HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 11

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Jimmie C. Hall

FOR THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE

A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, THE OFFICE OF EDUCATION ACCOUNTABILITY, THE OFFICE OF THE STATE AUDITOR, REGIONAL EDUCATION COOPERATIVES AND OTHERS TO STUDY CONSOLIDATION OF SERVICES FOR SMALL SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

     WHEREAS, New Mexico is very large in area with a relatively small population, with many communities in rural areas of the state; and

     WHEREAS, the economic recession has placed fiscal constraints on all governmental entities, but particularly on those smaller entities in rural communities, including small school districts; and

     WHEREAS, the legislative education study committee, during the 2010 interim, established a school finance work group to evaluate the adequacy and effectiveness of New Mexico's laws and rules relating to public school finance, including the capacity and controls of school districts and charter schools statewide; and

     WHEREAS, the school finance work group was charged with investigating the availability of qualified school business officials and independent auditors, with a focus on the needs of small rural school districts; and

     WHEREAS, the work group determined that small rural school districts may benefit from consolidation of business and financial services, as well as regionalization of other support services; and

     WHEREAS, New Mexico law allows the public education department, at its discretion, to establish and maintain regional centers for conducting cooperative services between public schools and school districts within and among those regions and for facilitating regulation and evaluation of school programs; and

     WHEREAS, regional education cooperatives organized under state statute currently offer a range of programmatic and other services to small rural school districts; and

     WHEREAS, in addition, cooperative educational services is a member-owned agency, operating under a joint powers agreement authorized by the department of finance and administration, whose membership includes charter schools and public school districts; and

     WHEREAS, cooperative educational services exists to provide leverage in the acquisition of required services, supplies and equipment for its members; and

     WHEREAS, several institutions of higher education throughout the state host public education department offices and regional education cooperatives that provide regional services; and

     WHEREAS, the public education department has decentralized the delivery of some support and technical assistance services to areas of the state that are located at a distance from Santa Fe; and

     WHEREAS, the further decentralization of programmatic and financial support services to school districts by the public education department, as well as the consolidation of some school district business and other services, may improve cost- effectiveness by reducing travel expenses and increasing economies of scale for the department and for rural school districts; and

     WHEREAS, the value and feasibility of decentralizing public education department services and consolidating small rural school district services might best be determined by operating pilot projects in selected regions of the state;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the public education department, the office of education accountability, the office of the state auditor, regional education cooperatives, cooperative educational services and other stakeholders examine the feasibility of:

          A. consolidating certain business services for small school districts;

          B. providing support services to small school districts through a regional system; and

          C. operating one or more pilot projects to determine the effectiveness of such proposals; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the findings and recommendations be presented to the legislative education study committee by October 31, 2011; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of public education, the secretary of finance and administration, the director of the office of education accountability in the department of finance and administration, the state auditor, directors of regional education cooperatives and the executive director of cooperative educational services.

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