SENATE BILL 408

44th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2000

INTRODUCED BY

Rod Adair







AN ACT

RELATING TO EDUCATION; REMOVING THE INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL BUREAU; AMENDING SECTIONS OF THE INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL LAW.



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

Section 1. Section 22-15-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 206, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Instructional Material Law:

[A. "division" or "bureau" means the instructional material bureau in the department of education;

B. "director" or "chief" means the chief of the bureau;

C.] A. "instructional material" means school textbooks and other educational media;

[D. "multiple list" means a written list of those instructional materials approved by the state board;

E.] B. "membership" means the total enrollment of qualified students on the fortieth day of the school year entitled to the free use of instructional material pursuant to the Instructional Material Law; and

[F.] C. "additional pupil" means a pupil in a school district's, state institution's or private school's current year's certified forty-day membership above the number certified in the school district's, state institution's or private school's prior year's forty-day membership."

Section 2. Section 22-15-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 208, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-4. [BUREAU] DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION--DUTIES.--Subject to the policies and [regulations] rules of the state board, the [bureau] department of education shall:

A. administer the provisions of the Instructional Material Law;

B. enforce [regulations] rules for the handling, safekeeping and distribution of instructional material and instructional material funds and for inventory and accounting procedures to be followed by school districts, state institutions, private schools and adult basic education centers pursuant to the Instructional Material Law;

C. withdraw or withhold the privilege of participating in the free use of instructional material in case of any violation of or noncompliance with the provisions of the Instructional Material Law or any [regulations] rules adopted pursuant thereto; and

D. [enforce regulations] develop procedures relating to the use and operation of instructional material depositories in the instructional material distribution process."

Section 3. Section 22-15-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 209, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-5. INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL FUND.--

A. The state treasurer shall establish a fund to be known as the "instructional material fund".

B. The instructional material fund shall be used for the purpose of paying for the cost of purchasing instructional material pursuant to the Instructional Material Law. Transportation charges for the delivery of instructional material to a school district, a state institution, a private school as agent or an adult basic education center and emergency expenses incurred in providing instructional material to students may be included as a cost of purchasing instructional material. Charges for rebinding of used instructional [materials that appear on the multiple list pursuant to Section 22-15-8 NMSA 1978] material may also be included as a cost of purchasing instructional material."

Section 4. Section 22-15-8 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 212, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-8. [MULTIPLE LIST] INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL--SELECTION.--

A. The state board shall [adopt a multiple list] provide lists of instructional material to be made available to students pursuant to the Instructional Material Law. [The state board shall ensure that parents and other community members are involved in the adoption process at the state level.]

B. Pursuant to the provisions of the Instructional Material Law, each school district, state institution, private school as agent or adult basic education center may select instructional material for the use of its students [from the multiple list adopted by the state board]. Local school boards shall give written notice to parents and other community members and shall invite parental involvement in the adoption process at the district level. Local school boards shall also give public notice, which notice may include publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the school district.

C. No school district, state institution, private school as agent or adult basic education center may select instructional material that has any secular, denominational or religious purpose except as indicated in the Historical Codes Act."



Section 5. Section 22-15-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 213, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-9. DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS FOR INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL.--

A. On or before July 1 of each year, the department of education shall allocate to each school district, state institution or private school not less than ninety percent of its estimated entitlement as determined from the estimated forty-day membership for the next school year. A school district's, state institution's or private school's entitlement is that portion of the total amount of the annual appropriation less a deduction for a reasonable reserve for emergency expenses that its forty-day membership bears to the forty-day membership of the entire state. For the purpose of this allocation, additional pupils shall be counted as six pupils. The allocation for adult basic education shall be based on a full-time equivalency obtained by multiplying the total previous year's enrollment by .25.

B. On or before January 15 of each year, the department of education shall recompute each entitlement using the forty-day membership for that year, except for adult basic education, and shall allocate the balance of the annual appropriation adjusting for any over- or under-estimation made in the first allocation.

