Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698834900067.pdf (Micronesia, Federated States of)
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 The Honorable Wesley W. Simina Speaker, Twenty-First Congress Federated States of Micronesia Seventh Special Session, 2020 Dear Mr. Speaker: Your Committee on Education, to which was referred Presidential Communication No.

21-253 regarding the National Government’s Recommended FY2021 Budget, begs leave to report as follows: Presidential Communication No.
21-253 was transmitted to Congress with the National Government Fiscal Year 2021 Recommended Budget (“Budget Book”).

Pursuant to Rule 7, Section 3(b), of the Official Rules of Procedure of the Twenty-First Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia, your Committee has limited its review to those portions of the recommended budget relating to matters under its jurisdiction as follows: A.

Department of Education 1.

Office of the Secretary 2.

Division of Formal and Non Formal Education 3.


Division of Quality and Effective Education B.

Board of Regents COM-FSM C. Grants, Subsidies and Contributions 1.

Aid to Non-Public Schools 2.

Financial Assistance students at CMI 3.

Financial Assistance students at PCC 4.

National Scholarship Fund 5.

National Close-Up Program 6.

National Merit Scholarship 7.

Aid to Students in Japan 8.

Caroline College & Pastoral Institute 9.


Faithwalk Christian College SCRL 21-71/Fiscal Year 2021 Budget/Education Committee STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 10.

Aid for FSM Students in China 11.

Aid for FSM Students in Fiji D. Resources: Grants, Subsidies and Contributions 1.

COM Treaty Obligations E. Capital & Human Resources Development 1.

College of Micronesia-Operations 2.


Fisheries Maritime Institute 3.

COM-FSM Supplemental Education Grant 4.

COM-FSM Endowment Fund 5.

NDOE Supplemental Education Project 6.

School Accreditation Project 7.

Teacher Certification Project 8.

Development of Science Student Learning Outcomes 9.

Assessment of NMCT This report, and all previous and subsequent reports of your Committee, shall be treated as reflecting the policies of the Federated States of Micronesia, as defined by the Congress.
It is the intent of your Committee that any commentary found herein should be treated as policy for the guidance of departments, agencies and entities.

The findings of your Committee are as follows: I.

Introductory Comments Your Committee notes that the FY2021 Budget Book was transmitted to the Twenty-First Congress on April 1, 2020.

The FY21 budget was transmitted by the President and has been introduced by the Twenty-First Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia as C.B.

No.

21-178.
No.

21-178.

The items and funding in C.B.

No.

21-178 for all matters under the jurisdiction of your Committee mirror exactly the President’s Budget Book of April 1, 2020.

During your Committee’s review of the Budget Book it has noted some inaccuracies, and these are detailed in the relevant portions of the report below.

Your Committee has prepared its recommendations for the above- cited items on the following breakdown of available funds: 2 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.
21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 $922,672 from the Supplemental Education Grant (SEG) for the National Department of Education (NDOE) of which $366,598 is proposed for the operations of the Department, and the remaining for a project for the Department proposed at $556,074.

The amount of SEG available for the College of Micronesia-Federated States of Micronesia (COM-FSM) is $698,948.

Pursuant to P.L.

No.


18-57 the funding available for NDOE from the Compact Education Sector Grant for FY21 is zero.

The funding available for COM-FSM from the Compact Education Sector Grant for FY21 is $1,000,000.

During April and May 2020 the Committee received information and documents from the National Department of Education, the Department of Justice, the Department of Finance and Administration, the Office of Personnel, the Office of the President and the College of Micronesia-FSM.
Due to the unprecedented pandemic outbreak of Coronavirus the ability of the Committee at this time to conduct public hearings and have meetings with the departments, regarding the FY21 budget, has been thwarted.

Therefore, your Committee will continue to review documents during the coming months and it is hoped to conduct its public hearings in person later this year, and if necessary, amend this report.

II.

FY 2021 Budget -- Sources and Recommendations A.

National Department of Education 1.


