2005 Senate Bill text for SB0981

SENATE BILL 981

47th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2005

INTRODUCED BY

Steve Komadina

AN ACT

RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION; REQUIRING AN ELECTION IN A SCHOOL DISTRICT PARTIALLY WITHIN A TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL INSTITUTE DISTRICT; PROVIDING FOR READJUSTMENT OF DISTRICT BOUNDARIES; CLARIFYING ELECTION PROCEDURES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

Section 1. Section 21-16-14 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1963, Chapter 108, Section 11, as amended) is amended to read:

"21-16-14. ADDITION OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO EXISTING TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL INSTITUTE DISTRICTS--WITHDRAWAL OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS.--

A. Any school district, group of school districts within a county or school districts in an adjoining county not included in the technical and vocational institute district as originally formed, may petition the [state board of] public education department to be added to the technical and vocational institute district. The [state board of education] department shall examine the petition, and, if it finds that the petition is signed by [the requisite number of qualified voters as provided in Section 21-16-3 NMSA 1978, the state board of education] a number of voters residing within each school district equal to ten percent or more of the votes cast for governor in each school district in the last general election, the department shall cause a survey to be made of [the] each petitioning district [or districts] to determine the desirability of the proposed extension of the area of the technical and vocational institute district.

B. In conducting the survey, the [state board of] public education department, in conjunction with the commission on higher education, shall ascertain the attitude of the technical and vocational institute board and collect other information [as prescribed in Section 21-16-3 NMSA 1978] it deems appropriate. If on the basis of the survey the [state board of education] department finds that the proposed addition of the school district or districts will promote an improved education service in the area, it shall approve the petition. Thereafter, the [state board of education] department shall proceed to call an election within [the] each petitioning school district [or districts] and in the established technical and vocational institute district on the question of the inclusion of the area in the institute district. The election shall be called, conducted and canvassed as provided in the School Election Law except that the secretary of public education shall serve in place of the superintendent.

C. If [it appears on canvass of the results of the election that] a majority of the votes cast in each of the petitioning school districts and within the established institute district was in favor of the addition of the petitioning school district or districts, the [state board of] public education department shall notify the local school board of each school district and the technical and vocational institute board of the results of the election and shall declare the extension of the boundaries of the institute district to include the petitioning school district or districts in which the proposed addition referendum carried by a majority vote.

D. Each school district added to any existing technical and vocational institute district shall automatically be subject to any special levy on taxable property approved for the institute district for the maintenance of facilities and services and for support of bond issues.

E. In any school district, the entire area of which is not wholly within a technical and vocational institute district, and which has not held an election by the voters residing within the entire school district on the question of whether the school district should be a part of the technical and vocational institute district, an election shall be held to vote on the question. The election shall be conducted as part of the next regularly scheduled election for the board of education of the school district by placing on the ballot the question of whether the area of the entire school district should be included in the technical and vocational institute district.

F. If a majority of the votes cast in the school district is in favor of the inclusion of the area of the entire school district in the technical and vocational institute district, the public education department shall notify the technical and vocational institute board of the results of the election and shall declare the extension of the boundaries of the technical and vocational institute district to include the area of the entire school district on the next succeeding July 1. Property in a school district added pursuant to this subsection shall automatically be subject to any special levy on taxable property as any other property within the technical and vocational institute district.

G. If a majority of the votes cast in the school district is against the inclusion of the area of the entire school district in the technical and vocational institute district, the public education department shall notify the technical and vocational institute board of the results of the election and shall declare the withdrawal of the school district from the boundaries of the technical and vocational institute district effective on the next succeeding July 1.

H. The territory of a school district withdrawn from a technical and vocational institute district as provided in Subsection G of this section shall continue to be subject to any special levy on taxable property for the technical and vocational institute district, for the maintenance of facilities and services and for support of bond issues, approved during the time that territory was a part of the technical and vocational institute district and before the election provided for in Subsection E of this section."

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