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Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Governor Signs Education, Other Bills
By Deborah Baker/
Associated Press
SANTA FE — Gov. Bill Richardson on Tuesday signed into law a measure that could extend the school year for some of New Mexico's youngest students.
It creates a six-year pilot project in the Public Education Department under which some children in kindergarten through third grade in high-poverty schools could have the school year extended by up to two months.
The aim of the project is to demonstrate that increased time in kindergarten and the early grades will narrow the achievement gap between disadvantaged students and other students.
The state budget for next year that lawmakers sent Richardson includes about $7 million for the program.
Schools that already have kindergarten plus programs — which extend the school year for kindergarten students — would get preference when the Public Education Department is evaluating applications for the program.
Other bills signed by the governor:
_Require health insurance plans to cover colorectal cancer screenings.
_Allow water rights owners to conserve water and not be penalized for it, eliminating the state's "use it or lose it'' policy.
_Give veterans who are 50 percent disabled or more — of whom there are an estimated 12,000 — free admission to state museums and monuments, a free annual day use pass to state parks, and a three-day camping permit each year. On Veterans' Day, veterans and active duty military members and their families will get free access to state parks, museums and monuments.
_Require employers to provide nursing mothers with clean, private places in which to use breast pumps and flexible break time in which to use it.
_Effective in April 2008, create a new, discounted license that combines small game hunting and fishing.
_Exempt from criminal liability government officials who authorize volunteer firefighters not certified to national standards to respond to wildfires.
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