SENATE BILL 63

53rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2017

INTRODUCED BY

Mimi Stewart and James E. Smith

FOR THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; AMENDING THE PUBLIC SCHOOL CODE TO CLARIFY THE USES OF "EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS" IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOL CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS ACT AND THE PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDINGS ACT.

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

     SECTION 1. Section 22-25-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1975 (S.S.), Chapter 5, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:

     "22-25-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Public School Capital Improvements Act:

          A. "program unit" means the product of the program element multiplied by the applicable cost differential factor, as defined in Section 22-8-2 NMSA 1978; and

          B. "capital improvements" means expenditures, including payments made with respect to lease-purchase arrangements as defined in the Education Technology Equipment Act or the Public School Lease Purchase Act but excluding any other debt service expenses, for:

                (1) erecting, remodeling, making additions to, providing equipment for or furnishing public school buildings;

                (2) purchasing or improving public school grounds;

                (3) maintenance of public school buildings or public school grounds, including the purchasing or repairing of maintenance equipment and participating in the facility information management system as required by the Public School Capital Outlay Act and including payments under contracts with regional education cooperatives for maintenance support services and expenditures for technical training and certification for maintenance and facilities management personnel, but excluding salary expenses of school district employees;

                (4) purchasing activity vehicles for transporting students to extracurricular school activities; [or]

                (5) purchasing computer software and hardware for student use in public school classrooms; and

                (6) purchasing and installing education technology improvements, including tools used in the educational process that constitute learning and administrative resources, and which may also include:

                     (a) satellite, copper and fiber-optic transmission; computer and network connection devices; digital communication equipment, including voice, video and data equipment; servers; switches; portable media devices, such as discs and drives to contain data for electronic storage and playback; and the purchase or lease of software licenses or other technologies and services, maintenance, equipment and computer infrastructure information, techniques and tools used to implement technology in schools and related facilities; and

                     (b) improvements, alterations and modifications to, or expansions of, existing buildings or personal property necessary or advisable to house or otherwise accommodate any of the tools listed in this paragraph."

     SECTION 2. Section 22-26-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1983, Chapter 163, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:

     "22-26-2. DEFINITION.--As used in the Public School Buildings Act, "capital improvements" means expenditures, including payments made with respect to lease-purchase arrangements as defined in the Education Technology Equipment Act but excluding any other debt service expenses, for:

          A. erecting, remodeling, making additions to, providing equipment for or furnishing public school buildings;

          B. payments made pursuant to a financing agreement entered into by a school district or a charter school for the leasing of a building or other real property with an option to purchase for a price that is reduced according to payments made;

          C. purchasing or improving public school grounds;

          D. purchasing activity vehicles for transporting students to and from extracurricular school activities; provided that this authorization for expenditure does not apply to school districts with a student MEM greater than sixty thousand; [or]

          E. administering the projects undertaken pursuant to Subsections A and C of this section, including expenditures for facility maintenance software, project management software, project oversight and district personnel specifically related to administration of projects funded by the Public School Buildings Act; provided that expenditures pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed five percent of the total project costs; and

          F. purchasing and installing education technology improvements, including tools used in the educational process that constitute learning and administrative resources, and which may also include:

                (1) satellite, copper and fiber-optic transmission; computer and network connection devices; digital communication equipment, including voice, video and data equipment; servers; switches; portable media devices, such as discs and drives to contain data for electronic storage and playback; and purchase or lease of software licenses or other technologies and services, maintenance, equipment and computer infrastructure information, techniques and tools used to implement technology in schools and related facilities; and

                (2) improvements, alterations and modifications to, or expansions of, existing buildings or personal property necessary or advisable to house or otherwise accommodate any of the tools listed in this subsection."

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