SENATE BILL 401

55th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2021

INTRODUCED BY

Michael Padilla

 

 

 

 

 

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC EDUCATION; DEFINING THE DUTIES OF THE PUBLIC EDUCATION COMMISSION; ASSIGNING OVERSIGHT FOR CAREER TECHNICAL EDUCATION TO THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT.

 

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

         SECTION 1. Section 9-24-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2004, Chapter 27, Section 9) is amended to read:

         "9-24-9. PUBLIC EDUCATION COMMISSION.--

                   A. The "public education commission" is created pursuant to Article 12, Section 6 of the constitution of New Mexico. The commission shall be administratively attached to the department, with administrative staff provided by the department. Additional requests for staff services and equipment shall be made through the secretary. The commission [shall advise the department on policy matters and shall perform other functions as provided by law] is the chartering authority for state-chartered charter schools.

                   B. The commission shall consist of ten members elected from public education districts as provided in the decennial educational redistricting act. Members shall be entitled to receive per diem and mileage as provided in the Per Diem and Mileage Act, but shall receive no other perquisite, compensation or allowance.

                   C. The commission shall annually elect a [chairman] chair, vice [chairman] chair and secretary from among its membership. A majority of the members constitutes a quorum for the conduct of business. The commission shall keep a record of all proceedings of the commission.

                   D. The commission shall meet at the call of the [chairman] chair at least quarterly. Meetings of the commission shall be held in Santa Fe and at other sites within the state at the direction of the commission. The [chairman] chair in consultation with the secretary shall call a meeting at the request of a majority of the members. Commission members shall not vote by proxy.

                   E. No member of the commission shall be appointed secretary or be employed by the department on either a full- or part-time basis.

                   F. The commission shall be represented by the attorney general and shall not contract for legal services."

         SECTION 2. Section 22-2-14 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, Chapter 129, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read:

         "22-2-14. LOCAL SCHOOL BOARDS--PUBLIC SCHOOLS--SUSPENSION--PROCEDURES.--

                   A. Money budgeted by a school district shall be spent first to attain and maintain the requirements for a school district as prescribed by law and by standards and rules as prescribed by the department. The department shall give written notification to a local school board, local superintendent and school principal, as applicable, of any failure to meet requirements by any part of the school district under the control of the local school board. The notice shall specify the deficiency. Instructional units or administrative functions may be disapproved for such deficiencies. The department shall disapprove instructional units or administrative functions that it determines to be detrimental to the educational process.

                   B. Within thirty days after receipt of the notice of failure to meet requirements, the local school board, local superintendent and school principal, as applicable, shall:

                               (1) comply with the specific and attendant requirements in order to remove the cause for disapproval; or

                               (2) submit plans satisfactory to the department to meet requirements and remove the cause for disapproval.

                   C. The secretary [after consultation with the commission] shall suspend from authority and responsibility a local school board, local superintendent or school principal that has had notice of disapproval and fails to comply with procedures of Subsection B of this section. The department shall act in lieu of the suspended local school board, local superintendent or school principal until the department removes the suspension.

                   D. To suspend a local school board, local superintendent or school principal, the secretary shall deliver to the local school board an alternative order of suspension, stating the cause for the suspension and the effective date and time the suspension will begin. The alternative order shall also contain notice of a time, date and place for a public hearing, prior to the beginning of suspension, to be held by the department, at which the local school board, local superintendent or school principal may appear and show cause why the suspension should not be put into effect. Within five days after the hearing, the secretary shall make permanent, modify or withdraw the alternative order.

                   E. The secretary may suspend a local school board, local superintendent or school principal when the local school board, local superintendent or school principal has been notified of disapproval and when the department has sufficient reason to believe that the educational process in the school district or public school has been severely impaired or halted as a result of deficiencies so severe as to warrant disapproved status before a public hearing can be held.

                   F. The department, while acting in lieu of a suspended local school board, local superintendent or school principal, shall execute all the legal authority of the local school board, local superintendent or school principal and assume all the responsibilities of the local school board, local superintendent or school principal.

                   G. The provisions of this section shall be invoked at any time the secretary [after consultation with the commission] finds that the school district or public school has failed to attain and maintain the requirements of law or department standards and rules.

                   [H. The commission shall consult with the secretary and may recommend alternative actions for the secretary's consideration.

                   I.] H. A local school board, local superintendent or school principal aggrieved by a decision of the secretary may appeal to the district court pursuant to the provisions of Section 39-3-1.1 NMSA 1978."

