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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

1/24/08

HB

SHORT TITLE Middle & High School Literacy Initiative

SB 154

ANALYST Haug

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

$3,000.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

REVENUE (dollars in thousands)

Estimated Revenue

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

FY10

$3,000.0

Recurring

Public School Reading

Proficiency Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Revenue Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Public Education Department (PED)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 154 appropriates $3,000.0

from the general fund to the Public School Reading

Proficiency Fund (created by Section 22-8-43 NMSA 1978) for the middle and high school

literacy initiative. The appropriation shall be used for grants to school districts and charter

schools that meet eligibility requirements established by the Public Education Department for

scientifically based literacy programs. The purpose of the appropriation is to improve the

reading and writing proficiency of students in grades six through twelve. No more than three

percent of the total appropriation may be used for evaluation purposes. The appropriation is for

expenditure in Fiscal Year 2009 and subsequent fiscal years.

Senate Bill 154 – Page

2

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $3,000.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.

Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of any fiscal year shall not

revert to the general fund.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

The PED states that the Public School Reading Proficiency Fund, an initiative administered by

the PED that flows funds to middle, junior, and senior high schools that implement

reading/writing initiatives that meet established criteria developed by the PED. In 2007-08, the

PED Priority Schools Bureau allocated $500,000 for the purchase of research-based intervention

programs for schools for reading and math.

According to the PED,

•

The National Council of Teachers of English reported in November 2005 that data

show 25% of high school students are not able to identify the main idea of a

passage. This inhibits their ability to write clearly or to understand complex subject

matter across content areas.

•

In 2006, the Carnegie Corporation of New York in its report entitled Reading Next: A

Vision for Action and Research in Middle and High School Literacy reports that eight

million young people between 4

th

and 8

th

grade struggle to read; their most common

problem being an inability to comprehend what they read.

•

Approximately 40% of high school graduates lack literacy skills that employers seek

(Achieve Inc, 2005).

References:

National Council of Teachers of English

http://www.ncte

Reading Next Report

http://www.all4ed.org/files/archive/publications/ReadingNext/ReadingNext.pdf

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

The PED states that this bill places responsibilities upon the PED to administer these funds

through a grant process. That will necessitate a commitment of staff and time on a recurring

basis. The PED will need to designate staff to coordinate the grant activities under this

fund/allocation, as well as to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the district/charter school

grants.

GH/mt