SB 146
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AN ACT
RELATING TO MILITARY CHILDREN; CORRECTING A REFERENCE TO A
UNITED STATES CODE PROVISION IN THE INTERSTATE COMPACT ON
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR MILITARY CHILDREN.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 11-8B-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2010,
Chapter 41, Section 1) is amended to read:
"11-8B-1. INTERSTATE COMPACT ON EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY
FOR MILITARY CHILDREN--ENTERED INTO.--The "Interstate Compact
on Educational Opportunity for Military Children" is enacted
into law and entered into with all other jurisdictions
legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows:
"INTERSTATE COMPACT ON EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR MILITARY
CHILDREN
ARTICLE 1
PURPOSE
It is the purpose of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children to remove
barriers to educational success imposed on children of
military families because of frequent moves and deployment of
their parents by:
A. facilitating the timely enrollment of children
of military families and ensuring that they are not placed at
a disadvantage due to difficulty in the transfer of education SB 146
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records from the previous school district or variations in
entrance and age requirements;
B. facilitating the student placement process
through which children of military families are not
disadvantaged by variations in attendance requirements,
scheduling, sequencing, grading, course content or
assessment;
C. facilitating the qualification and eligibility
for enrollment, educational programs and participation in
extracurricular, academic, athletic and social activities;
D. facilitating the on-time graduation of children
of military families;
E. providing for the promulgation and enforcement
of administrative rules implementing the provisions of that
compact;
F. providing for the uniform collection and
sharing of information between and among member states,
schools and military families under that compact;
G. promoting coordination between that compact and
other compacts affecting military children; and
H. promoting flexibility and cooperation between
the educational system, parents and the student in order to
achieve educational success for the student.
ARTICLE 2
DEFINITIONS SB 146
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As used in the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children:
A. "active duty" means full-time duty status in
the active uniformed service of the United States, including
members of the national guard and reserve on active duty
orders pursuant to 10 U.S.C. Chapters 1209 and 1211;
B. "children of military families" means
school-aged children enrolled in kindergarten through twelfth
grade in the household of an active duty member;
C. "compact commissioner" means the voting
representative of each compacting state appointed pursuant to
Article 8 of the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children;
D. "deployment" means the period one month prior
to the service members' departures from their home stations
on military orders through six months after return to their
home stations;
E. "education records" means records, files and
data that are directly related to a student and maintained by
a school or local education agency, including records
encompassing all the material kept in a student's cumulative
folder such as general identifying data, records of
attendance and of academic work completed, records of
achievement and results of evaluative tests, health data,
disciplinary status, test protocols and individualized SB 146
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education programs;
F. "extracurricular activity" means a voluntary
activity sponsored by a school or local education agency or
an organization sanctioned by a local education agency.
"Extracurricular activity" includes preparation for and
involvement in public performances, contests, athletic
competitions, demonstrations, displays and club activities;
G. "interstate commission" means the interstate
commission on educational opportunity for military children
that is created under Article 9 of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children;
H. "local education agency" means a public
authority legally constituted by the state as an
administrative agency to provide control of and direction for
kindergarten through twelfth grade public educational
institutions;
I. "member state" means a state that has enacted
the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children;
J. "military installation" means a base, camp,
post, station, yard, center or homeport facility for any ship
or other activity under the jurisdiction of the United States
department of defense, including any leased facility, that is
located within any of the several states, the District of
Columbia, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States SB 146
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Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Marianas
Islands and any other United States territory. The term does
not include any facility used primarily for civil works,
rivers and harbors projects or flood control projects;
K. "non-member state" means a state that has not
enacted the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children;
L. "receiving state" means the state to which a
child of a military family is sent or brought or caused to be
sent or brought;
M. "rule" means a written statement by the
interstate commission promulgated pursuant to Article 12 of
the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children that is of general applicability,
implements, interprets or prescribes a policy or provision of
that compact or an organizational, procedural or practice
requirement of the interstate commission and includes the
amendment, repeal or suspension of an existing rule;
N. "sending state" means the state from which a
child of a military family is sent or brought or caused to be
sent or brought;
O. "state" means a state of the United States, the
District of Columbia, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the
United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the
Northern Marianas Islands and any other United States SB 146
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territory;
P. "student" means the child of a military family
for whom the local education agency receives public funding
and who is formally enrolled in kindergarten through twelfth
grade;
Q. "transition" means:
(1) the formal and physical process of
transferring from school to school; or
(2) the period of time in which a student
moves from one school in the sending state to another school
in the receiving state;
R. "uniformed services" means the army, navy,
air force, marine corps, coast guard and the commissioned
corps of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration
and United States public health service; and
S. "veteran" means a person who served in the
uniformed services and who was discharged or released from
the uniformed services under conditions other than
dishonorable.