         SECTION 3. Section 22-8B-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1999, Chapter 281, Section 9, as amended) is amended to read:

         "22-8B-9. CHARTER SCHOOL CONTRACT--CONTENTS--RULES.--

                   A. The chartering authority shall enter into a contract with the governing body of the applicant charter school within thirty days of approval of the charter application. The charter contract shall be the final authorization for the charter school and shall be part of the charter. If the chartering authority and the applicant charter school fail to agree upon the terms of or enter into a contract within thirty days of the approval of the charter application, either party may appeal to the secretary to finalize the terms of the contract; provided that such appeal must be provided in writing to the secretary within forty-five days of the approval of the charter application. Failure to enter into a charter contract or appeal to the secretary pursuant to this section precludes the chartering authority from chartering the school.

                   B. The charter contract shall include:

                               (1) all agreements regarding the release of the charter school from department and local school board rules and policies, including discretionary waivers provided for in Section 22-8B-5 NMSA 1978;

                               (2) any material term of the charter application as determined by the parties to the contract;

                               (3) the mission statement of the charter school and how the charter school will report on implementation of its mission;

                               (4) the chartering authority's duties to the charter school and liabilities of the chartering authority as provided in Section 22-8B-5.3 NMSA 1978;

                               (5) a statement of admission policies and procedures;

                               (6) signed assurances from the charter school's governing body members regarding compliance with all federal and state laws governing organizational, programmatic and financial requirements applicable to charter schools;

                               (7) the criteria, processes and procedures that the chartering authority will use for ongoing oversight of operational, financial and academic performance of the charter school;

                               [(8) a detailed description of how the chartering authority will use the withheld two percent of the school-generated program cost as provided in Section 22-8B-13 NMSA 1978;

                               (9)] (8) the types and amounts of insurance liability coverage to be obtained by the charter school;

                               [(10)] (9) the term of the contract;

                               [(11)] (10) the process and criteria that the chartering authority intends to use to annually monitor and evaluate the fiscal, overall governance and student performance of the charter school, including the method that the chartering authority intends to use to conduct the evaluation as required by Section 22-8B-12 NMSA 1978;

                               [(12)] (11) the dispute resolution processes agreed upon by the chartering authority and the charter school, provided that the processes shall, at a minimum, include:

                                         (a) written notice of the intent to invoke the dispute resolution process, which notice shall include a description of the matter in dispute;

                                         (b) a time limit for response to the notice and cure of the matter in dispute;

                                         (c) a procedure for selection of a neutral third party to assist in resolving the dispute;

                                         (d) a process for apportionment of all costs related to the dispute resolution process; and

                                         (e) a process for final resolution of the issue reviewed under the dispute resolution process;

                               [(13)] (12) the criteria, procedures and time lines, agreed upon by the charter school and the chartering authority, addressing charter revocation and deficiencies found in the annual status report pursuant to the provisions of Section 22-8B-12 NMSA 1978;

                               [(14)] (13) if the charter school contracts with a third-party provider, the criteria and procedures for the chartering authority to review the provider's contract and the charter school's financial independence from the provider;

                               [(15)] (14) all requests for release of the charter school from department rules or the Public School Code. Within ten days after the contract is approved by the local school board, any request for release from department rules or the Public School Code shall be delivered by the local school board to the department. If the department grants the request, it shall notify the local school board and the charter school of its decision. If the department denies the request, it shall notify the local school board and the charter school that the request is denied and specify the reasons for denial;

                               [(16)] (15) an agreement that the charter school will participate in the public school insurance authority;

                               [(17)] (16) if the charter school is a state-chartered charter school, a process for qualification of and review of the school as a qualified board of finance and provisions for assurance that the school has satisfied any conditions imposed by the commission;

                               [(18)] (17) a listing of the charter school's nondiscretionary waivers; and

                               [(19)] (18) any other information reasonably required by either party to the contract.

                   C. The process for revision or amendment to the terms of the charter contract shall be made only with the approval of the chartering authority and the governing body of the charter school. If they cannot agree, either party may appeal to the secretary as provided in Subsection A of this section."

         SECTION 4. Section 22-14-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 192, as amended) is amended to read:

         "22-14-2. [VOCATIONAL] CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION--STATE GOVERNING AUTHORITY.--

                   A. The [commission] department is the governing authority and shall establish policies for the conduct of all programs of the state and state plans established relating to [vocati