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

SPONSOR Robinson

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/4/06

2/8/06 HB

SHORT TITLE UNM Center for Regional Studies Program

SB 678

ANALYST Hoffmann

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$250.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Duplicates Senate Bill 383.

Relates to Senate Bill 681, Senate Bill 554, Senate Bill 415/SFCS, and Senate Bill 382.

Relates to an Appropriation in the General Appropriation Act.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Higher Education Department (HED)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 678 appropriates $250,000 from the general fund to the Board of Regents of the Uni-

versity of New Mexico to support the Regional Studies Program.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $250,000 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.

Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007 shall revert

to the general fund.

Senate Bill 678 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

This funding request was not on the list of priority projects submitted by UNM to the New Mex-

ico Higher Education Department (HED) and was not included in the Department’s funding rec-

ommendation for FY07.

DUPLICATION AND RELATIONSHIP

The General Appropriation Act of 2006 (HAFC/H 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 78) includes $1,000,000 for

the Center for Regional Studies.

There are five special appropriation bills related to the Center for Regional Studies.

•

Senate Bill 681 appropriates $1,000,000 to the endowment fund at the Regional Studies

Program to provide for professorships.

•

Senate Bill 382 appropriates $250,000 to provide for undergraduate and graduate fellow-

ships, scholarships and internships; to support faculty research and encourage faculty re-

cruitment; to produce film documentaries and collaborations about New Mexico and the

United States-Mexico southwest borderlands; and to increase library collections and ar-

chives.

•

Senate Bill 383 appropriates $250,000 for general support to the Southwest Regional

Studies Program (the Higher Education Department notes that the Southwest Regional

Studies Program is the same as the New Mexico Center for Regional Studies).

•

Senate Bill 554 appropriates $150,000 for the same purpose as Senate Bill 382.

•

Senate Bill 415/SFCS appropriates $75,000 for the same purpose as Senate Bill 382, and

$50,000 for professorships at the Regional Studies Program.

The total of all of the above bills is $2,775,000.

CH:nt