ARTICLE 3
APPLICABILITY
A. Except as otherwise provided in Subsection B of
this article, the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children shall apply to the children
of: SB 146
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(1) active duty members of the uniformed
services, including members of the national guard and reserve
on active duty orders pursuant to 10 U.S.C. Chapters 1209 and
1211;
(2) members or veterans of the uniformed
services who are severely injured and medically discharged or
retired for a period of one year after medical discharge or
retirement; and
(3) members of the uniformed services who
die on active duty or as a result of injuries sustained while
on active duty and extending for a period of one year after
death.
B. The provisions of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall only
apply to local education agencies.
C. The provisions of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall not apply
to the children of:
(1) inactive members of the national guard
and military reserves;
(2) members of the uniformed services now
retired, except as provided in Subsection A of this article;
(3) veterans of the uniformed services,
except as provided in Subsection A of this article; and
(4) other United States department of SB 146
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defense personnel and other federal agency civilian and
contract employees not defined as active duty members of the
uniformed services.
ARTICLE 4
EDUCATIONAL RECORDS AND ENROLLMENT
A. In the event that official education records
cannot be released to the parents for the purpose of
transfer, the custodian of the records in the sending state
shall prepare and furnish to the parent a complete set of
unofficial education records containing uniform information
as determined by the interstate commission. Upon receipt of
the unofficial education records by a school in the receiving
state, the school shall enroll and appropriately place the
student based on the information provided in the unofficial
records, pending validation by the official records, as
quickly as possible.
B. Simultaneous with the enrollment and
conditional placement of the student, the school in the
receiving state shall request the student's official
education record from the school in the sending state. Upon
receipt of this request, the school in the sending state
shall process and furnish the official education records to
the school in the receiving state within ten days or within
such time as is reasonably determined under the rules
promulgated by the interstate commission. SB 146
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C. Compacting states shall give thirty days from
the date of enrollment or within such time as is reasonably
determined under the rules promulgated by the interstate
commission for students to obtain any immunizations required
by the receiving state. For a series of immunizations,
initial vaccinations must be obtained within thirty days or
within such time as is reasonably determined under the rules
promulgated by the interstate commission.
D. Students shall be allowed to continue their
enrollment at a grade level in the receiving state
commensurate with their grade level, including kindergarten,
from a local education agency in the sending state at the
time of transition, regardless of age. A student that has
satisfactorily completed the prerequisite grade level in the
local education agency in the sending state shall be eligible
for enrollment in the next highest grade level in the
receiving state, regardless of age. A student transferring
after the start of the school year in the receiving state
shall enter the school in the receiving state on the
student's validated level from an accredited school in the
sending state.
ARTICLE 5
PLACEMENT AND ATTENDANCE
A. When a student transfers before or during the
school year, the receiving state school shall initially honor SB 146
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placement of the student in educational courses based on the
student's enrollment in the sending state school or
educational assessments conducted at the school in the
sending state if the courses are offered. Course placement
includes honors, international baccalaureate, advanced
placement, vocational, technical and career pathways courses.
