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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR HEC

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/18/2008

3/07/2007 HB CS/201/aSEC

SHORT TITLE Cyber Academy Act

SB

ANALYST Aguilar

ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT (dollars in thousands)

FY07

FY08

FY09 3 Year

Total Cost

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

Total

**

Indeterminate

Recurring General

Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

** See Fiscal Implications

Duplicates SB 209/SECS

Relates to HB 62

Relates to appropriations in the General Appropriation Act

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Public Education Department (PED)

Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of SEC Amendment

The Senate Education Committee amendment to House Education Committee Substitute for

House Bill 201 provides for students that are enrolled for less than one-half of the minimum

course requirements to participate in the statewide cyber academy by paying not more than 35

percent of the current unit value per curricular unit.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The final unit value for the 2006-2007 school year is $3,446.44. Based on this rate and assuming

six curricular units per year, it is estimated that the students affected by this amendment would

pay $201.04 per class taken.

In general it appears this amendment will primarily apply to home school students.

CS/House Bill 201/aSEC – Page

2

TECHNICAL ISSUES

While the amendment provides for students that are enrolled for less than one-half of the

minimum course requirements to participate in the statewide cyber academy by paying not more

than 35 percent of the current unit value per curricular unit it does not direct to what entity these

payments should be made and how the funds should be distributed.

Synopsis of Original Bill

The House Education Committee Substitute for House Bill 201 creates the Statewide Cyber

Academy and provides for the duties of the cyber academy; provides for enrollment

requirements; and provides that students shall only be counted in their primary enrolling district

for determining membership.

The committee substitute also directs that one of the regional hosts for FY08 will be a network

developed by Regional Educational Cooperatives three, eight and nine and provides for a

performance evaluation of the network.

The committee substitute makes technical changes to language in the duties of the Council on

Technology in Education and includes the development of a statewide cyber academy plan. The

committee substitute also makes changes to the allocation process for funds from the educational

technology deficiency correction fund.

The committee substitute also provides a methodology for the replacement of obsolete computers

in schools.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

HB 201/HECS does not contain an appropriation however language in the bill provides for the

statewide cyber academy to “ensure that all deficiencies in the infrastructure, hardware and

software in the statewide cyber academy are corrected in accordance with the educational

technology adequacy standards pursuant to Section 22-15A-11 NMSA 1978". It is not clear if

this language is requiring the statewide cyber academy to correct deficiencies immediately or if

this can be implemented as funding is appropriated for this purpose. If the requirement is for

immediate deficiency corrections, funding is not provided in the bill causing an unfunded

mandate to occur.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

HB 201/HECS provides that the statewide cyber academy is created as a collaborative program

among PED, HED, telecommunications networks and representative of other state agencies

engaged in providing distance education.

PED is charged with promulgating rules for implementing the statewide cyber academy act.

The statewide cyber academy is charged with:

•

Establishing a distance learning course delivery system;

•

Selecting regional hosts based on pre-existing experience and capacity;

•

Providing technical and program support;

CS/House Bill 201/aSEC – Page

3

•

Ensuring that all distance learning courses are taught by highly qualified teacher or

members of accredited post-secondary educational institutions;

•

Ensuring that all courses offered meet state content and performance standards;

•

Providing for reasonable and equitable means of allocating the costs of distance learning;

and,

•

Prioritizing the delivery of distance learning courses and providing that for FY08,

students served by RECs three, eight and nine are selected.

As noted under fiscal implications, the cyber academy is charged with ensuring that all

deficiencies are corrected.

HB 201/HECS specifically provide that the statewide cyber academy shall comply with all rules

governing privacy and confidentially of student records for secure storage.

The committee substitute addresses specific issues relating to distance learning students by

providing that:

•

A student must be enrolled in a public school or state supported school;

•

A distance learning student shall only be counted in the student’s primary enrolling

district for the purpose of determining the membership used to calculate a school

district’s distribution from the SEG.

•

Home school students may participate if they are enrolled for one-half or more of the

minimum course requirements in the school district in which the student resides;

•

Students enrolled in nonpublic schools and students detained in or committed to a

juvenile detention facility may also participate if the school or facility in which the

student is enrolled enters into a contract with the school district in which the school or

facility is located.

The committee substitute provides for an evaluation of a network developed by regional

educational cooperatives three, eight and nine and designated as a regional host facility for

FY08.

The committee substitute also expands the duties of the Council on Technology in Education to

include on-site programs as well as distance learning and provides for the development of a

statewide cyber academy plan that states the short and long range goals for distance learning.

The committee substitute also makes changes to the allocation process for funds from the

educational technology deficiency correction fund providing for a review and approval process

as well as coordinating and consulting with the Public School Facilities Authority.

The committee substitute also specifies criteria to be used in determining allocations for the

replacement of obsolete computers and network devices.

TECHNICAL ISSUES

Please see notes under fiscal implications.

PA/csd