SENATE BILL 454

49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2009

INTRODUCED BY

Timothy Z. Jennings

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOL FINANCE; PROVIDING FOR THE CALCULATION OF THE TRAINING AND EDUCATION INDEX OF LOCALLY CHARTERED CHARTER SCHOOLS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     Section 1. Section 22-8-6.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1993, Chapter 227, Section 8, as amended) is amended to read:

     "22-8-6.1. CHARTER SCHOOL BUDGETS.--

          A. Each state-chartered charter school shall submit to the charter schools division of the department a school-based budget. For fiscal year 2008, and for the first year of operation in any fiscal year thereafter, the budget of every state-chartered charter school shall be based on the projected number of program units generated by that charter school and its students, using the at-risk index and the instructional staff training and experience index of the school district in which it is geographically located. For second and subsequent fiscal years of operation, the budgets of state-chartered charter schools shall be based on the number of program units generated using the average of the eightieth and one hundred twentieth day MEM of the prior year and its instructional staff training and experience index and the at-risk index of the school district in which the state-chartered charter school is geographically located. The budget shall be submitted to the division for approval or amendment pursuant to the Public School Finance Act and the Charter Schools Act.

          B. Each locally chartered charter school shall submit to the local school board a school-based budget. For fiscal year 2008, and for the first year of operation in any fiscal year thereafter, the budget of every locally chartered charter school shall be based on the projected number of program units generated using the average of the eightieth and one hundred twentieth day MEM of the prior year, using the at-risk index and the instructional staff training and experience index of the school district in which it is geographically located. For second and subsequent fiscal years of operation, the budgets of locally chartered charter schools shall be based on the prior year program units generated by that locally chartered charter school and its students and [its] the instructional staff training and experience index and the at-risk index of the school district in which the locally chartered charter school is geographically located. The budget shall be submitted to the local school board for approval or amendment. The approval or amendment authority of the local school board relative to the charter school budget is limited to ensuring that sound fiscal practices are followed in the development of the budget and that the charter school budget is within the allotted resources. The local school board shall have no veto authority over individual line items within the charter school's proposed budget, but shall approve or disapprove the budget in its entirety. Upon final approval of the local budget by the local school board, the individual charter school budget shall be included separately in the budget submission to the department required pursuant to the Public School Finance Act and the Charter Schools Act."

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