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

SPONSOR Rodriguez

DATE TYPED 02/14/05 HB

SHORT TITLE High School Mock Trial Program

SB 407

ANALYST Woods

APPROPRIATION

Appropriation Contained Estimated Additional Impact Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY05

FY06

FY05

FY06

$200.0

Recurring General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Relates to the appropriation for the University of New Mexico in the General Appropriations

Act.

Relates to SJM29

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Commission on Higher Education (CHE)

New Mexico Public Education Department (PED)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 407 – Making an Appropriation for the Mock Trial Program – appropriates $200,000

from the general fund to the Board of Regents of the University of New Mexico for expenditure

in FY06 for the School of Law to conduct the New Mexico high school mock trial program. Any

unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY06 shall revert to the general

fund.

Significant Issues

PED indicates that the University of New Mexico (UNM) Mock Trial program is a hands-on ex-

perience for high school students to develop their understanding of law and the judicial process.

Students, teacher advisers and attorney coaches spend the better part of the school year research-

Senate Bill 407 -- Page 2

ing, studying and preparing a hypothetical courtroom trial involving critical issues that are im-

portant and interesting to young people. In February, state regional competitions are held in Las

Cruces, Albuquerque and Santa Fe in which the teams try their cases before judges and panels of

jurors. In March, the eight finalists meet in Albuquerque to name a state champion who will rep-

resent New Mexico at the national championship in May. New Mexico has been very involved

in this student program over the years and hosted the national competition in 1999.

PED additionally suggests that the UNM Mock Trial experience is a successful example of con-

structivist learning that incorporates the following principles of effective instruction:

•

Instruction must be concerned with the experiences and contexts that make the student

willing and able to learn (readiness).

•

Instruction must be structured so that it can be easily grasped by the student (spiral or-

ganization).

•

Instruction should be designed to facilitate extrapolation and/or fill in the gaps (going be-

yond the information given)

CHE indicates that UNM requested $75,000 in non-recurring, FY06 expansion funding from

CHE for the mock trial program. CHE subsequently recommended continuation of recurring

funding in the amount of $23,800.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The $200,000 appropriation would be a recurring expense to the general fund. Any unexpended

or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY06 shall revert to the general fund.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

The University of New Mexico will retain administrative oversight of this project.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

Relates to the appropriation for the University of New Mexico in the General Appropriations

Act.

Relates to SJM29 in that SJM29 requests the Public Education Department to assess the align-

ment of school districts’ social studies curricula to the New Mexico social studies standards over

the past five years, with emphasis on the content standards dealing with government and civics.

BFW/yr