LESC bill analyses are available on the New Mexico Legislature website ( www.nmlegis.gov). Bill analyses are
prepared by LESC staff for standing education committees of the New Mexico Legislature. LESC does not assume
any responsibility for the accuracy of these reports if they are used for other purposes.
LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE
BILL ANALYSIS
57th Legislature, 1st Session, 2025
Bill Number SJR15 Sponsor Soules/Sharer/Shendo
Tracking Number .230923.3 Committee Referrals SRC/SEC
Short Title Appointed State Board of Education, CA
Original Date 3/1/2025
Analyst Hathaway Last Updated
BILL SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
Senate Joint Resolution 15 (SJR15) proposes amending Article XII, Section 6 of the New Mexico
Constitution to create an appointed State Board of Education that would also appoint a
“superintendent of public instruction.” The proposed board would have nine members who would
be appointed “as provided by law.” SJR15 does not include detail on specific appointment
processes, dates, or criteria and the Legislature would need to determine requirements in law.
SJR15 retains the Public Education Department (PED) but changes its leadership to the proposed
superintendent of public instruction rather than the current secretary who is appointed by the
governor and confirmed by the Senate. SJR15 also removes current language that PED is a cabinet
department.
SJR15 retains the Public Education Commission (PEC) and its duties. The PEC is an existing body
of 10 elected members that serve as the chartering authority for state- chartered charter schools.
SJR15 stipulates the appointment of a superintendent of public instruction by the proposed board.
SJR15 requires the superintendent to be “a qualified, experienced New Mexico licensed
educational administrator.” This individual would direct the operations of the PED pursuant to board policies and directions, so long as these are consistent with law.
As this is a constitutional amendment, its adoption is subject to voter approval at the next general
election (November 2026) or any special election prior to the date of the next general election that
is called for the purpose of considering this constitutional amendment. The amendment would only
be effective if approved by voters.
FISCAL IMPACT
SJR15 does not contain an appropriation.
SJR15 – Page 2
Section 1-16-4 NMSA 1978 requires the Secretary of State (SOS) to print the full text of each
proposed constitutional amendment, in Spanish and English, in an amount equal to 10 percent of
the registered voters in the state. The cost of producing the voter guide will change depending
upon the number and length of the constitutional amendments passed and the number of registered
voters. The SOS is also constitutionally required to publish the full text of each proposed
constitutional amendment once a week for four weeks preceding the election in newspapers in
every county in the state. The cost will vary on the length of the ballot question. However, as a
reference, in 2022, the SOS published three constitutional amendments and three bond questions
for approximately $404 thousand. Further, there would be costs related to future elections for
members of the proposed board.
SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
Proposed Board Structure. The proposed board in SJR15 would include nine members with all
of these being appointed “as provided by law.” SJR15 includes requirements that these nine
members must be residents of New Mexico and have experience with public education in the state.
SJR15 does not include greater detail on how these individuals would be appointed. As
appointment requirements would need to be provided for in state law, the Legislature would need
to amend or create law to set any appointment criteria. If SJR15 was approved by voters, the
language included could allow the Legislature to prescribe and revisit any board member
appointment criteria in state law through legislative sessions, rather than through constitutional
amendments.
The proposed board would be required to “determine public school policy and shall have control,
management and direction, including financial direction, for all public schools pursuant to
authority and powers provided by law.” The proposed board would also be required to appoint a
qualified, experienced New Mexico educational administrator as a statewide superintendent of
public instruction. This individual would direct all operations of the PED and perform all functions
as provided by law and board policy, so long as these are not inconsistent with law. SJR15 notes
the current PED secretary would serve as the superintendent of public instruction until replaced by
the proposed board’s appointment of a superintendent.
PEC Implications. SJR15 retains the PEC, the current authorizer of state- chartered charter
schools. The PEC consists of 10 elected commissioners who serve for staggered terms of four
years. Commission members are residents of the PEC district from which they are elected and
therefore, PEC commissioners are from communities located across the entirety of New Mexico.
The PEC is the authorizer for all state-chartered charter schools in New Mexico. The primary
function of the PEC is the review, and approval or disapproval, of applications to authorize state -
chartered charter schools. This includes approval, renewal, suspension, and revocation of state
level charters. Acting as the state- level charter school authorizer occupies the bulk of the PEC’s
time, work, public meetings, and hearings.
State Board of Education Context. The proposed joint resolution returns the operation and
management of public education in New Mexico to a structure like one in place prior to a 2003
constitutional amendment that created the state’s current system of a cabinet-level PED presided
over by a secretary of public education. SJR15’s proposed replacement of the secretary of
education with a superintendent of public instruction could potentially have stabilizing effects on
state education leadership. SJR15 proposes an appointed board without including additional detail
on how these individuals would be appointed and how long their terms might be, however.