[C. An amount not to exceed thirty percent of the allocations attributed to each local school district, state institution or adult basic education center may be used for instructional material not included on the multiple list provided for in Section 22-15-8 NMSA 1978. Adult basic education centers may expend up to one hundred percent of their instructional material funds for items that are not on the multiple list.

D.] C. The department of education shall establish procedures for the distribution of funds directly to local school districts, state institutions and adult basic education centers. The department of education shall distribute funds to private schools on a reimbursement basis for instructional material. [included on the multiple list provided for in Section 22-15-8 NMSA 1978.

E.] D. A school district, state institution or adult basic education center that has funds remaining for the purchase of instructional material at the end of the fiscal year shall retain those funds for expenditure in subsequent years. Any balance remaining in an instructional material account of a private school at the end of the fiscal year shall remain available for reimbursement by the department of education for instructional material purchases in subsequent years."

Section 6. Section 22-15-10 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 214, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-10. SALE OR LOSS OR RETURN OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL.--

A. With the approval of the [chief] department of education, instructional material acquired by a school district, state institution, private school or adult basic education center pursuant to the Instructional Material Law may be sold at a price determined by officials of the school district, state institution, private school or adult basic education center. The selling price shall not exceed the cost of the instructional material to the state.

B. A school district, state institution, private school or adult basic education center may hold the parent, guardian or student responsible for the loss, damage or destruction of instructional material while the instructional material is in the possession of the student. A school district may withhold the grades, diploma and transcripts of the student responsible for damage or loss of instructional material until the parent, guardian or student has paid for the damage or loss. When a parent, guardian or student is unable to pay for damage or loss, the school district shall work with the parent, guardian or student to develop an alternative program in lieu of payment. Where a parent or guardian is determined to be indigent according to guidelines established by the state board, the local school district shall bear the cost.

[C. A school district, state institution or adult basic education center that has funds remaining for the purchase of instructional material at the end of the fiscal year shall retain those funds for expenditure in subsequent years.

D.] C. All money collected by a private school for the sale, loss, damage or destruction of instructional material received pursuant to the Instructional Material Law shall be sent to the department of education.

[E.] D. Upon order of the [chief] department of education, a school district, state institution, private school or adult basic education center shall transfer to the department of education or its designee instructional material, purchased with instructional material funds, that is in usable condition and for which there is no use expected by the respective schools."

Section 7. Section 22-15-11 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 215, as amended) is amended to read:

"22-15-11. RECORD OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIAL.--Each school district, state institution, private school or adult basic education center shall keep accurate records of all instructional material, including cost records, on forms and by procedures prescribed by the [division] department of education."

Section 8. Section 22-15-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 217, as amended by Laws 1993, Chapter 156, Section 6 and also by Laws 1993, Chapter 226, Section 44) is amended to read:

"22-15-13. CONTRACTS WITH PUBLISHERS.--

A. The state board may enter into a contract with a publisher or a publisher's authorized agent for the purchase and delivery of instructional material selected [from the multiple list adopted] by the state board.

B. Payment for instructional material purchased by the state board shall be made only upon performance of the contract and the delivery and receipt of the instructional material.

C. Each publisher or publisher's authorized agent contracting with the state for the sale of instructional material shall agree:

(1) to file a copy of each item of instructional material to be furnished under the contract with the state board with a certificate attached identifying it as an exact copy of the item of instructional material to be furnished under the contract;

(2) that the instructional material furnished pursuant to the contract shall be of the same quality in regard to paper, binding, printing, illustrations, subject matter and authorship as the copy filed with the state board; and

(3) that if instructional material under the contract is sold elsewhere in the United States for a price less than that agreed upon in the contract with the state, the price to the state shall be reduced to the same amount."

Section 9. REPEAL.--Section 22-15-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1967, Chapter 16, Section 207, as amended) is repealed.

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