44TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 1999

RELATING TO EDUCATION; PROVIDING FOR REPORTS OF AVERAGE DAILY ATTENDANCE.

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

Section 1. Section 22-1-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 2, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-1-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Public School Code:

A. "state board" means the state board of education;

B. "state superintendent" means the superintendent of public instruction;

C. "department of education" means the state department of public education;

D. "certified school instructor" means any person holding a valid certificate authorizing the person to teach, supervise an instructional program, counsel or provide special instructional services in the public schools of the state;

E. "certified school administrator" means any person holding a valid certificate authorizing the person to administer in the public schools of the state;

F. "certified school employee" or "certified school personnel" means any employee who is either a certified school instructor or a certified school administrator or both;

G. "non-certified school employee" means any employee who is not a certified school employee;

H. "certificate" means a certificate issued by the state board authorizing a person to teach, supervise an instructional program, counsel, provide special instructional services or administer in the public schools of the state;

I. "chief" or "director" means the state superintendent or his designee unless the context clearly indicates otherwise;

J. "private school" means a school offering on-site programs of instruction not under the control, supervision or management of a local school board, exclusive of home instruction offered by the parent, guardian or one having custody of the student;

K. "school district" means an area of land established as a political subdivision of the state for the administration of public schools and segregated geographically for taxation and bonding purposes;

L. "local school board" means the governing body of a school district;

M. "public school" means that part of a school district that is a single attendance center where instruction is offered by a certified school instructor or a group of certified school instructors and is discernible as a building or group of buildings generally recognized as either an elementary, secondary, junior high or high school or any combination thereof;

N. "school year" means the total number of teaching days offered by public schools in a school district during a period of twelve consecutive months;

O. "consolidation" means the combination of part or all of the geographical area of an existing school district with part or all of the geographical area of one or more contiguous existing school districts;

P. "consolidated school district" means a school district created by order of the state board by combining part or all of the geographical area of an existing school district with part or all of the geographical area of one or more contiguous existing school districts;

Q. "state institution" means the New Mexico military institute, the New Mexico school for the visually handicapped, the New Mexico school for the deaf, the New Mexico boys' school, the New Mexico youth diagnostic and development center, the Los Lunas medical center, the Fort Stanton hospital, the Las Vegas medical center or the Carrie Tingley crippled children's hospital;

R. "state educational institution" means an institution enumerated in Article 12, Section 11 of the constitution of New Mexico;

S. "[forty-day] average daily attendance report" means the report of qualified student membership present at school of each school district and of those eligible to be qualified students but enrolled in a private school or a home school for the [first forty days] fortieth, one hundredth and one hundred fortieth days of school;

T. "school" means any supervised program of instruction designed to educate a person in a particular place, manner and subject area;

U. "school-age person" means any person who is at least five years of age prior to 12:01 a.m. on September 1 of the school year and who has not received a high school diploma or its equivalent. A maximum age of twenty-one shall be used for persons who are classified as special education membership as defined in Section 22-8-2 NMSA 1978 or as residents of state institutions;

V. "home school" means the operation by a parent, guardian or other person having custody of a school-age person who instructs a home study program that provides a basic academic educational program, including [but not limited to] reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies and science;

W. "school building" means a public school, an administration building and related school structure or facilities, including teacher housing, as may be owned, acquired or constructed by the local school board and as necessary to carry out the powers and duties of the local school board;

X. "commercial advertiser" means a person who advertises a product or service for profit or not for profit and has a permitted advertisement; and

Y. "school bus private owner" means a person who owns a school bus, other than a [local] school district, the department of education, the state or any other political subdivision of the state."

Section 2. Section 22-2-8.2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1986, Chapter 33, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-2-8.2. STAFFING PATTERNS--CLASS LOAD--TEACHING LOAD.--

A. The individual class load for elementary school teachers shall not exceed twenty students for kindergarten; provided that any teacher in kindergarten with a class load of fifteen to twenty students shall be entitled to the assistance of an instructional assistant.

B. The average class load for elementary school teachers at an individual school shall not exceed twenty-two students when averaged among grades one, two and three; provided that any teacher in grade one with a class load of twenty-one or more shall be entitled to the full-time assistance of an instructional assistant.

C. [Effective with the 1994-95 school year] The average class load for an elementary school teacher at an individual school shall not exceed twenty-four students when averaged among grades four, five and six.

D. The daily teaching load per teacher for grades seven through twelve shall not exceed one hundred sixty students, except the daily teaching load for teachers of required English courses in grades seven and eight shall not exceed one hundred thirty-five with a maximum of twenty-seven students per class and the daily teaching load for teachers of required English courses in grades nine through twelve shall not exceed one hundred fifty students with a maximum of thirty students per class.

