HOUSE MEMORIAL 73

49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2010

INTRODUCED BY

James Roger Madalena

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO INCREASE APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE SOUTHWESTERN INDIAN POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE.

     WHEREAS, a post-secondary funding formula was legislated by the United States congress on September 23, 1999; and

     WHEREAS, the post-secondary funding formula from September 23, 1999 was agreed to by the office of Indian education programs, now the bureau of Indian education; and

     WHEREAS, the post-secondary funding formula is a needs-based formula developed by experts in education finance and is based on sound economic principles of higher education finance; and

     WHEREAS, the post-secondary funding formula from September 23, 1999, though legislated and agreed to, has never been implemented due to lack of increased funding; and

     WHEREAS, the southwestern Indian polytechnic institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Haskell Indian nations university in Lawrence, Kansas, as federally operated institutions, receive congressional appropriation funds through the United States department of the interior; and

     WHEREAS, the United States department of the interior divides the funds for these two schools in a one-third, two-thirds split, with one-third going to southwestern Indian polytechnic institute regardless of student enrollment; and

     WHEREAS, at the present time, southwestern Indian polytechnic institute is funded at six million seven hundred sixteen thousand one hundred twenty-three dollars ($6,716,123), although the 2009 post-secondary funding formula documents a funding requirement of seven million eight hundred ninety-four thousand three hundred eighteen dollars ($7,894,318) to operate southwestern Indian polytechnic institute; and

     WHEREAS, without an increase in funding, funding for southwestern Indian polytechnic institute will continue to be one million one hundred seventy-eight thousand one hundred ninety-five dollars ($1,178,195) below its basic operating needs; and

     WHEREAS, despite the growth in the number of programs and student credit hours being provided by southwestern Indian polytechnic institute, the funding has remained the same;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the United States congress be urged to increase appropriations for the southwestern Indian polytechnic institute by adding a ten-million-dollar ($10,000,000) line item with the United States department of the interior's bureau of Indian education for southwestern Indian polytechnic institute and by using the post-secondary funding formula pursuant to Public Law 109-54; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the New Mexico congressional delegation, the office of the governor, the Indian affairs department and the United States department of the interior's bureau of Indian education.

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