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

SPONSOR Gardner

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/30/08

HB 552

SHORT TITLE NM Junior College Athletic Program

SB

ANALYST Cox

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

$888.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Department of Higher Education – HED

New Mexico Junior College - NMJC

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 552 appropriates eight hundred eighty eight thousand dollars ($888,000) from the

General Fund to the New Mexico Higher Education Department (NMHED) for expenditure in

Fiscal Year 2009 for athletic programs at New Mexico Junior College. New Mexico Junior

College offers nine (9) collegiate sports for both men and women, The Institution has competed

in the Division I National Junior College Athletic Association for 41 years.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

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

classifies this project as a “does not fit within HED priorities for Higher Education" project.

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.)

House Bill 552 – Page

2

HED states:

NMJC supplements a significant amount of their athletic operating budget from transfers out of

Instruction and General. (These funds are commonly called I&G funds, which fund ongoing

costs and operations.)

A request was submitted by NMJC in the amount of $1,077,176 to the NMHED for review, an

increase to base funding of over $1,000,000. The HED funding recommendation for FY09 is a

continuance of FY08 recurring funding which includes the appropriation straight to NMJC in the

amount of $41,900 as well as athletic funding that is a flow-thru appropriation through NMHED

in the amount of $100,000

The appropriation of eight hundred eighty eight thousand dollars ($888,000) contained in this

Bill is a recurring expense to the General Fund.. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance

remaining at the end of Fiscal Year 2009 shall revert to the General Fund.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

HED states:

New Mexico Junior College (NMJC) has offered athletic programs for over forty years. NMJC’s

athletic program is part of the mission statement and strategic plan for the college, and focuses

on building student athletic ability at the same time students move through their educational

programs. The athletic programs offered at NMJC include men’s and women’s sports such as

basketball, rodeo, athletic training, track, and golf.

According to the NMJC Research & Public Service Projects, NMJC is requesting the full

funding recommended in the Formula Enhancement Task Force recommendations.

NMJC notes:

New Mexico Junior College has a 41 year history of competing in intercollegiate athletics.

During the 2006-2007 Academic year, NMJC claimed 7 individual National Championships and

was crowned as the National Junior College Runner-up Champion in Baseball. In 2005, the

NMJC Baseball Team beat Florida in the final game of the JUCO World Series to win the

National Junior College Baseball Championship. Currently, the college offers the following

sports: Women’s Basketball, Men’ Basketball, Women’s Cross Country, Women’s Indoor Track,

Women’s Outdoor Track, Men’s Golf, Women’s Rodeo, Men’s Rodeo, and Men’s Baseball.

New Mexico Junior College has produced great student/athletes for many years, and boasts an

array of Academic All-Americans and Athletic All-Americans that have competed at the

university or professional athletic level.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

HB552 is related to HB481 with a difference in requested amounts ($888.0 and $100.0

respectively).

PRC/mt