416416 O. "start-up school" means a public school
417417 developed by one or more parents, teachers or community members
418418 authorized by the chartering authority to become a charter
419419 school."
420420 SECTION 5. Section 22-8B-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1999,
421421 Chapter 281, Section 13, as amended) is amended to read:
422422 "22-8B-13. CHARTER SCHOOL FINANCING.--
423423 A. The amount of funding allocated to a charter
424424 school shall be not less than ninety-eight percent of the
425425 school-generated program cost. The school district or
426426 [division] office may withhold and use two percent of the
427427 school-generated program cost for its administrative support of
428428 a charter school.
429429 B. That portion of money from state or federal
430430 programs generated by students enrolled in a locally chartered
431431 charter school shall be allocated to that charter school
432432 serving students eligible for that aid. Any other public
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461461 school program not offered by the locally chartered charter
462462 school shall not be entitled to the share of money generated by
463463 a charter school program.
464464 C. When a state-chartered charter school is
465465 designated as a board of finance pursuant to Section 22-8-38
466466 NMSA 1978, it shall receive state and federal funds for which
467467 it is eligible.
468468 D. Charter schools may apply for all federal funds
469469 for which they are eligible.
470470 E. All services centrally or otherwise provided by
471471 a local school district, including custodial, maintenance and
472472 media services, libraries and warehousing, shall be subject to
473473 negotiation between the charter school and the school district.
474474 Any services for which a charter school contracts with a school
475475 district shall be provided by the district at a reasonable
476476 cost."
477477 SECTION 6. Section 22-8B-17 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2006,
478478 Chapter 94, Section 30) is amended to read:
479479 "22-8B-17. STATE CHARTER SCHOOLS [DIVISION ] OFFICE--
480480 DUTIES.--[The "charter schools division" is created in the
481481 department] The [division] office shall:
482482 A. provide staff support to the commission for
483483 state chartering of charter schools ;
484484 B. provide technical support to [all ] state-
485485 chartered charter schools;
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514514 C. review and approve state-chartered charter
515515 school budget matters; and
516516 D. make recommendations to the commission regarding
517517 the approval, denial, suspension or revocation of the charter
518518 of a state-chartered charter school."
519519 SECTION 7. Section 22-8B-17.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2011,
520520 Chapter 14, Section 9) is amended to read:
521521 "22-8B-17.1. [DIVISION ] OFFICE--ANNUAL REPORT.--By
522522 December 1 annually, the [division ] office, under the direction
523523 of the commission, shall issue to the governor, the legislative
524524 finance committee, [and ] the legislative education study
525525 committee and the legislative library a report on the state's
526526 charter schools for the school year ending in the preceding
527527 calendar year, drawing from the annual reports submitted by
528528 every chartering authority as well as any relevant data
529529 compiled by the [division ] office. The annual report shall
530530 include a comparison of the performance of charter school
531531 students with the performance of academically, ethnically and
532532 economically comparable groups of students in noncharter public
533533 schools. The report shall also include an assessment of the
534534 successes, challenges and areas for improvement in meeting the
535535 purposes of the Charter Schools Act, including the [division's ]
536536 office's assessment of the sufficiency of funding for charter
537537 schools, the efficacy of the state formula for chartering
538538 authority funding and any suggested changes to state law or
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567567 policy necessary to strengthen the state's charter schools.
568568 The annual report shall be published on the department's [web
569569 site] website."
570570 SECTION 8. TEMPORARY PROVISION--TRANSFER OF PERSONNEL,
571571 APPROPRIATIONS, MONEY, RECORDS AND OTHER PROPERTY--CONTRACTUAL
572572 OBLIGATIONS--STATUTORY REFERENCES.--On the effective date of
573573 this act:
574574 A. all personnel, appropriations, money, records,
575575 equipment, furniture, supplies and other property of the
576576 charter schools division of the public education department
577577 shall be transferred to the state charter schools office of the
578578 public education commission;
579579 B. contractual obligations of the charter schools
580580 division shall be obligations of the state charter schools
581581 office; and
582582 C. statutory references to the charter schools
583583 division of the public education department shall be deemed to
584584 be references to the state charter schools office of the public
585585 education commission.
586586 SECTION 9. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
587587 provisions of this act is July 1, 2026.
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