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

SPONSOR Heaton

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/19/08

HB 66

SHORT TITLE NMSU Carlsbad Nursing Program

SB

ANALYST Haug

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

$100.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Higher Education Department (HED)

New Mexico State University (NMSU)

Department of Health (DOH)

Health Policy Commission (HPC)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 66 appropriates $100.0 from the general fund to the Board of Regents of New Mexico

State University to expand the Carlsbad campus nursing program.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $100.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any

unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2009 shall revert to the

general fund.

The HED states that a request was submitted by NMSU in the amount of $137,000 to the New

Mexico Higher Education Department for review. The Department’s funding recommendation

for FY09 is a continuance of FY08 recurring funding in the amount of $37,400 with no

additional funding at this time.

House Bill 66 – Page

2

The HED’s evaluation table of FY09 Research and Public Service Projects provided to the LFC

classifies the expansion of this project as a “breach" of the Higher Education Formula. Reasons

for this classification decision are not provided. (LFC Report 07-20, Higher Education

Department Review of Selected Research and Public Service Projects, January 12, 2008, Table

4, p74.)

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

NMSU states that NMSU Carlsbad is seeking a $100.0 expansion for FY 09 of the current

nursing expansion fund to provide two full-time nursing instructors at the Loving High School

and Artesia High School campuses. It is estimated that there are 50 interested students at LHS

and approximately 75 interested students at AHS that would begin taking health occupations

courses, assuming this expansion request is funded. These new cohorts of students would serve

as additional feeders into the NMSU Carlsbad Nursing program. The NMSU Carlsbad nursing

program ended the spring 2007 semester at Carlsbad High School with an enrollment of 65

students.

The NMSU states further that the Carlsbad nursing expansion fund currently provides for a full-

time nursing instructor to teach introductory health occupations courses at the Carlsbad High

School, providing a feeder program for the NMSU Carlsbad LPN and RN completion programs.

At the end of the health occupations program, students are awarded a Certified Nursing Assistant

(CNA) certification, which is one of the entrance requirements needed for acceptance into the

NMSU Carlsbad LPN/RN program.

According to the DOH, HB66 is based on the recommendations from a report developed in

response to HM17 of the 2007 Legislature and SJM37 of the 2005 Legislature. Both requested

studies of the impact of nurse staffing and retention issues on workforce development. The

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) predicts that New Mexico will not be

able to fill 57% of its nursing requirements by 2020. HB66 relates to the 2006 Comprehensive

Strategic Health Plan, Chapter 2, Goal 1: Increase the number of physical healthcare, allied

professionals, and oral health workers through improved recruitment and retention strategies.

The HPC states that in fiscal year 2007, the total of all nurses licensed claiming residence in New

Mexico is 18,644. The total of all nurses with a New Mexico license is 25,596. As a direct result

of the lack of nurses in New Mexico, 72% of hospitals curtailed services, 38% of home care

agencies refused referrals, 15% of long term care facilities refused admissions, and public health

offices had decreased public health services. Source: New Mexico Health Policy Commission

HM17/SM 18 Nurse Recruitment and Retention in New Mexico Hospitals October 2007.

GH/mt