SB 137/a SCHOOL BOARD TRAINING

Sen Mimi Stewart

Actions: [2] SCC/SRC/SEC-SCC-germane-SRC [4] DP-SEC [6] DP/a - PASSED/S (30-9) [9] HEC/HJC-HEC [10] DP-HJC [12] DP [14] PASSED/H (42-17) SGND BY GOV (Mar. 1) Ch. 43.

Scheduled: Not Scheduled

 Senate Bill 137 (SB 137) enhances mandatory training for local school boards and governing bodies of charter schools. SB 137 specifies the number of training hours attended be entered in the school support and accountability system. SB 137 limits a local school board’s termination of a superintendent after a school board election and amends the campaign reporting act as it applies to local school board candidates. SB 137 requires local school board or governing body meetings to be webcast and archived. 

 Senate Bill 127 (SB 137) amends Public Schools to add requirements and limits for local school boards and governing bodies of charter schools. SB 137 requires local school board or governing body meetings to be webcast and archived.

SECTION 1 amends Elections Section 1-22A-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2013, Chapter 180, Section 2, as amended) Definitions Subsection B and D. The definition of “candidate” (Subsection B) increases the amount of contributions and expenditures from $500 to $1,000. The definition of “covered office” changes the definition to delete the specification of school size.

SECTION 2 amends Public Schools Section 22-2F-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 249, Section 3) School Support and Accountability System Subsection D, which requires the  provision of a dashboard for each public school’s stakeholders and policy makers. Subsection D is amended to insert item (9), which requires recording the number of hours of training attended by each school's local school board members and whether each member met statutory training requirements.

SECTION 3 adds a new section of Public Schools Chapter 22, Article 5 NMSA 1978, to limit the termination of the local superintendent, as follows:
A local school board shall not terminate the local superintendent without cause within 60 days after the first convening of the newly elected board after an election in which one or more members of the board are elected or recalled. 

SECTION 4 amends Public Schools Section 22-5-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003, Chapter 153, Section 24) to specify mandatory training. Mandatory is added to the title. Subsection B and C are inserted.

B. Local school board members in their first term shall complete at least ten hours of mandatory training during their first year serving on the board as specified in this subsection.

C. Mandatory training for all other local school board members shall include at least five hours per year as specified in this subsection.

SECTION 5 adds a new section of Public Schools Chapter 22, Article 5 NMSA 1978 in webcasting and archiving to require:
 live audio and video webcasts of local school board meetings, which shall be accessible through the school district's website and shall include a user interface that allows members of the public to submit written or verbal comments. 
webcasts shall begin as soon as practicable after the chair has called the meeting to order and shall terminate as soon as practicable after the local school board has adjourned.
Recordings of the webcasts and an electronic copy of any minutes approved at the meeting shall be posted on the school district's website within one week of the meeting's conclusion and shall be publicly available for at least five years following the date of the meeting unless the state records retention schedule provides otherwise.

SECTION 6 amends Public Schools Section 22-8B-5.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2009, Chapter 18, Section 1) inserts Subsection B and C to require mandatory training for a charter school governing body member.

B. Governing body members in their first term shall complete at least ten hours of mandatory training during their first year serving on the governing body as specified in this subsection.

C. Mandatory training for all other governing body members shall include at least five hours per year  as specified in this subsection.

SECTION 7 adds a new section of Public Schools Chapter 22, Article 8B NMSA 1978, in webcasting and archiving to require :
live audio and video webcasts of governing body meetings shall be accessible through the charter school's website and shall include a user interface that allows members of the public to submit written or verbal comments. 
webcast shall begin as soon as practicable after the chair has called the meeting to order and shall terminate as soon as practicable after the governing body has adjourned. 
Recordings of the webcasts and an electronic copy of any minutes approved at the meeting shall be posted on the charter school's website within one week of the meeting's conclusion and shall be publicly available for at least five years following the date of the meeting unless the state records retention schedule provides otherwise. 

SECTION 8 makes the effective date July 1, 2024. 

 Senate Bill 137 (SB 137) makes changes to Public Schools. Public Schools is changed in definitions to increase contributions and expenditures and include all school boards in the candidate definition. Public Schools currently does not specify mandatory training hours for school board members and charter governing body members. Public Schools does not prohibit a new school board from terminating a superintendent. Public Schools does not require webcasting and archiving school board and governing board meetings. 

 Senate Bill 137 (SB 137) is amended by the Senate Education Committee as follows: 

The title of  SB 137 is amended to to include “contract extension” to read LIMITING A LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD'S CONTRACT EXTENSION OR TERMINATION OF A SUPERINTENDENT AFTER A SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION;

Following Section 1 (Definitions), on page 3, between lines 18 and 19, insert new text as Section 2: 
SECTION 2. Section 1-22A-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2013, Chapter 180, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read: "1-22A-3. REPORTS REQUIRED--TIME AND PLACE OF FILING
A. A candidate or campaign committee that has received contributions or made expenditures of [five hundred dollars ($500)] one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more shall file with the secretary of state a report of all contributions received and expenditures made on a prescribed form, and the report shall be filed in the same or similar electronic system as that used for the Campaign Reporting Act. Except as otherwise provided in this section, all reports pursuant to the School District Campaign Reporting Act shall be filed electronically and electronically authenticated by the candidate using an electronic signature in conformance with the Electronic Authentication of Documents Act and the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act. 

B. A candidate or campaign committee shall file a campaign report of all contributions received and expenditures made during an election cycle and not previously reported by midnight on the twenty-first day before the election and on the thirtieth day following the election. 

C. If a reporting date set by Subsection B of this section falls on a holiday, the report shall be filed on the next business day. 

D. If a candidate or campaign committee has not received any contributions and has not made any expenditures since the last report filed with the secretary of state, the candidate or campaign committee shall only be required to file a statement of no activity, which shall not be required to be notarized, in lieu of a full report when that report would otherwise be due. E. A report of expenditures and contributions filed after a deadline set forth in this section shall not be deemed to have been timely filed. 

F. Except for candidates and campaign committees that file a statement of no activity, each candidate or campaign committee shall file a report of expenditures and contributions pursuant to the filing schedules set forth in this section, regardless of whether any expenditures were made or contributions were received during the reporting period. Reports shall be required until the candidate or campaign committee delivers a report to the secretary of state stating that: (1) there are no outstanding campaign debts; (2) all money has been expended in accordance with the provisions of Section 1-22A-10 NMSA 1978; and (3) the bank account for campaign funds maintained by the candidate or campaign committee has been closed. 

G. A candidate who does not ultimately file a declaration of candidacy and does not file a statement of no activity shall file reports in accordance with Subsection B of this section. H. A candidate may apply to the secretary of state for exemption from electronic filing in case of hardship, which shall be defined by the secretary of state.”".

Renumber succeeding sections accordingly. 

Section 3, on page 8, has the title amended to include “contract extensions” as follows:

CONTRACT EXTENSION OR TERMINATION OF LOCAL SUPERINTENDENT—LIMITATION
The text of Section 3 is deleted and replaced to specify a time period in which a local school board shall not terminate a local superintendent or extend a superintendent’s contract. It reads: 

“A local school board shall not, during any time between the date of a regular local election in which school board positions are on the ballot and sixty days after the convening of the newly elected board or until sixty days after a majority of a local school board has been appointed: A. extend the local superintendent's contract; or B. terminate the local superintendent without cause.”

Section 5 providing for local school board webcasting and archiving to be publicly available for three years —  rather the five years originally provided.