HOUSE MEMORIAL 101

51st legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2013

INTRODUCED BY

Mimi Stewart

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE HIGHER EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO FORM A WORK GROUP TO STUDY THE SOLVENCY OF THE LOTTERY TUITION FUND AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS.

     WHEREAS, since legislative lottery scholarships were first awarded in 1996, over seventy-five thousand students have attended New Mexico public higher educational institutions with the help of those scholarships; and

     WHEREAS, from 1996 through the spring semester of 2012, approximately four hundred thirty-three million six hundred thousand dollars ($433,600,000) in lottery profits have been applied toward qualified state residents' college tuition; and

     WHEREAS, under current state law, legislative lottery scholarships are given to state resident students who enroll in and attend a four-year or two-year public higher educational institution in the state immediately upon completing a high school curriculum at a public or accredited private New Mexico high school, immediately upon receiving a high school equivalency diploma or within one year of completing honorable service in the United States armed forces or of receiving a medical discharge from the service as long as service was commenced within one hundred twenty days of receiving a diploma of excellence or high school equivalency diploma; and

     WHEREAS, under current state law, a student who maintains a 2.5 grade point average on a 4.0 scale is eligible to receive a legislative lottery scholarship in the amount of one hundred percent of the tuition cost:

          A. beginning the second semester of the student's first year of enrollment at a four-year or two-year public higher educational institution in the state; and

          B. for up to four consecutive years of enrollment, as follows:

                (1) four consecutive years of enrollment at a four-year public higher educational institution; or

                (2) two consecutive years of enrollment at a two-year public higher educational institution followed immediately by two consecutive years of enrollment at a four- year public higher educational institution; and

     WHEREAS, recently compiled data from the higher education department indicate that, of the students who receive the lottery scholarship in the spring of their first academic year:

          A. by the fall of the second academic year, seventy-five percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship;

          B. by the spring of the second academic year, sixty-four percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship;

          C. by the fall of the third academic year, fifty-seven percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship;

          D. by the spring of the third academic year, forty-eight percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship;

          E. by the fall of the fourth academic year, forty-six percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship;

          F. by the spring of the fourth academic year, forty-two percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship; and 

          G. by the fall of the fifth academic year, thirty-two percent of those students still receive the lottery scholarship; and 

     WHEREAS, tuition at the state's public higher educational institutions rises an average of four to five percent every year; and

     WHEREAS, recent projections of the lottery tuition fund balances and revenues show that in fiscal year 2014, the fund will be insufficient to be fully distributed to all qualified state resident students;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the higher education department, in cooperation with the legislative education study committee and the legislative finance committee, be requested to form a work group to study the solvency of the lottery tuition fund; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group be co-chaired by the secretary of higher education and the director of institutional research at the university of New Mexico; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group be composed of the following members:

          A. two members from the majority party in the house of representatives or the members' designees;

          B. two members from the minority party in the house of representatives or the members' designees;

          C. two members from the majority party in the senate or the members' designees;

          D. two members from the minority party in the senate or the members' designees;

          E. five members representing institutions of higher education, as follows: three from the council of university presidents, one from the New Mexico association of community colleges and one from the New Mexico independent community colleges;

          F. six students representing state higher educational institutions, as follows: two representing research universities, two representing other universities and two representing community colleges, all appointed from self-nominations and nominations from student government bodies;

          G. the director of the legislative finance committee or the director's designee; and

          H. the director of the legislative education study committee or the director's designee; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that staff for the work group be provided by the higher education department, the legislative education study committee and the legislative finance committee; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group compile the following student data regarding the awards made from the lottery tuition fund if such data have been aggregated per student and provided to the higher education department or the legislative finance committee, and if not, then recommend that the following per-student data be provided each semester to the higher education department and the legislative finance committee by each public higher educational institution that receives lottery tuition fund payments:

          A. grade point average;

          B. financial need, as reported on the standardized free application for federal student aid;

          C. declared major, if any;

          D. number of classes and credits taken per semester;

          E. number of semesters completed at the institution, and any other institution previously or concurrently, and whether the completed semesters were consecutive;

          F. amount of legislative lottery scholarship awards received to date;

          G. any other financial aid received, including scholarships, grants or loans;

          H. attainment and name of the attained degree, if any;

          I. disenrollment, if any; and

          J. any other information that the work group deems relevant and appropriate; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group study methods, and the efficacy and ramifications of those methods, to increase the short-term and long-term solvency of the lottery tuition fund, including:

          A. increasing the merit qualifications required of recipients;

          B. increasing the financial-need qualifications required of recipients;

          C. allowing one or more gap years before the commencement of enrollment and attendance at a public higher educational institution to allow time for maturation and work force experience;

          D. providing additional sources of funding for the legislative lottery scholarship program;

          E. reducing the amount of each, or certain, legislative lottery scholarship awards, including tiered awards based on a standardized balancing of recipient qualification criteria; and 

          F. any other measures that the work group deems relevant and appropriate; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group meet at least three times during the 2013 interim to synthesize research, data and analysis and discuss ways to make the lottery tuition fund solvent in a manner that most effectively serves state residents over the long term; and

      BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the work group present its recommendations to the legislature by December 1, 2013; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of higher education, the directors of the legislative education study committee and the legislative finance committee, the director of institutional research at the university of New Mexico, the executive directors of the council of university presidents and the New Mexico independent community colleges and the president of the board of the New Mexico association of community colleges.

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