0001|             SENATE CONSERVATION COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
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0002|                           SENATE BILL 408
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0003|     43rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 1998
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0004|                            INTRODUCED BY
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0005|     
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0006|     
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0007|                                   
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0008|     
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0009|                                   
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0010|     
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0011|                                AN ACT
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0012|     RELATING TO THE PUBLIC PEACE, HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELFARE;
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0013|     ESTABLISHING THE STATEWIDE EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITY
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0014|     PROGRAM TO PROVIDE LOW-COST, STATE-OF-THE-ART COMPUTERS FOR
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0015|     NEW MEXICO'S CLASSROOMS; MAKING APPROPRIATIONS; DECLARING AN
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0016|     EMERGENCY.
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0017|     
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0018|     BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
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0019|          Section 1.  STATEWIDE EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITY
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0020|     PROGRAM--FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.--
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0021|               A.  The legislature finds that:
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0022|                    (1)  local school districts need increased
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0023|     access to information technologies, extensive professional
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0024|     development and sustained network support to use technology
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0025|     effectively;
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<center>- 1 -</center>0001|                    (2)  the technological needs of New Mexico's
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0002|     individual school children and classrooms are best defined by the
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0003|     teachers and principals who work with them on a day-to-day basis;
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0004|                    (3)  New Mexico is fortunate to have high
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0005|     technology laboratories and corporations that have programs to
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0006|     supply low-cost, state-of-the-art central processing units for
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0007|     use in New Mexico classrooms; and
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0008|                    (4)  there are large nonprofit programs in place
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0009|     to build and rehabilitate computers for New Mexico classrooms
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0010|     using a combination of donated, surplus and purchased equipment.
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0011|               B.  The purpose of this act is to establish a
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0012|     statewide educational technology opportunity program for New
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0013|     Mexico's teachers and students by creating a partnership between
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0014|     private industry, state government and local school districts
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0015|     that will build, distribute and install low-cost, network-ready
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0016|     computers in New Mexico classrooms over the next three years.
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0017|          Section 2.  EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITY
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0018|     PROGRAM--DUTIES OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC EDUCATION.--
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0019|               A.  The state department of public education shall
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0020|     contract with a nonprofit corporation to administer the statewide
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0021|     educational technology opportunity program.  The department shall
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0022|     select a contractor that has a program in place to build and
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0023|     rehabilitate computers for New Mexico classrooms using a
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0024|     combination of donated, surplus and purchased equipment.  In
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0025|     administering the statewide educational technology opportunity
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<center>- 2 -</center>0001|     program, the contractor, in coordination with the department,
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0002|     shall:
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0003|                    (1)  solicit and accept applications for
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0004|     computer assistance from local school teachers through the local
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0005|     school principals;
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0006|                    (2)  establish criteria for evaluating
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0007|     applications for computer assistance.  The criteria shall include
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0008|     requirements for an established technology plan and an
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0009|     established network infrastructure;
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0010|                    (3)  establish a review process involving public
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0011|     and private entities to evaluate each application, determine the
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0012|     amount of computer assistance needed and allocate the available
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0013|     computers to ensure that computer assistance is distributed
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0014|     equitably; and
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0015|                    (4)  submit an annual report to the state board
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0016|     of education, the governor and the legislature on the progress of
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0017|     the program, showing the regional distribution of the program,
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0018|     the number of computers distributed and the cost of each
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0019|     computer.
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0020|               B.  Upon the approval of an application for computer
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0021|     assistance, the contractor shall distribute the allocated
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0022|     computers directly to the classroom and teacher.  Pursuant to the
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0023|     contract and upon the receipt of an invoice, the state department
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0024|     of public education shall reimburse the contractor for the state
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0025|     portion of the cost of the computer assistance granted.
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<center>- 3 -</center>0001|               C.  The state department of public education, after
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0002|     consulting with private industry, local school districts and
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0003|     other interested parties shall promulgate such rules as are
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0004|     necessary to implement the statewide educational technology
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0005|     opportunity program.
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0006|          Section 3.  APPROPRIATIONS.--Two million dollars
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0007|     ($2,000,000) is appropriated from the general fund in each of
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0008|     fiscal years 1998 through 2000 to the state department of public
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0009|     education.  The appropriations shall be expended in the fiscal
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0010|     year received and succeeding fiscal years only for reimbursing
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0011|     the contractor for the state portion of computer assistance
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0012|     granted pursuant to Section 2 of this act.  Unexpended or
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0013|     unencumbered balances of the appropriations shall not revert.
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0014|          Section 4.  EMERGENCY.--It is necessary for the public
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0015|     peace, health and safety that this act take effect immediately.
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0016|                               
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