Fiscal impact reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) for standing finance

committees of the NM Legislature. The LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports

if they are used for other purposes.

Current FIRs (in HTML & Adobe PDF formats) are a vailable on the NM Legislative Website (legis.state.nm.us).

Adobe PDF versions include all attachments, whereas HTML versions may not. Previously issued FIRs and

attachments may be obtained from the LFC in Suite 101 of the State Capitol Building North.

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

SPONSOR Pinto

DATE

TYPED 02-23-05

HB

SHORT TITLE American Indian Headstart Literacy Initiative

SB 1004

ANALYST Woods

APPROPRIATION

Appropriation Contained Estimated Additional Impact Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY05

FY06

FY05

FY06

$

193.7

Recurring General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

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

Relates to HB337, SB360

Duplicates HB397

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

New Mexico Department of Indian Affairs (IAD)

New Mexico Commission on Higher Education (CHE)

New Mexico Public Education Department (PED)

New Mexico Children Youth and Families Department (CYFD)

New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 1004 – Making an Appropriation to Continue the KNME-TV’s American Indian

Headstart Literacy Initiative to Provide Culturally Relevant Preschool Curricula for Native

American Children – appropriates $193,652 from the general fund to the Board of Regents of the

University of New Mexico for expenditure in FY06 to continue and expand a collaboration be-

tween the University of New Mexico Native American Studies faculty, KNME-TV, the Chil-

dren, Youth and Families Department and other New Mexico educational institutions to imple-

ment provisions of the Indian Education Act by continuing to design, develop and implement

Senate Bill 1004 -- Page 2

culturally relevant tribal and urban Indian preschool curricula that foster English literacy and

support the maintenance and development of native languages. Any unexpended or unencum-

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

Significant Issues

IAD notes that this initiative aims to increase the early English literacy skills of American Indian

children in Head Start using the PBS Between the Lions literacy series that has been adapted spe-

cifically for American Indian communities, and that research indicates has improved emergent

literacy and reading skills of preschool children. IAD indicates that approximately 400 children

and 45 tribal Head Start classrooms are involved in the initiative in 12 tribal communities. Fur-

ther, that the appropriation – as endorsed by the All Indian Pueblo Council and the president of

the Mescalero Apache Nation – would support and expand the American Indian Head Start liter-

acy initiative to include the UNM College of Education, KNME-TV’s Education Department,

and other Native American academic entities.

PED observes that while curricula developed specifically for Indian students must go through

tribal notification, review and approval per New Mexico’s Indian Education Act of 2003 – and

that current Indian Head Start programs follow national standards for curricula and program

planning, development, implementation and evaluation – the bill could contribute to the imple-

mentation of culturally relevant curricula in Indian Head Start programs.

CHE indicates that this request was not in the list of priority projects submitted by the University

of New Mexico to the commission for review. Accordingly, the request was not included in the

commission’s funding recommendation for FY06.

PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS

IAD observes that the American Indian Head Start literacy initiative will help the state meet the

mission and goals of the Indian Education Act. Research and findings from this initiative may

also assist the state’s multicultural bilingual programs develop culturally relevant American In-

dian preschool curriculum that foster English literacy, while supporting the maintenance and de-

velopment of Native languages.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $193,652 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.

Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY06 shall revert to the gen-

eral fund.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

The University of New Mexico will retain oversight of this program.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

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

Senate Bill 1004 -- Page 3

Duplicates HB397

Relates to HB337 and SB360 in that both HB337 and SB360 contemplate a pre-Kindergarten

funding initiative that could influence the state’s various Head Start programs.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

As general information, DCA offers the following observations:

•

In January 2004, KNME-TV received a federal grant for an American Indian Head

Start Literacy Initiative that uses the Between the Lions television series along with

related resources adapted specifically for a variety of American Indian communi-

ties. Senator Pete Domenici was the key sponsor for the federal appropriation that

ends on July 15, 2005.

•

This bill will enable KNME-TV to continue last year’s project that included a re-

search study on the effectiveness of the program and created measures of early lit-

eracy that are culturally appropriate. Plans for this year’s program are to align the

content of the pre-literacy curriculum with the federal Indian Education Act by

working with faculty of the University of New Mexico’s Native American Studies

department and with other educational institutions such as the American Indian In-

stitute in Albuquerque.

•

KNME-TV has expanded beyond television on-air services to Internet on-line and

face-to-face community-based educational outreach. Staff at KNME-TV will pro-

vide professional development for teachers in the use of emergent literacy curricu-

lum and will work to expand the Head Start domains of healthy physical activity

and learning through play to creating new language content that reaches Pueblo,

Navajo and Apache children throughout New Mexico. The Native American liai-

son with the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department, will continue

to play a role in contacting Native communities and encouraging this bilingual ap-

proach to learning language and preparing to read in the pre-school years.

BFW/lg