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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR:	Roberts		DATE TYPED:	02/05/02		HB	386
SHORT TITLE:		Expand NMSU Weather Modification Project				SB
					ANALYST:		Baca

APPROPRIATION

Appropriation Contained

Estimated Additional Impact

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY02

FY03

FY02

FY03

$150.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Relates to Appropriation in The General Appropriation Act

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

Department of Agriculture (NMDA)

Commission on Higher Education (CHE)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 386 appropriates $150.0 from the general fund to the board of Regents of New Mexico State University (NMSU) for expenditure inFY2003 for the Department of Agriculture (NMDA) to expand the weather modification project to include the southeast sector of the state.

Significant Issues

NMDA reports it does not currently conduct weather modification projects. Soil and water conservation districts have received funding for such projects from the interstate stream commission and the state legislature. And, a project for the southeast sector of the state appears to be an appropriate expansion of past projects, and would take advantage of the expertise that has been developed in that area.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $150.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY2003 shall revert to the general fund.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

The following is provided for information only. It is not intended as a commentary on the merits of the bill:

This program was not included in the budget request submitted by the NMSU Board of Regents to the CHE. Consequently, the CHE did not review nor recommend it.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

According to the CHE, this bill would add one more research/public service project to the current list of ninety-four projects, which are funded as separate line items outside of the higher education funding formula. According to CHE policy, each of these projects must be subjected to a thorough evaluation once every four years to be eligible for continued funding. This evaluation process has been developed by the CHE to be consistent with the Accountability in Government Act (AGA) mandated by the state legislature.

CONFLICT/DUPLICATION/COMPANIONSHIP/RELATIONSHIP

House Bill 386 relates to the General Appropriation Act, which contains the appropriation for NMSU.

LB/ar