SENATE BILL 105

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Harold Pope

 

 

 

FOR THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE

 

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; AMENDING THE ATTENDANCE FOR SUCCESS ACT; CLARIFYING THAT ABSENCES ALLOWED IN ACCORDANCE WITH AN INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM AND ABSENCES ALLOWED AS ACCOMMODATIONS UNDER CERTAIN FEDERAL AND STATE LAWS ARE EXCUSED ABSENCES; REQUIRING THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO DEVELOP AND PUBLISH WRITTEN GUIDANCE ON HOW TO IMPLEMENT THE ATTENDANCE FOR SUCCESS ACT; MAKING CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

 

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

     SECTION 1. Section 22-12A-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 223, Section 2) is amended to read:

     "22-12A-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Attendance for Success Act:

          A. "absent" or "absence" means not in attendance for a class or school day for any reason, whether excused or not; provided that "absent" or "absence" does not apply to participation in interscholastic extracurricular activities;

          B. "attendance improvement plan" means a tiered data-informed system for public schools and school districts to identify students who are chronically or excessively absent and to aid public schools in developing whole-school prevention strategies and targeted interventions. Each of the tiers is defined as follows:

                (1) "whole school prevention" means universal, whole-school prevention strategies for all students, including students who have missed less than five percent of classes or school days for any reason;

                (2) "individualized prevention" means targeted prevention strategies for individual students who are missing five percent or more but less than ten percent of classes or school days for any reason;

                (3) "early intervention" means interventions for students who are missing ten percent or more but less than twenty percent of classes or school days for any reason; and

                (4) "intensive support" means interventions for students who are missing twenty percent or more of classes or school days for any reason;

          C. "attendance team" means a group of school-based administrators, teachers, staff, other school personnel and community members who collaborate to implement an attendance improvement plan;

          D. "chronic absence rate" means the percentage of students, in the aggregate and disaggregated by the subgroups required for reporting pursuant to the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, in a public school and a school district who have been enrolled for at least ten days and who have missed ten percent or more of school days since the beginning of the school year;

          E. "chronically absent" or "chronic absenteeism" means that a student has been absent for ten percent or more of classes or school days for any reason, whether excused or not, when enrolled for more than ten days;

          F. "excessively absent" or "excessive absenteeism" means a student who is identified as needing intensive support and has not responded to intervention efforts implemented by the public school;

          G. "excused absence" means absence from a class or school day that is allowable pursuant to the Attendance for Success Act and includes an absence for a death in the family, medical [absence] reasons, religious instruction or tribal obligations [or any other allowable excuse pursuant to the policies of the local school board];

          H. "interscholastic extracurricular activities" means [those] activities sponsored by a public school or an organization whose principal purpose is the regulation, direction, administration and supervision of interscholastic extracurricular activities in public schools;

          I. "local school board" includes the governing body of a charter school;

          [J. "medical absence" or "medically absent" means that a student is not in attendance for a class or a school day for a parent- or doctor-authorized medical reason or the student is a pregnant or parenting student;

          K.] J. "school day" means a portion of the school day that is at least one-half of a student's approved program;

          [L.] K. "school district" includes a charter school;

          [M.] L. "school principal" includes the head administrator of a charter school; and

          [N.] M. "unexcused absence" means an absence from a class or school day for which the student does not have an allowable excuse pursuant to the Attendance for Success Act [or policies of the local school board]."

     SECTION 2. Section 22-12A-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 223, Section 4) is amended to read:

     "22-12A-4. SCHOOL ATTENDANCE--RESPONSIBILITY--PRIVATE SCHOOL ATTENDANCE POLICIES.--

          A. Except as otherwise provided in the Public School Code, a school-age person shall attend public school, private school, home school or a state institution until the school-age person is at least eighteen years of age unless that school-age person has graduated from high school, received a high school equivalency credential or withdrawn from school on a hardship waiver. A parent may give written, signed permission for the school-age person to leave school between the ages of sixteen and eighteen in case of hardship approved by the local superintendent or private school.

          B. A school-age person subject to the provisions of the Attendance for Success Act shall attend school for at least the length of time of the school year that is established in that school-age person's school district, charter school or private school. The school district or private school shall not excuse a school-age person from attending school except as provided in that act.

          C. The parent of a school-age person subject to the provisions of the Attendance for Success Act is responsible for the school attendance of that school-age person.

          D. Local school boards and private schools shall enforce the provisions of the Attendance for Success Act for students enrolled in their respective schools.

          E. The department shall develop and publish written guidance for school districts on how to implement the Attendance for Success Act, including guidance on allowable absences provided for in Section 22-12A-9 NMSA 1978.

          [E.] F. A private school in this state shall have an attendance policy that as closely as practicable follows the law for public schools. A school-age person attending a private school and the school-age person's parent shall be given a copy of the private school's attendance policy each year."

     SECTION 3. Section 22-12A-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 223, Section 9) is amended to read:

     "22-12A-9. ALLOWABLE ABSENCES--MEDICAL [APPOINTMENTS] REASONS--ILLNESS--DISABILITY--SPECIAL SITUATIONS--MAKE-UP WORK.--

          A. A student may be [excused for parent- or doctor-authorized] absent from school for medical reasons, including medical appointments or illness; provided that the student's absence is authorized by a medical provider or the student's parent. [A public school shall provide time for the student to make up the school work missed during the absence.

          B. A school district shall maintain an attendance policy that:

                (1) provides at least ten days of medical absences during the school year for a student who provides documentation of the birth of the student's child and the public school shall provide time for the student to make up the school work missed during the absence; and

                (2) provides four days of excused absences for a student who provides appropriate documentation of pregnancy or that the student is the parent of a child under the age of thirteen needing care, and the public school shall provide time for the student to make up the school work missed during the absence.]

          B. A school district shall allow a student to be absent from school for four consecutive or nonconsecutive days if the student is pregnant or parenting a child under the age of thirteen and provides appropriate documentation of pregnancy or parenting. In addition to the four consecutive or nonconsecutive days, a school district shall allow a student to be absent from school for at least ten consecutive days upon the birth of the student's child if the student provides appropriate documentation of the birth.

          C. A school district that has an alternative public school for, among others, pregnant and parenting students and that allows for off-site attendance through online education shall not count students as absent as long as the students are online with the public school or other appropriate virtual course and complete their class assignments.

          D. A student may, subject to the approval of the school principal, be absent from school to participate in religious instruction for not more than one class period per school day [with] if the principal receives the written consent of the student's parent [at a time that is not in] and the religious instruction does not conflict with the academic program of the school. [The public school shall provide time for the student to make up the school work missed during the absence.] The school district or the public school shall not assume responsibility for the religious instruction of any student or permit religious instruction to be conducted on school property.

          E. A [public school student, with the written consent of the student's parent and] student may, subject to the approval of the school principal, [may] be absent from school to participate in tribal obligations [The public school shall provide time for the student to make up the school work missed during the absence] if the principal receives the written consent of the student's parent.

          F. A student who is a child with a disability, pursuant to the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, may be absent from school as provided in the student's individualized education program. A student may otherwise be absent from school if the absence is supported by an accommodation made pursuant to Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or the Human Rights Act.

          G. A student who is absent from school as allowed pursuant to this section shall be provided time to make up the school work the student missed during the absence. An absence allowed pursuant to this section shall not be considered in determining whether a student is excessively absent for the purposes of enforcement, as provided in Section 22-12A-12 NMSA 1978."

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