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

SPONSOR M.J. Garcia

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/31/08

HB

SHORT TITLE NMSU Dental Hygiene Program

SB 139

ANALYST Haug

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

$250.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Higher Education Department (HED)

New Mexico State University (NMSU)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 139 appropriates $250.0 from the general fund to the Board of Regents of New

Mexico State University to support the Dental Hygiene Program at Dona Ana Community

College.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $250.0 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.

This request was submitted to the New Mexico Higher Education Department by NMSU and

was not included in the Department’s 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 “breach" of the Higher Education Formula. Reasons for this

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

Senate Bill 139 – Page

2

Review of Selected Research and Public Service Projects, January 12, 2008, Table 4, p74.) The

HED states that HED anticipates that DFA will recognize this funding as outside the formula.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

NMSU states:

Over $700,000 dollars will be used to start-up the program the first three years. Another

nearly one million dollars will be used to ready the classroom, laboratory, and clinic

facility. It is anticipated that annual recurring

dollars of about $225,000 will be needed to

maintain and operate the clinic to supplement formula funding generated from the twelve

students entered into the program each year.

Start-up of the NMSU DACC program is already under way with the hiring of the

Program Director, Clinical Faculty member and an architect to renovate facilities for the

program and clinic. Other funding includes:

•

NMSU DACC received $375,000 from the legislature in 2005 to fund the

renovation of space and purchase of equipment for a dental hygiene lab/clinic and

support spaces. An additional $51,000 was received for 2007/08.

•

NMSU DACC received $28,500 from the legislature in 2005/06 and $20,000 in

2006/07 for start up costs and consulting services to assist with submission of the

accreditation report.

•

NMSU DACC received $170,000 through HED 2006/07 and should receive about

$250,000 for 2007/08 which will assist with start up costs of implementing the

new dental hygiene program.

NMSU DACC will also use federal Carl Perkins dollars to initially fund the Program

Director position and expenses to assist with the start up of this program.

The program will accept cohorts of 12 dental hygiene students annually beginning Fall

2007. Graduates will be eligible for board examinations and licensure in all fifty states.

The program abides by standards set by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the

American Dental Association. The Dental Hygiene Clinic at NMSU Dońa Ana

Community College plans to offer preventive dental hygiene services to the public.

Students of the Dental Hygienist Program will provide supervised care including

comprehensive dental hygiene care, dental health instruction, fluoride and sealant

application, x-rays, and oral health screenings.

The HED notes that Federal start-up funding for the dental hygiene program will end in FY09.

State start-up funding for this program began in FY06.

GH/mt