Office of the Secretary 3 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.
21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 FY20 Appropriated FY21 President’s Recommendation FY21 Committee Recommendation Personnel 137,786 137,786 137,786 Travel 50,000 50,000 15,000 Contractual 15,000 15,000 15,000 OCE 21,000 21,000 21,000 Fixed Assets 1,500 -0- -0- Total 225,286 223,786 188,786 # Employees 7 7 7 The President recommends $223,786 in funding for the Office of the Secretary for FY21 which represents a decrease of $1,500 from what was appropriated for FY20 at $225,286.
Your Committee makes the following recommendations and comments on this proposed budget: Personnel: The seven proposed positions for the Office of the Secretary for FY21 are the same as the previous year.

The salaries and the step/grade for these positions remain the same as in previous years and are correctly calculated in the Budget Book.

Your Committee deems the work done by these positions necessary and important to the Department.
And, it is appreciative that the salaries correspond to the current listings in the Office of Personnel.

Therefore, the Committee recommends $137,786 in Personnel for the Office of Secretary for FY21.

4 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 Travel: The President recommends $50,000 for the category of Travel for FY21, which is the same amount as appropriated for the current FY20.
Under normal circumstances the Committee would likely see this as a reasonable request, however, due to the travel restrictions caused by the ongoing pandemic many of the trips planned by the Department may be cancelled or postponed.

The Committee is particularly concerned that the two international trips, totaling $28,000 in proposed funding, may not take place in the next fiscal year.
With these concerns in mind the Committee has requested NDOE to review its proposed budget for the Travel category for FY21 and submit a detailed summary of its proposed travel, including the dates of proposed travel and justification for the trip.

It is hope that the end of 2020 both the funding and the virus pandemic issues will resolved themselves with a positive outcome.
However, at this time the Committee recommends travel be funded only to complete domestic projects and achieve the core mandates of NDOC: school accreditation, teacher certification and student testing.

For the reasons stated above, your Committee recommends 30% of the President’s proposed budget, at this time, for funding the Travel category of the Office of the Secretary for FY21 at $15,000.

Contractual Services: For FY21 the President recommends maintaining the current $15,000 for this category.
The only item under this category is printing necessary for hosting of the Educational Summit.

Although this has been a successful conference and training in years past the Committee would like NDOE to review its ability to host this event during the next fiscal year.

The Committee will include funding for this item at this time, but would like more details as to the viability of the conference by the September session.
Therefore, the Committee concurs with the President’s recommendation, at this time, and recommends $15,000 for the category of Contractual Services for the Office of the Secretary for FY21.

5 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 OCE: The President recommends $21,000 for this category for FY21, which is the same amount recommended by this Committee and appropriated for FY20.
There is an item that has remained the same from previous years, a small amount, $1,600, for rental space for a conference.

Again, for reasons due to the pandemic the Committee requests the Department confirm that this funding will be necessary for the coming fiscal year.
Along that same line since funding for communications, including teleconferencing, is part of this category NDOE is asked to ensure that the Office of the Secretary has sufficient funding for technology with its increased demand for remote work.

In consideration of the above comments, the Committee concurs with the President and recommends the $21,000 in funding for the category OCE, at this time for the Office of Secretary for FY21.
Fixed Assets: The President does not recommend any funding in this category for FY21 for the Office of the Secretary.

It is noted that the Department requested funding for a vehicle.

The Committee is in agreement with the President’s recommendations, and therefore, recommends $-0- for Fixed Assets for the Office of the Secretary for FY21.
After making a detailed review of the information available to it at this time your Committee recommends funding for the Office of the Secretary of $188,786 for FY21, to be funded from Domestic Revenue in its entirety.

6 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

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21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 2.
Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education FY20 Appropriated FY21 President’s Recommendation FY21 Committee Recommendation Personnel 132,246 132,245 132,245 Travel 45,000 45,000 13,500 Contractual 33,069 33,069 33,069 OCE 11,522 11,522 11,522 Fixed Assets 2,000 -0- -0- Total 223,837 221,836 190,336 # Employees 6 6 6 The President recommends $221,836 in funding for the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education for FY21, which represents a decrease of $2,000 from what was appropriated for FY20 at $223,837.
Your Committee makes the following recommendations and comments on this proposed budget: Personnel: The number of positions requested remains the same as in FY20, and these positions are designated at the same step/grade with the same salary and benefits.