Continuing the student's academic program from the previous
school and promoting placement in academically and
career-challenging courses should be paramount when
considering placement. This subsection does not preclude the
school in the receiving state from performing subsequent
evaluations to ensure appropriate placement and continued
enrollment of the student in the courses.
B. The receiving state school shall initially
honor placement of the student in educational programs based
on current educational assessments conducted at the school in
the sending state or participation or placement in like
programs in the sending state. Such programs include gifted
and talented programs and English as a second language. This
subsection does not preclude the school in the receiving
state from performing subsequent evaluations to ensure
appropriate placement of the student.
C. In compliance with the federal requirements of
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C.
Section 1400 et seq., the receiving state shall initially SB 146
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provide comparable services to a student with disabilities
based on the student's current individualized education
program. In compliance with the requirements of Section 504
of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. Section 794, and
with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990,
42 U.S.C. Sections 12131-12165, the receiving state shall
make reasonable accommodations and modifications to address
the needs of incoming students with disabilities, subject to
an existing 504 or Title II plan, to provide the student with
equal access to education. This subsection does not preclude
the school in the receiving state from performing subsequent
evaluations to ensure appropriate placement of the student.
D. Local education agency administrative officials
shall have flexibility in waiving course or program
prerequisites or other preconditions for placement in courses
or programs offered under the jurisdiction of the local
education agency.
E. A student whose parent or legal guardian is an
active duty member of the uniformed services and has been
called to duty for, is on leave from or has immediately
returned from deployment to a combat zone or combat support
posting shall be granted additional excused absences, at the
discretion of the local education agency superintendent, to
visit with the student's parent or legal guardian.
ARTICLE 6 SB 146
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ELIGIBILITY
A. Special power of attorney, relative to the
guardianship of a child of a military family and executed
under applicable law, shall be sufficient for the purposes of
enrollment and all other actions requiring parental
participation and consent.
B. A local education agency shall be prohibited
from charging local tuition to a military child who is in
transition and is placed in the care of a noncustodial parent
or other person standing in loco parentis who lives in a
jurisdiction other than that of the custodial parent.
C. A military child who is in transition and is
placed in the care of a noncustodial parent or other person
standing in loco parentis who lives in a jurisdiction other
than that of the custodial parent may continue to attend the
school in which the child was enrolled while residing with
the custodial parent.
D. State and local education agencies shall
facilitate the opportunity for transitioning military
children's inclusion in extracurricular activities,
regardless of application deadlines, to the extent they are
otherwise qualified.
ARTICLE 7
GRADUATION
In order to facilitate the on-time graduation of SB 146
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children of military families, states and local education
agencies shall incorporate the following procedures:
A. local education agency administrative officials
shall waive specific courses required for graduation if
similar course work has been satisfactorily completed in
another local education agency or shall provide reasonable
justification for denial. If a waiver is not granted to a
student who would qualify to graduate from the sending
school, the local education agency shall provide an
alternative means of acquiring required coursework so that
graduation may occur on time;
B. receiving states shall accept exit or
end-of-course exams required for graduation from the sending
state, national norm-referenced achievement tests or
alternative testing in lieu of testing requirements for
graduation in the receiving state. In the event the
alternatives in this subsection and Subsection A of this
article cannot be accommodated by the receiving state for a
student transferring in the student's senior year, then the
provisions of Subsection C of this article shall apply; and
C. if a military student transferring at the
beginning of or during the military student's senior year is
ineligible to graduate from the receiving local education
agency after all alternatives have been considered, the
sending and receiving local education agencies shall ensure SB 146
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the receipt of a diploma from the sending local education
agency if the student meets the graduation requirements of
the sending local education agency. In the event that one of
the states in question is not a member of the Interstate
Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children, the
member state shall use best efforts to facilitate the on-time
graduation of the student in accordance with Subsections A
and B of this article.