E. Students receiving special education services integrated into a regular classroom for any part of the day shall be counted in the calculation of class load averages. Students receiving special education services not integrated into the regular classroom shall not be counted in the calculation of class load averages. Only classroom teachers charged with responsibility for the regular classroom instructional program shall be counted in determining average class loads. In elementary schools offering only one grade level, average class loads may be calculated by averaging appropriate grade levels between schools in the school district.

F. The state superintendent may waive the individual school class load requirements established in this section. Waivers shall be applied for annually and a waiver shall not be granted for more than two consecutive years. Waivers may only be granted if a school district demonstrates:

(1) no portable classrooms are available;

(2) no other available sources of funding exist to meet its need for additional classrooms;

(3) the district is planning alternatives to increase building capacity for implementation within one year; and

(4) the parents of all children affected by the waiver have been notified in writing:

(a) of the statutory class load requirements;

(b) that the school district has made a decision to deviate from these class load requirements; and

(c) of the school district plan to achieve compliance with the class load requirements.

G. If a waiver is granted pursuant to Subsection F of this section to an individual school, the average class load for elementary school teachers at that school shall not exceed twenty students in grade one and shall not exceed twenty-five students when averaged among grades two, three, four, five and six.

H. Each school district shall report to the department of education the size and composition of classes subsequent to the [fortieth day and the December 1 count] fortieth, one hundredth and one hundred fortieth days. Failure to meet class load requirements within two years shall be justification for the disapproval of the school district's budget by the state superintendent.

I. The department of education shall report to the legislative education study committee by November 30 of each year regarding each school district's ability to meet class load requirements imposed by law.

J. Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection F of this section, the state board may waive the individual class load and teaching load requirements established in this section upon a demonstration of a viable alternative curricular plan and a finding by the state board that the plan is in the best interest of the school district and that, on an annual basis, the plan has been presented to and is supported by the affected teaching staff. The department of education shall evaluate the impact of each alternative curricular plan annually. Annual reports shall be made to the legislative education study committee.

K. [Effective with the 1987-88 school year] Certified school instructors shall not be required to perform noninstructional duties except in emergency situations as defined by the state board. For purposes of this subsection, "noninstructional duties" means noon hall duty, noon ground duty and noon cafeteria duty."

Section 3. Section 22-8-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1974, Chapter 8, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-8-13. REPORTS.--

A. Each local school board shall require each public school in its school district to keep accurate records concerning membership in the public school. The superintendent of each school district shall maintain the following reports for each twenty-day reporting period:

(1) the basic program MEM by grade in each public school;

(2) the early childhood education MEM;

(3) the special education MEM in each public school in class C and class D programs as defined in Section 22-8-21 NMSA 1978;

(4) the number of class A and class B programs as defined in Section 22-8-21 NMSA 1978; and

(5) the full-time-equivalent MEM for bilingual multicultural education programs.

B. The superintendent of each school district shall furnish to the department reports of the information required in Paragraphs (1) through (5) of Subsection A of this section for the [first forty days] fortieth, one hundredth and one hundred fortieth days of the school year. [The forty-day report] These reports and all other reports required by law or by the state board shall be furnished within five days of the close of the reporting period.

C. All information required pursuant to this section shall be on forms prescribed and furnished by the department. A copy of any report made pursuant to this section shall be kept as a permanent record of the school district and shall be subject to inspection and audit at any reasonable time.

D. The department shall withhold allotments of funds to any school district where the superintendent has failed to comply until the superintendent complies with and agrees to continue complying with requirements of this section.

E. The provisions of this section may be modified or suspended by the department for any school district or school operating under the Variable School Calendar Act. The department shall require MEM reports consistent with the calendar of operations of such school district or school and shall calculate an equivalent MEM for use in projecting school district revenue."

Section 4. Section 22-8-25 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1981, Chapter 176, Section 5, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-8-25. STATE EQUALIZATION GUARANTEE DISTRIBUTION--

DEFINITIONS--DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.--

A. The state equalization guarantee distribution is that amount of money distributed to each school district to ensure that the school district's operating revenue, including its local and federal revenues as defined in this section, is at least equal to the school district's program cost.

B. "Local revenue", as used in this section, means ninety-five percent of receipts to the school district derived from that amount produced by a school district property tax applied at the rate of fifty cents ($.50) to each one thousand dollars ($1,000) of net taxable value of property allocated to the school district and to the assessed value of products severed and sold in the school district as determined under the Oil and Gas Ad Valorem Production Tax Act and upon the assessed value of equipment in the school district as determined under the Oil and Gas Production Equipment Ad Valorem Tax Act.