The Committee is greatly appreciative of the President and Department’s restraint in not requesting new positions at this time.

It is also appreciative of the detail and accuracy.
The positions are requested at the correct current levels according to the Office of Personnel.

The Committee notes that two positions are vacant and that efforts are underway for hiring.

The Committee urges NDOE to ensure all positions are filled as soon as possible, and it will be following up on this issue during the next session of Congress.

The Committee concurs with the President and 7 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.


21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 recommends $132,245 for Personnel for FY21 for the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education.

Travel: The President recommends maintaining the budget for travel for this Division at $45,000 for FY21 with the proposed trips remaining largely the same.

Again, in normal years the Committee would appreciate the Executive decision not to recommend an increase in this category.
However, due to the restrictions and difficulty in travel during the pandemic the Committee is concerned that at least some of the 21 proposed trips for FY 21 for the Division will not be taken.

In particular, nine of the proposed trips are for international travel.

At its earliest convenience NDOE should undertake to do a detailed review of the trips proposed for this Division, particularly for the international trips proposed for FY21, to determine if this travel is still viable.
At this time the Committee understands that many variables are in play and it is very difficult to predict what the state of the virus pandemic, or other countries response to it, will be in 6 or 9 months time.

After due consideration of this category the Committee notes that review of this budget will be necessary later this fiscal year.
At this time, however, given the current situation the Committee recommends 30% of the President’s proposed budget and that this reduced budget be prioritized for the completion of domestic projects and the travel necessary for the core initiatives of school accreditation, teacher certification and student testing.

For the reasons states above, at this time, your Committee recommends 13,500 in funding for the category of Travel for the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education for FY21.
Contractual Services: The President is also recommending maintaining the previous fiscal year’s budget for this category for FY21, which is $33,069.

The four items in this category proposed the same for the coming year.

The Committee notes that the consulting and Career Guidance Counselor position may be impacted during the coming fiscal year.
The Department has been requested to evaluate items that may be impacted by travel restrictions and your Committee specifically requests that the activities that funding in this category be looked into, as some may not be viable.

In consideration of the information 8 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.


21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 available to the Committee at this time it recommends $33,069 in funding for the category of Contractual Services for the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education for FY21.

OCE: The President has also recommended maintaining the funding for OCE for this Division at the present fiscal year level which is $11,522.
While fiscal discipline is always welcome to this Committee it reiterates its comments from previous budget reports that one category that does increase over time is cost of running offices.

In general, it is to be expected that utilities, communications, including the internet, and supplies would increase with the passage of years.

In this extraordinary year it might be expected that some funding would be shifted to this category to assist in the coordination of remote work.
The Committee also requests that this be reviewed and NDOE be ready to comment on this issue in September.

For the reasons set forth above, your Committee recommends $11,522 in funding for the category of OCE for the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education for FY21.

Fixed Assets: The President does not recommend funding for this category during the next fiscal year.
The Committee concurs with the President’s recommendation of $-0- funding for the category of Fixed Assets for the Division of Formal and Non- Formal Education for FY21.

The Committee has commented extensively during the last four years on the increased budget for the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education.
The growing emphasis on career and technical training at the National level has been of concern to your Committee, particularly at a time when basic education indicators are not improving for our primary grade students.

As the Committee will return to the NDOE FY21 budget for a final review in September it requests that produce two short summaries regarding the outcomes of this Division since it was enlarged four years ago.
First, the Committee would like information regarding the improved capacity and instruction in our Nation’s schools that are due to the much increased size of the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education.

Over the last several years funding for 9 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.


21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 new curriculum, consulting, a salary for a career guidance counselor and several other NDOE positions have been increased and it is time to review the outcomes of these expenditures.

Second, the Committee has always been concerned that the emphasis on career and technical training of the type promoted by this Division is not in line with aspirations and choices of our Nation’s students today.
To the extent possible the Committee would like the data on the number of students in the last three years who have gone on to further training in career and technical fields after high school or upon finishing high school have entered into a trade.

Although further review of the budget of the Division of Formal and Non-Formal Education is warranted during the September session of Congress, your Committee recommends $190,336 for FY21, to be funded from Domestic Revenue in its entirety.

3.
3.

