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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Rawson
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
1/26/08
HB
SHORT TITLE NMSU Social Entrepreneurship Program
SB 102
ANALYST Cox
APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)
Appropriation
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
FY08
FY09
$200.0
Recurring
General Fund
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Responses Received From
Department of Higher Education – HED
New Mexico State University – NMSU
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
Senate Bill 102 appropriates two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) from the General Fund to
the Board of Regents of New Mexico State University to support the social entrepreneurship
program at the Arrowhead Center.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
This request was submitted by NMSU to the New Mexico Higher Education Department for
review, however it was not included in the Department's executive funding recommendation for
FY09.
The HED’s evaluation table of FY09 Research and Public Service Projects provided to the LFC
classifies this project as a “would not oppose if funding available" 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.)
The appropriation of two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) 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.
pg_0002
Senate Bill 102 – Page
2
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
HED stated:
The purpose of this program is to provide business assistance to nonprofit organizations in need
of business development strategies, capacity building, and long-term sustainability planning. The
funding will allow the creation of a social entrepreneurship program at NMSU’s Arrowhead
Center. The Arrowhead Center has provided business assistance to nearly 200 entrepreneurs
across the state by providing business plans and feasibility studies to for-profit companies. There
has been a growing demand from social entrepreneurs to provide business expertise to nonprofit
organizations. The Arrowhead Center intends to expand its services into social ventures,
promoting economic development in both the for-profit and nonprofit communities.
The funding will allow the design, implementation, and growth of the program to provide
services to all counties in New Mexico. The Arrowhead Center has the information and
resources and NMSU's University Extension program has the knowledge, human, and physical
resources to reach entrepreneurs and small business owners across New Mexico.
Through this partnership, the Arrowhead Center is able to build relationships with every
extension agent, assess the business assistance needs of each county, and determine the amount
of business assistance needed in each county. Business research projects have already been
referred from Dona Ana County to Harding County
New Mexico State University notes:
Important Conclusions
•
Nonprofit organizations contribute significantly to the New Mexico economy by providing
increased employment and competitive wages as well as attract significant amounts of out-
of-state funds.
•
Nonprofit organizations are important to social and economic development in New Mexico,
and are growing among small counties.
•
Increasing the efficiency of the nonprofit sector could magnify the economic impact to the
State.
Arrowhead Center Social Entrepreneurship Program
•
The Arrowhead Center already provides business assistance to nonprofit organizations in
New Mexico. The creation of a social entrepreneurship program will allow Arrowhead to
provide business assistance to more nonprofit organizations in need of assistance.
•
The Arrowhead Center will assist these organizations in a variety of ways:
o
Develop financial sustainability plans to decrease long-term dependency on grant,
State, and Federal funding sources;
o
Implement business strategies to increase efficiency, productivity, and overall
effectiveness;
o
Generate economic and feasibility studies to assist nonprofits focus on applying
business strategies to their social missions.
•
Arrowhead Center will help local nonprofits in Dona Ana County increase their
organizational capacity to expand their regional impact.
•
In the future, move to assisting for profit organizations integrate socially responsible
principles into business ventures.
pg_0003
Senate Bill 102 – Page
3
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
HED further notes:
According to “The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Organizations in New Mexico," (Mitchell,
2006) nonprofit organizations are important to social and economic development in New
Mexico, and are growing among small counties. With the Social Entrepreneurship Program in
place, the Arrowhead Center will be able to increase its capacity and ensure more nonprofit,
socially oriented businesses are reached in each county.
PRC/bb