ARTICLE 8
STATE COORDINATION
A. Each member state shall, through the creation
of a state council or use of an existing body or board,
provide for the coordination among its agencies of
government, local education agencies and military
installations concerning the state's participation in and
compliance with the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children and interstate commission
activities. While each member state may determine the
membership of its own state council, its membership must
include: the secretary of public education, the
superintendent of a school district with a high concentration
of military children, one representative from a military
installation, one representative from the executive branch of
government and other offices and stakeholder groups the state
council deems appropriate. A member state that does not have SB 146
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a school district deemed to contain a high concentration of
military children may appoint a superintendent from another
school district to represent local education agencies on the
state council.
B. The state council of each member state shall
appoint or designate a military family education liaison to
assist military families and the state in facilitating the
implementation of the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children.
C. The compact commissioner responsible for the
administration and management of the state's participation in
the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children shall be appointed by the governor or as
otherwise determined by each member state.
D. The compact commissioner and the military
family education liaison designated in this article shall be
ex-officio nonvoting members of the state council, unless
either is already a full voting member of the state council.
ARTICLE 9
INTERSTATE COMMISSION ON EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR MILITARY
CHILDREN
The member states hereby create the "interstate
commission on educational opportunity for military children".
The activities of the interstate commission are the formation
of public policy and are a discretionary state function. The SB 146
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interstate commission shall:
A. be a body corporate and joint agency of the
member states and shall have all the responsibilities, powers
and duties set forth in the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children and such additional powers
as may be conferred upon it by a subsequent concurrent action
of the respective legislatures of the member states in
accordance with the terms of that compact;
B. consist of one voting representative from each
member state who shall be that state's compact commissioner.
(1) Each member state represented at a
meeting of the interstate commission is entitled to one vote.
(2) A majority of the total member states
shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business,
unless a larger quorum is required by the bylaws of the
interstate commission.
(3) A representative shall not delegate a
vote to another member state. In the event the compact
commissioner is unable to attend a meeting of the interstate
commission, the governor or state council may delegate voting
authority to another person from the person's state for a
specified meeting.
(4) The bylaws may provide for meetings of
the interstate commission to be conducted by
telecommunication or electronic communication; SB 146
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C. consist of ex-officio nonvoting representatives
who are members of interested organizations. The ex-officio
members, as defined in the bylaws, may include members of the
representative organizations of military family advocates,
local education agency officials, parent and teacher groups,
the United States department of defense, the education
commission of the states, the interstate agreement on
qualification of educational personnel and other interstate
compacts affecting the education of children of military
members;
D. meet at least once each calendar year. The
chair may call additional meetings and, upon the request of a
simple majority of the member states, shall call additional
meetings;
E. establish an executive committee whose members
shall include the officers of the interstate commission and
such other members of the interstate commission as determined
by the bylaws. Members of the executive committee shall
serve a one-year term. Members of the executive committee
shall be entitled to one vote each. The executive committee
shall have the power to act on behalf of the interstate
commission, with the exception of rulemaking, during periods
when the interstate commission is not in session. The
executive committee shall oversee the day-to-day activities
of the administration of the compact, including enforcement SB 146
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and compliance with the provisions of the compact, its bylaws
and rules and other such duties as deemed necessary. The
United States department of defense shall serve as an
ex-officio nonvoting member of the executive committee;
F. establish bylaws and rules that provide for
conditions and procedures under which the interstate
commission shall make its information and official records
available to the public for inspection or copying. The
interstate commission may exempt from disclosure information
or official records to the extent they would adversely affect
personal privacy rights or proprietary interests;
G. give public notice of all meetings and all
meetings shall be open to the public, except as set forth in
the rules or as otherwise provided in the Interstate Compact
on Educational Opportunity for Military Children. The
interstate commission and its committees may close a meeting,
or a portion of a meeting, if it determines by a two-thirds'
vote that an open meeting would be likely to:
(1) relate solely to the interstate
