44TH LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - FIRST SESSION, 1999

RELATING TO EDUCATION; PROVIDING FOR ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL VOUCHERS; AUTHORIZING REDEMPTION OF VOUCHERS AT PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS; ENACTING SECTIONS OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOL CODE.

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

Section 1. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Elementary and Secondary School Voucher Act"."

Section 2. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.--

A. The legislature finds that:

(1) every family in New Mexico should have the option to take advantage of the best educational opportunities available to their school-age children;

(2) providing families in New Mexico a choice between schools leads to competition that benefits students and improves the quality of public schools;

(3) students should be allowed to improve their learning potential through educational opportunities that are best suited to their individual needs and interests; and

(4) low-income families should not be denied educational choices for their school-age children.

B. The purpose of the Elementary and Secondary School Voucher Act is to establish a voucher program that provides New Mexico's students the opportunity to attend their choice of public or private schools in order to best suit their individual needs and interests."

Section 3. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Elementary and Secondary School Voucher Act:

A. "family income" means the income of a student's parent or legal guardian who resides with the student at the student's principal residence;

B. "federal poverty guidelines" means the level of income defining poverty by family size published annually in the federal register by the United States department of health and human services;

C. "program" means the elementary and secondary school voucher program; and

D. "voucher note" means a note that will be issued to a qualifying parent through the department of education that can be used to educate his child at any public or eligible private school as defined in the Public School Code."

Section 4. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] ADMINISTRATION OF THE PROGRAM--ADOPTING RULES.--

A. The department of education shall establish and bear the cost of administering the program.

B. The state board shall promulgate rules to implement and operate the program.

C. A private school shall not be required to participate in the program.

D. The department of education in cooperation with the school districts shall embark on a public awareness campaign to inform the public about the program using the schools, other government agencies and the media."

Section 5. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] ELIGIBLE STUDENTS.--

A. A student who is a resident of New Mexico and is at least five years of age prior to 12:01 a.m. September 1 of the school year or is a developmentally disabled three- or four-year-old child is eligible to participate in the program if his family meets the following criteria:

(1) for the 1999-2000 school year, the student's family income in 1998 does not exceed one hundred percent of the 1998 federal poverty guidelines;

(2) for the 2000-2001 school year, the student's family income in 1999 does not exceed one hundred eighty-five percent of the 1999 federal poverty guidelines; and

(3) for the 2001-2002 school year, the student's family income in 2000 does not exceed two hundred thirty-five percent of the 2000 federal poverty guidelines.

B. For the 2002-2003 school year and subsequent years, all students shall be eligible to participate in the program."

Section 6. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] ELIGIBLE PRIVATE SCHOOLS.--

A. To be eligible to participate in the program, a private school shall:

(1) register with the superintendent of a local school district as an eligible private school;

(2) maintain or develop antidiscrimination policies to prevent discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin or ancestry; and

(3) develop policies that do not discriminate against students who are recipients of elementary and secondary school vouchers.

B. A private school that accepts students that are participants in the program shall not be required to comply with rules that apply to public schools promulgated by either the state board or the local school board."

Section 7. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] PROCEDURES FOR USING VOUCHER NOTES.--

A. A parent may use a voucher note to enroll his child in a public school outside of the school district in which the child resides.

B. A school district shall adopt specific, written standards for acceptance and rejection of voucher notes provided for in the Elementary and Secondary School Voucher Act based on the capacity of a program, class size, grade level or school buildings.

C. Not earlier than March 1 and not later than July 1 prior to the beginning of a school year, a student's parent or legal guardian may apply to the state superintendent to participate in the program. The state superintendent may waive the application deadline. The application shall contain the following information:

(1) the student's name and address;

(2) the student's date of birth;

(3) the student's social security number;

(4) the student's school attendance zone;

(5) the student's grade level;

(6) the name and address of the student's parent or legal guardian who is residing with the child;

(7) for a parent or legal guardian who resides with the student at the student's principal residence, until the 2002-2003 school year copies of:

(a) the student's, parent's or legal guardian's three most recent paycheck receipts for all employment;

(b) a signed statement by the parent's or legal guardian's employer indicating his weekly, biweekly or annual net earnings; or

(c) a signed statement by the parent or legal guardian that he is self-employed and that indicates his annual net earnings and a copy of his most recent income tax return;

(8) whether the student was enrolled in a class A, B, C or D special education program in the prior school year or, for a child entering school for the first time, whether the child has a diagnosed developmental disability or learning disorder;

(9) whether the student speaks a language other than English as his principal language; and

(10) the name, tuition, fees and address of the public or private school to which the student intends to apply.

D. No later than forty-five days after the application is received, the state superintendent shall act on the application, notify the parent or legal guardian of the value of the voucher note and issue the voucher note if the application is approved.

E. The voucher note shall be issued to the student in the care of the student's parent or legal guardian. The voucher note shall not be issued to the private school or school district containing the public school that the student chooses to attend.

F. The student and his parent or legal guardian shall solely select the public or private school the student chooses to attend. The state shall not decide which school a student may attend. The state shall not advise or influence the student's selection of a school.

G. Not later than August 15 of each year, the state superintendent shall report to the school districts the ages, school attendance zones and voucher values of students participating in the program."

Section 8. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] VOUCHER NOTES--REDEMPTION.--

A. The value of the voucher note shall be equal to the amount of money generated by the student through the state equalization guarantee distribution provided in the Public School Finance Act and a proportionate per student amount for transportation expenses if the student had attended a public school in his school attendance zone, excluding any size or training and experience adjustment for the school district or the public school. The value of the voucher shall also include a proportionate allocation for the local school district's at-risk funding. The department of education shall calculate the value of a student's voucher note using the state equalization guarantee distribution formula.

B. The voucher note redemption value shall not exceed the tuition and fees charged by a private school for students not participating in the program unless the cost of educating the student presenting the voucher note is greater than the tuition and fees charged, in which case the value of the voucher note shall not exceed those costs.

C. Within fifteen days after receiving a voucher note, a private school shall certify enrollment of the student named on the voucher note and shall certify the amount of tuition and fees charged by the private school to the department of education.

D. A private school or school district shall redeem the value of the voucher note from the department of education in the following installments: twenty-five percent of the value determined in Subsection A of this section in September, twenty-five percent of the value determined in Subsection A of this section in November, twenty-five percent of the value determined in Subsection A of this section in February and twenty-five percent of the value determined in Subsection A of this section in May. The installments shall be paid on the first day of the applicable month.

E. If a private school disenrolls a student during the school year or if the student is absent for ten consecutive days without explanation from his parent or legal guardian, the private school shall notify the department of education, and the voucher redemption shall cease.

F. If a parent or legal guardian disenrolls a student from a private school and enrolls the student in another private school or in a public school during the school year, the parent or legal guardian shall notify the department of education. Upon receipt of proof of enrollment in another private school and certification of tuition and fees charged by the new private school, the remaining scholarship redemption installments shall be made to the new private school. Upon proof of enrollment in a public school, the remaining redemption installments shall be made to the school district in which the public school is located."