A massive bill providing more than $1.1 billion in spending has been approved in the New Mexico House of Representatives, providing funding for projects ranging from new elementary school facilities to state prison upgrades and higher education structure improvements.
House Bill 505 has passed the full lower chamber by a 41 to 26 margin and is on its way to the Senate for a final vote. The all-encompassing legislation provides $65 million to be distributed to the state’s 129 public school districts for the upkeep and upgrading of both career technical education as well as pre-kindergarten facilities.
Those same school districts are scheduled to be on the receiving end of some $35 million in capital outlay funds for school security improvement projects.
Exactly $20 million is slated for safety, security, and deferred maintenance at the eight correctional facilities run by the state.
Higher education building projects will receive $7.3 million in the legislation for the completion of an applied technologies facilities at Central New Mexico Community in Albuquerque; while $5 million will go for the construction completion of the Roosevelt Science Center at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales.
The Albuquerque campus of the University of New Mexico will receive $5 million in capital outlay funding for the completion of the Comprehensive Cancer Center. Around $4.5 million will target completion of the Sininger Hall at New Mexico Highlands University in Las Vegas.
In looking at the variety of projects to be funded by the legislation, and factoring in the prospect of new revenue, the Legislative Finance Committee determined that the bill “strikes a balance between need and capacity to efficiently expend funds and complete projects.”
By Garry Boulard