commission's internal personnel practices and procedures;
(2) disclose matters specifically exempted
from disclosure by federal and state statute;
(3) disclose trade secrets or commercial or
financial information that is privileged or confidential;
(4) involve accusing a person of a crime or SB 146
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formally censuring a person;
(5) disclose information of a personal
nature if the disclosure would constitute a clearly
unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
(6) disclose investigative records compiled
for law enforcement purposes; or
(7) specifically relate to the interstate
commission's participation in a civil action or other legal
proceeding;
H. cause its legal counsel or designee to certify
that a meeting may be closed and shall reference each
relevant exemptible provision for any meeting, or portion of
a meeting, that is closed pursuant to this subsection. The
interstate commission shall keep minutes that shall fully and
clearly describe all matters discussed in a meeting and shall
provide a full and accurate summary of actions taken, and the
reasons for the actions, including a description of the views
expressed and the record of a roll call vote. All documents
considered in connection with an action shall be identified
in the minutes. All minutes and documents of a closed
meeting shall remain under seal, subject to release by a
majority vote of the interstate commission;
I. collect standardized data concerning the
educational transition of the children of military families
under the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for SB 146
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Military Children as directed through its rules, which shall
specify the data to be collected, the means of collection and
data exchange and reporting requirements. The methods of
data collection, exchange and reporting shall, insofar as is
reasonably possible, conform to current technology and
coordinate its information functions with the appropriate
custodian of records as identified in the bylaws and rules;
and
J. create a process that permits military
officials, education officials and parents to inform the
interstate commission if and when there are alleged
violations of the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children or its rules or when issues
subject to the jurisdiction of the compact or its rules are
not addressed by the state or local education agency. This
subsection shall not be construed to create a private right
of action against the interstate commission or any member
state.
ARTICLE 10
POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
The interstate commission may:
A. provide for dispute resolution among member
states;
B. promulgate rules and take all necessary actions
to effect the goals, purposes and obligations as enumerated SB 146
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in the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children. The rules shall be binding in the compact
states to the extent and in the manner provided in that
compact;
C. issue, upon request of a member state, advisory
opinions concerning the meaning or interpretation of the
interstate compact and its bylaws, rules and actions;
D. enforce compliance with the compact provisions,
the rules promulgated by the interstate commission and the
bylaws, using all necessary and proper means, including the
use of judicial process;
E. establish and maintain offices that shall be
located within one or more of the member states;
F. purchase and maintain insurance and bonds;
G. borrow, accept, hire or contract for services
of personnel;
H. establish and appoint committees, including an
executive committee as required by Subsection E of Article 9
of the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for
Military Children, that shall have the power to act on behalf
of the interstate commission in carrying out its powers and
duties under that compact;
I. elect or appoint officers, attorneys,
employees, agents or consultants and fix their compensation,
define their duties and determine their qualifications; SB 146
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J. establish the interstate commission's personnel
policies and programs relating to conflicts of interest,
rates of compensation and qualifications of personnel;
K. accept donations and grants of money,
equipment, supplies, materials and services and receive, use
and dispose of them;
L. lease, purchase, accept contributions or
donations of, or otherwise own, hold, improve or use, any
property, real, personal or mixed;
M. sell, convey, mortgage, pledge, lease,
exchange, abandon or otherwise dispose of any property, real,
personal or mixed;
N. establish a budget and make expenditures;
O. adopt a seal and bylaws governing the
management and operation of the interstate commission;
P. report annually to the legislatures, governors,
judiciaries and state councils of the member states
concerning the activities of the interstate commission during
the preceding year. The reports shall also include any
recommendations that may have been adopted by the interstate
commission;
Q. coordinate education, training and public
awareness regarding the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children, its implementation and
operation for officials and parents involved in such SB 146
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activity;
R. establish uniform standards for the reporting,
collecting and exchanging of data;
S. maintain corporate books and records in
accordance with the bylaws;
T. perform such functions as may be necessary or
appropriate to achieve the purposes of the Interstate Compact
on Educational Opportunity for Military Children; and
U. provide for the uniform collection and sharing
of information between and among member states, schools and
military families under the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children.