C. "Federal revenue", as used in this section, means ninety-five percent of receipts to the school district, excluding amounts which, if taken into account in the computation of the state equalization guarantee distribution, result, under federal law or regulations, in a reduction in or elimination of federal school funding otherwise receivable by the school district, derived from the following:

(1) the school district's share of forest reserve funds distributed in accordance with Section 22-8-33 NMSA 1978; and

(2) grants from the federal government as assistance to those areas affected by federal activity authorized in accordance with Sections 236 through 240 of Title 20 of the United States Code (commonly known as "PL 874 funds") or an amount equal to the revenue the district was entitled to receive if no application was made for such funds but deducting from those grants the additional amounts to which school districts would be entitled because of the provisions of Subparagraph (D) of Paragraph (2) of Subsection (d) of Section 238 of Title 20 of the United States Code.

D. To determine the amount of the state equalization guarantee distribution, the state superintendent shall:

(1) calculate the number of program units to which each school district is entitled using [the basic program membership of the fortieth day for all programs; provided that] either the average daily attendance report from the prior year or the average daily attendance report from the prior school year plus the average annual percentage MEM increase for the previous five school years. Special education program units shall be calculated using the membership in special education programs on December 1; or

(2) calculate the number of program units to which a school district operating under an approved year-round school calendar is entitled using the basic program membership on an appropriate date established by the state board; or

(3) calculate the number of program units to which a school district with a basic program MEM of [200] two hundred or less is entitled by using the [basic program membership on the fortieth day of either the prior or the current year, whichever is greater] average daily attendance report of the prior year; provided that special education program units shall be calculated using the membership in special education programs on December 1 of either the prior or the current year; and

(4) using the results of the calculations in Paragraph (1), (2) or (3) of this subsection and the instructional staff training and experience index from the October report of the prior school year, establish a total program cost of the school district;

(5) calculate the local and federal revenues as defined in this section;

(6) deduct the sum of the calculations made in Paragraph (5) of this subsection from the program cost established in Paragraph (4) of this subsection; and

(7) deduct the total amount of guaranteed energy savings contract payments that the state superintendent determines will be made to the school district from the [public school energy efficiency fund] public school utility conservation fund during the fiscal year for which the state equalization guarantee distribution is being computed.

E. The amount of the state equalization guarantee distribution to which a school district is entitled is the balance remaining after the deductions made in Paragraphs (6) and (7) of Subsection D of this section.

F. The state equalization guarantee distribution shall be distributed prior to June 30 of each fiscal year. The calculation shall be based on the local and federal revenues specified in this section received from June 1 of the previous fiscal year through May 31 of the fiscal year for which the state equalization guarantee distribution is being computed. In the event that a district has received more state equalization guarantee funds than its entitlement, a refund shall be made by the district to the state general fund.

G. Notwithstanding the methods of calculating the state equalization guarantee distribution in this section and Laws 1974, Chapter 8, Section 22, if a school district received funds under Section 2391 of Title 42 USCA and if the federal government takes into consideration grants authorized by Sections 236 through 240 of Title 20 of the United States Code and all other revenues available to the school district in determining the level of federal support for the school district for the sixty-fourth and succeeding fiscal years, the state equalization guarantee distribution for school districts receiving funds under this subsection shall be computed as follows:

fiscal year program cost prior fiscal year

excluding special education state equalization

for the year for which the x guarantee distribution

state equalization guarantee excluding special education

distribution is being computed

prior fiscal year program cost

excluding special education

plus special education funding in accordance with Paragraphs (1), (2) or (3) and (4) of Subsection D of this section and Section 22-8-21 NMSA 1978 plus an amount that would be produced by applying a rate of eight dollars forty-two and one-half cents ($8.425) to each one thousand dollars ($1,000) of net taxable value of property as defined in the Property Tax Code for property taxation purposes in the school district and to each one thousand dollars ($1,000) of the assessed value of products severed and sold in the school district as determined under the Oil and Gas Ad Valorem Production Tax Act and upon the assessed value of equipment in the school district as determined under the Oil and Gas Production Equipment Ad Valorem Tax Act and then reduced by the total amount of guaranteed energy savings contract payments, if any, that the state superintendent determines will be made to the school district from the [public school energy efficiency fund] public school utility conservation fund during the fiscal year for which the state equalization guarantee distribution is being computed, equals the fiscal year state equalization guarantee distribution for the year for which the state equalization guarantee distribution is being computed.

If at any time grants from the federal government as assistance to those areas affected by federal activity authorized in accordance with Sections 236 through 240 of Title 20 of the United States Code (commonly known as "PL 874 funds") are reduced or are no longer available, the state equalization guarantee distribution shall be computed by the formula contained in this subsection plus an increase by fifty percent of the amount the prior year's PL 874 funds exceed PL 874 funds for the year for which the state equalization guarantee distribution is being computed."