A. Money budgeted by a school district shall be spent first to attain and maintain the requirements for a school district as prescribed by law and by standards and rules as prescribed by the department. The department shall give written notification to a local school board, local superintendent and school principal, as applicable, of any failure to meet requirements by any part of the school district under the control of the local school board. The notice shall specify the deficiency. Instructional units or administrative functions may be disapproved for such deficiencies. The department shall disapprove instructional units or administrative functions that it determines to be detrimental to the educational process.

B. Within thirty days after receipt of the notice of failure to meet requirements, the local school board, local superintendent and school principal, as applicable, shall:

(1) comply with the specific and attendant requirements in order to remove the cause for disapproval; or

(2) submit plans satisfactory to the department to meet requirements and remove the cause for disapproval.

C. The secretary, after consultation with the commission, shall suspend from authority and responsibility a local school board, local superintendent or school principal that has had notice of disapproval and fails to comply with procedures of Subsection B of this section. The department shall act in lieu of the suspended local school board, local superintendent or school principal until the department removes the suspension.

D. To suspend a local school board, local superintendent or school principal, the secretary shall deliver to the local school board an alternative order of suspension, stating the cause for the suspension and the effective date and time the suspension will begin. The alternative order shall also contain notice of a time, date and place for a public hearing, prior to the beginning of suspension, to be held by the department, at which the local school board, local superintendent or school principal may appear and show cause why the suspension should not be put into effect. Within five days after the hearing, the secretary shall make permanent, modify or withdraw the alternative order.

E. The secretary may suspend a local school board, local superintendent or school principal when the local school board, local superintendent or school principal has been notified of disapproval and when the department has sufficient reason to believe that the educational process in the school district or public school has been severely impaired or halted as a result of deficiencies so severe as to warrant disapproved status before a public hearing can be held.

F. The department, while acting in lieu of a suspended local school board, local superintendent or school principal, shall execute all the legal authority of the local school board, local superintendent or school principal and assume all the responsibilities of the local school board, local superintendent or school principal.

G. The provisions of this section shall be invoked at any time the secretary, after consultation with the commission, finds the school district or public school has failed to attain and maintain the requirements of law or department standards and rules.

H. The commission shall consult with the secretary and may recommend alternative actions for the secretary's consideration.

I. A local school board, local superintendent or school principal aggrieved by a decision of the secretary may appeal to the district court pursuant to the provisions of Section 39-3-1.1 NMSA 1978.

History: 1953 Comp., § 77-6-10, enacted by Laws 1967, ch. 16, § 64; 1969, ch. 180, § 7; 1972, ch. 89, § 1; reenacted by 1978, ch. 129, § 1; 1979, ch. 52, § 1; 1988, ch. 64, § 12; 2003, ch. 153, § 8; 2004, ch. 27, § 18.

Cross references. — For courses of instruction generally, see 22-13-1 NMSA 1978 et seq.

The 2004 amendment, effective May 19, 2004, amended Subsections B, C, D, E and F to change "state superintendent" and "state board" to "department" and added a new Subsection H.

The 2003 amendment, effective April 4, 2003, substituted "Local school boards; public schools; suspension" for "Education requirements; enforcement" at the beginning of the catchline; in Subsection A substituted "rules" for "regulations" following "standards and" near the beginning and inserted "local superintendent and school principal, as applicable" following "local school board" near the middle; inserted "local superintendent and school principal, as applicable" following "local school board" near the end of Subsection B; in Subsection C inserted "local superintendent or school principal" following "local school board" near the middle and inserted "local superintendent or school principal" following "local school board," near the end; in Subsection D inserted "local superintendent or school principal" following "local school board" near the beginning and near the middle, and substituted "the suspension should not be put into effect" for "it should not be suspended" following "show cause why" near the end; in Subsection E inserted "local superintendent or school principal" following "local school board" once near the beginning and once near the middle, and inserted "or public school" following "school district" near the middle; in Subsection F inserted "local superintendent or school principal" following "local school board" near the beginning and near the middle and at the end, and substituted "the local school" for "that" following "responsibilities of" near the end; and in Subsection G inserted "or public school" following "school district" near the middle and substituted "rules" for "regulations" at the end.

The 1988 amendment, effective May 18, 1988, deleted former Subsection C which read "A copy of all disapproval notices shall be sent to the director" and redesignated succeeding subsections accordingly; deleted "and director" following "state superintendent" in the second sentence in present Subsection C and in Subsection F; inserted "school" preceding "district" in present Subsection E; substituted "local school board" for "local board of education" in present Subsection F; and made minor stylistic changes throughout the section.