ARTICLE 11
ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
A. The interstate commission shall, by a majority
of the members present and voting, within twelve months after
the first interstate commission meeting, adopt bylaws to
govern its conduct as may be necessary or appropriate to
carry out the purposes of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children, including:
(1) establishing the fiscal year of the
interstate commission;
(2) establishing an executive committee and
other committees as may be necessary;
(3) providing for the establishment of SB 146
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committees and for governing any general or specific
delegation of authority or function of the interstate
commission;
(4) providing reasonable procedures for
calling and conducting meetings of the interstate commission
and ensuring reasonable notice of each meeting;
(5) establishing the titles and
responsibilities of the officers and staff of the interstate
commission;
(6) providing a mechanism for concluding the
operations of the interstate commission and the return of
surplus funds that may exist upon the termination of that
compact after paying and reserving all of its debts and
obligations; and
(7) providing start-up rules for initial
administration of the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children.
B. The interstate commission shall, by a majority
of the members, elect annually from among its members a
chair, a vice chair and a treasurer, each of whom shall have
such authority and duties as may be specified in the bylaws.
The chair or, in the chair's absence or disability, the vice
chair shall preside at all meetings of the interstate
commission. The officers so elected shall serve without
compensation or remuneration from the interstate commission, SB 146
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provided that, subject to the availability of budgeted funds,
the officers shall be reimbursed for ordinary and necessary
costs and expenses incurred by them in the performance of
their responsibilities as officers of the interstate
commission.
C. The executive committee shall have such
authority and duties as may be set forth in the bylaws,
including:
(1) managing the affairs of the interstate
commission in a manner consistent with the bylaws and
purposes of the interstate commission;
(2) overseeing an organizational structure
within, and appropriate procedures for, the interstate
commission to provide for the creation of rules, operating
procedures and administrative and technical support
functions; and
(3) planning, implementing and coordinating
communications and activities with other state, federal and
local government organizations in order to advance the goals
of the interstate commission.
D. The executive committee may, subject to the
approval of the interstate commission, appoint or retain an
executive director for such period, upon such terms and
conditions and for such compensation as the interstate
commission may deem appropriate. The executive director SB 146
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shall serve as secretary to the interstate commission but
shall not be a member of the interstate commission. The
executive director shall hire and supervise such other
persons as may be authorized by the interstate commission.
E. The interstate commission shall defend the
executive director and its employees and, subject to the
approval of the attorney general or other appropriate legal
counsel of the member state represented by an interstate
commission representative, shall defend the interstate
commission representative in any civil action seeking to
impose liability arising out of an actual or alleged act,
error or omission that occurred within the scope of
interstate commission employment, duties or responsibilities
or that the defendant had a reasonable basis for believing
occurred within the scope of interstate commission
employment, duties or responsibilities, provided that the
actual or alleged act, error or omission did not result from
intentional or willful and wanton misconduct on the part of
the person.
ARTICLE 12
RULEMAKING FUNCTIONS OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
A. The interstate commission shall promulgate
reasonable rules in order to effectively and efficiently
achieve the purposes of the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children. If the interstate SB 146
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commission exercises its rulemaking authority in a manner
that is beyond the scope of the purposes of that compact, or
the powers granted under that compact, then such an action by
the interstate commission shall be invalid and have no force
or effect.
B. Rules shall be made pursuant to a rulemaking
process that substantially conforms to the "Model State
Administrative Procedure Act" (1981), Uniform Laws Annotated,
Vol. 15, p.1 (2000) as amended, as may be appropriate to the
operations of the interstate commission.
