A bipartisan team of legislators, including five educators and the Democratic Chair and ranking Republican on the House Appropriations and Finance Committee, have introduced House Bill 180 to move more than $100 million a year from school district central administrative offices to New Mexico’s classrooms. Moving these dollars to the classroom will make more money available for critical needs like addressing the statewide teacher shortage and expanding access to proven programs like early childhood education and K-3 Plus.

The bill, which is based on Think New Mexico’s 2017 policy report, sets ambitious but achievable targets for school districts and charter schools to maximize the percentage of their budgets that they are spending in the classroom. The targets are voluntary, but the bill provides an incentive for districts and charters that meet the classroom spending targets, and it helps them get there by reducing unnecessary administrative paperwork.

Read more about the details of Think New Mexico’s proposals, and contact your legislators and the governor and ask them to support these important reforms!