SJR15 – Page 3
Prior to 2003, New Mexico had an elected policymaking state board of education. When the
constitutional amendment establishing PED was passed in 2003, changes included shifting
responsibilities from a superintendent of public instruction selected by the board to a secretary
selected by the governor and established PED as the party responsible for disbursing funds. From
1963 to 2003, there were three state superintendents over PED: Leonard DeLayo (1963- 1985),
Alan Morgan (1985-1997), and Michael Davis (1997- 2002).
Since the creation of the position of secretary of public education in 2003, there have been nine
secretaries of PED: Veronica Garcia (2003-2010), Hanna Skandera (2010- 2017), Christopher
Ruszkowski (2017- 2019), Karen Trujillo (2019), Ryan Stewart (2019- 2021), Kurt Steinhaus
(2021- 2022), interim secretary Mariana Padilla (2022- 2023), Arsenio Romero (2023-2024), and
Mariana Padilla (secretary designate, 2024-current).
A constitutional amendment making such a fundamental change to a cabinet-level agency, if
approved by the voters, would necessitate extensive statutory and regulatory revision regarding
the agency’s powers, duties, and organization.
Governance Models Nationwide. The National Association of State Boards of Education
(NASBE), a nonpartisan nonprofit that serves as a membership organization for state boards of
education, reports New Mexico, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin are the four states that
do not have a state board of education. Generally, state boards of education are unique to each
state with NASBE reporting some are created by state constitutions and others by statute. Many
include a mix of elected and appointed members. State education chiefs are often selected by state
Source: NASBE
SJR15 – Page 4
boards, but some states have directed their governors to appoint these positions. A visual of
governance structures is shown above.
Education governance models vary throughout the country. According to the Education
Commission of the States, state education governance structure generally falls within one of four
different models:
1. Voters elect the governor, and then the governor appoints the members of the state board
of education and the state superintendent. Ten states fall within this category.
2. Voters elect the governor, who then appoints either all or most of the state board of
education. The state board then appoints the state superintendent. Twelve states fall within
this category.
3. Voters elect both the governor and the state superintendent. The governor then appoints
the state board of education. Nine states fall within this category.
4. Voters elect both the governor and the state board of education. The state board of
education then appoints the state superintendent. Six states fall within this category.
Fourteen states, including New Mexico, fall precisely into none of the above models, but rather
utilize a modified version of one of these formats.
Governance Structures and Student Outcomes. There appears to be no cause-and-effect
relationship between governance structures and student performance or outcomes. For example,
LESC staff examination of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test scores in a
variety of states with different governance structures shows no clear pattern between a state’s
governance structure and student performance on the NAEP.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
Returning the operation of public education to a model like that which existed before the 2003
constitutional amendment would likely require substantial amendments to both statute and public
education administrative rule. Given the number and volume of statutes and rules implicated by
public education, this would be a significant task.
OTHER SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
Powers and duties were transferred from the original state board of education to PED upon
adoption of constitutional amendment, effective September 23, 2003, by a vote of 101,542 in favor
and 83,155 against. Prior to this time, the members of the state board of education were elected,
with incumbents from the board becoming PEC members upon approval of the amendment, with
duties limited to strategic planning and policy advisement for local school boards. The PEC’s
current responsibility for chartering schools was established in 2006. Statutory implementation of
the constitutional amendment began in 2004 with the passage of the Public Education Department
Act, which made several significant changes to law including:
• Provision for the organization of the new department, granting the newly appointed
secretary “every power expressly enumerated in the law” unless expressly exempted by
law;
• Provision for the secretary for “all of the duties, responsibilities and authority of that office”
during the time before the secretary was confirmed by the senate;
SJR15 – Page 5
• Explicit notice that the legal duties of the former superintendent of public instruction be
deemed references to the new secretary of education, and that all references to the former
state board be deemed references to the PED;
• Establishment of PED as the sole educational agency for purposes of distributing aid made
available through federal statute; and
• Provision for delayed repeals of the authority of the state board of education.
RELATED BILLS
Conflicts with Senate Joint Resolution 3, as amended by the Senate Education Committee
(SJR3/aSEC), which also creates an elected state board of education.
Conflicts with House Joint Resolution 4 (HJR4), which also directs amending the New Mexico
Constitution to create a 10 member state school board (all of which would be elected members)
with a superintendent of public instruction.
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
• LESC Files
JKH/mca