C. Not later than thirty days after the date a
rule is promulgated, any person may file a petition for
judicial review of the rule, provided that the filing of the
petition shall not stay or otherwise prevent the rule from
becoming effective unless the court finds that the petitioner
has a substantial likelihood of success. The court shall
give deference to the actions of the interstate commission
consistent with applicable law and shall not find the rule to
be unlawful if the rule represents a reasonable exercise of
the interstate commission's authority.
D. If a majority of the legislatures of the
compacting states rejects a rule by enactment of a statute or
resolution in the same manner used to adopt the Interstate
Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children,
then the rule shall have no further force and effect in any SB 146
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compacting state.
ARTICLE 13
OVERSIGHT, ENFORCEMENT AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
A. All courts shall take judicial notice of the
Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military
Children and the rules promulgated under that compact in any
judicial or administrative proceeding in a member state
pertaining to the subject matter of that compact that may
affect the powers, responsibilities or actions of the
interstate commission.
B. The interstate commission shall be entitled to
receive all service of process in any proceeding provided in
Subsection A of this article and shall have standing to
intervene in the proceeding for all purposes.
C. If the interstate commission determines that a
member state has defaulted in the performance of its
obligations or responsibilities under the Interstate Compact
on Educational Opportunity for Military Children or the
bylaws or promulgated rules, the interstate commission shall:
(1) provide written notice to the defaulting
state and other member states of the nature of the default,
the means of curing the default and any action taken by the
interstate commission. The interstate commission shall
specify the means by which the defaulting state shall cure
its default; and SB 146
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(2) provide remedial training and specific
technical assistance regarding the default.
D. If the defaulting state fails to cure the
default, the defaulting state shall be terminated from the
Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military
Children upon an affirmative vote of a majority of the member
states, and all rights, privileges and benefits conferred by
that compact shall be terminated from the effective date of
termination. A cure of the default does not relieve the
offending state of obligations or liabilities incurred during
the period of the default.
E. Suspension or termination of membership in the
Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military
Children shall be imposed only after all other means of
securing compliance have been exhausted. Notice of intent to
suspend or terminate shall be given by the interstate
commission to the governor, the majority and minority leaders
of the defaulting state's legislature and each of the member
states.
F. The state that has been suspended or terminated
is responsible for all assessments, obligations and
liabilities incurred through the effective date of suspension
or termination, including obligations the performance of
which extends beyond the effective date of suspension or
termination. SB 146
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G. The interstate commission shall not bear any
costs relating to any state that has been found to be in
default or that has been suspended or terminated from the
Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military
Children unless otherwise mutually agreed upon in writing
between the interstate commission and the defaulting state.
H. The defaulting state may appeal the action of
the interstate commission by petitioning the United States
district court for the District of Columbia or the federal
district where the interstate commission has its principal
offices.
I. The interstate commission shall attempt, upon
the request of a member state, to resolve disputes that are
subject to the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity
for Military Children and that may arise among member states
and between member and non-member states.
J. The interstate commission shall promulgate a
rule providing for both mediation and dispute resolution for
disputes as appropriate.
K. The interstate commission, in the reasonable
exercise of its discretion, shall enforce the provisions and
rules of the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity
for Military Children.
L. The interstate commission may, by majority vote
of the members, initiate legal action to enforce compliance SB 146
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with the provisions of the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children and its promulgated rules
and bylaws against a member state in default. The venue for
the action shall be consistent with the determination in
other interstate compacts to which the state of New Mexico is
a member under the laws of the state of New Mexico.
M. The remedies in the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall not be
the exclusive remedies of the interstate commission. The
interstate commission may avail itself of any other remedies
available under state law or under the regulation of a
profession.
ARTICLE 14
FINANCING OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
A. The interstate commission shall pay or provide
for the payment of the reasonable expenses of its
establishment, organization and ongoing activities.
B. The interstate commission may levy on and
collect an annual assessment from each member state to cover
the cost of the operations and activities of the interstate
commission and its staff that must be in a total amount
sufficient to cover the interstate commission's annual budget
as approved each year. The aggregate annual assessment
amount shall be allocated based upon a formula to be
determined by the interstate commission, which shall SB 146
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promulgate a rule binding upon all member states.
C. The interstate commission shall not incur
obligations of any kind prior to securing the funds adequate
to meet the obligations; nor shall the interstate commission
pledge the credit of any of the member states, except by and
with the authority of the member state.
D. The interstate commission shall keep accurate
accounts of all receipts and disbursements. The receipts and
disbursements of the interstate commission shall be subject
to the audit and accounting procedures established under its
bylaws. However, all receipts and disbursements of funds
handled by the interstate commission shall be audited yearly
by a certified or licensed public accountant, and the report
of the audit shall be included in and become part of the
annual report of the interstate commission.
ARTICLE 15
MEMBER STATES, EFFECTIVE DATE AND AMENDMENT
A. Any state is eligible to become a member state.
B. The Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children shall become effective and
binding upon legislative enactment of that compact into law
by no less than ten of the states. The effective date shall
be no earlier than December 1, 2007. Thereafter, it shall
become effective and binding as to any other member state
upon enactment of that compact into law by that state. The SB 146
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governors of non-member states or their designees shall be
invited to participate in the activities of the interstate
commission on a nonvoting basis prior to adoption of that
compact by all states.
C. The interstate commission may propose
amendments to the Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children for enactment by the member
states. No amendment shall become effective and binding upon
the interstate commission and the member states unless and
until it is enacted into law by unanimous consent of the
member states.
ARTICLE 16
WITHDRAWAL AND DISSOLUTION
A. Once effective, the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall continue
in force and remain binding upon each and every member state,
provided that a member state may withdraw from that compact
by specifically repealing the statute that enacted that
compact into law.
B. Withdrawal from the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall be by the
enactment of a statute repealing that compact.
C. The withdrawing state shall immediately notify
the chair of the interstate commission in writing upon the
introduction of legislation repealing the Interstate Compact SB 146
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on Educational Opportunity for Military Children in the
withdrawing state. The interstate commission shall notify
the other member states of the withdrawing state's intent to
withdraw within sixty days of its receipt of the notice.
D. The withdrawing state is responsible for all
assessments, obligations and liabilities incurred on its
behalf through the effective date of withdrawal, including
obligations the performance of which extends beyond the
effective date of withdrawal.
E. Reinstatement following withdrawal of a member
state shall occur upon the withdrawing state reenacting the
Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military
Children or upon such later date as determined by the
interstate commission.
F. The Interstate Compact on Educational
Opportunity for Military Children shall dissolve effective
upon the date of the withdrawal or default of the member
state that reduces the membership in that compact to one
member state.
G. Upon the dissolution of the Interstate Compact
on Educational Opportunity for Military Children, the compact
becomes null and void and shall be of no further force or
effect, and the business and affairs of the interstate
commission shall be concluded, and surplus funds shall be
distributed in accordance with the bylaws. SB 146
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ARTICLE 17
SEVERABILITY AND CONSTRUCTION
A. The provisions of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall be
severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence or provision
is deemed unenforceable, the remaining provisions of that
compact shall be enforceable.
B. The provisions of the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall be
liberally construed to effectuate its purposes.
C. Nothing in the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children shall be
construed to prohibit the applicability of other interstate
compacts to which the states are members.
ARTICLE 18
BINDING EFFECT OF COMPACT AND OTHER LAWS
A. Nothing in the Interstate Compact on
Educational Opportunity for Military Children prevents the
enforcement of any other law of a member state.
B. All lawful actions of the interstate
commission, including all rules and bylaws promulgated by the
interstate commission, are binding upon the member states.
C. All agreements between the interstate
commission and the member states are binding in accordance
with their terms. SB 146
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D. In the event any provision of the Interstate
Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children
exceeds the constitutional limits imposed on the legislature
of any member state, such provision shall be ineffective to
the extent of the conflict with the constitutional provision
in question in that member state."."