Division of Quality and Effective Education FY20 Approp.

FY21 Pres.

Recommend FY21 Comm.


Recommend Domestic Revenue SEG Personnel 167,466 167,466 167,466 24,654 142,812 Travel 105,546 105,546 105,546 5,546 100,000 Contractual 111,157 111,157 111,157 -0- 111,157 OCE 17,129 17,129 17,129 5,500 11,629 Fixed Assets 1,000 1,000 1,000 -0- 1,000 Total 402,298 402,298 402,298 35,700 366,598 # Employees 8 8 8 -0- 8 The President recommends $402,298 in funding for the Division of Quality and Effective Education for FY21 which is exactly what 10 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.
21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 was appropriated for FY20.

Your Committee makes the following recommendations and comments on this proposed budget: Over 90% of the proposed budget for the Division of Quality and Effective Education is funded by the Supplemental Education Grant.

The amount of funding, $366,598, has remained the same for many years.
This grant has been given to the National Department of Education to improve the quality of basic education and to ensure that all of our Nation’s children receive a good basic education.

Due to the difficulty caused by the Coronavirus pandemic the Committee requests that the Department works with its evaluators for the SEG to get any waivers or approval of changes for the use of the SEG that may be necessary due to the virus.
The Committee will expect to hear from NDOE regarding any adjustments made in this regard during the September session.

Personnel: The Committee again notes with appreciation that the number of positions recommended remains the same as in FY20, and these positions are designated at the same step/grade with the same salary and benefits.

The positions are all funded by the Supplemental Education Grant, and the benefits for these positions are funded by Domestic Revenue.
The salary, step/grade and benefits are correct for all positions according to the Office of Personnel.

The positions in this Division deal with the core initiatives that are at the heart of basic education and the mandate for NDOE.

The long serving individuals in this Division also coordinate the important projects of accreditation, teacher certification and student testing.
The Committee will hear from this whole Division during the September hearing regarding plans to ensure that as much of these important National initiatives move forward even during the challenging upcoming fiscal year.

The Committee concurs with the President and recommends $167,466 for Personnel for FY21, for the Division of Quality and Effective Education, with $142,812 to be funded from SEG and the remaining $24,650 from Domestic Revenue.
Travel: The President recommends maintaining the budget for travel for this Division at $105,546 for FY21 again with the proposed trips remaining the same as in this current FY20.

The 11 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 majority of this proposed budget is designated for student testing and the monitoring of the NMCT, school accreditation and workshops for teachers.
These are important activities that have been supported by the Committee for many years and it is hoped that travel related to these important tasks is prioritized by the Department.

The Committee concurs with the President and recommends $105,546 for the category of Travel for FY21, for the Division of Quality and Effective Education, with $100,000 to be funded from SEG and the remaining $5,546 from Domestic Revenue.
Contractual Services: The President recommends the same funding for the same items in this category as in the current FY20.

While the Committee is always grateful for efforts by the Executive branch not to increase budgets it has commented for several years that the costs of fuel, provisioning and running of the ships that are contracted for trips to the outer islands increases and that maintaining the same budget for these items year after year may not be realistic.
In the months until the September session the Committee requests NDOE examine its budget.

The Committee recommends $111,157 for the category of Contractual Services, for the Division of Quality and Effective Education to be funded entirely from SEG.

OCE: The President has also recommended maintaining the funding for OCE for this Division at the level it has been for the past several fiscal years.
While fiscal discipline is always welcome to this Committee it reiterates its comments from previous budget reports that one category that does increase over time.

The Committee notes that the Department has requested an increase in this category for ADSL services and other communications.

The Committee requests that NDOE review the budget for this category and confirm its findings for the September session.
For the reasons set forth above, your Committee, at this time, recommends $17,129 in funding for the category of OCE for the Division of Quality and Effective Education for FY21, with $11,629 from SEG and the remaining $5,500 from Domestic Revenue.

12 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 Fixed Assets: The President recommends $1,000 for this category for a laptop for the IT Specialist.
The Committee concurs with the President and recommends $1,000 in the category of Fixed Assets for the Division of Quality and Effectiveness for FY21, funded entirely by SEG.

The Committee emphasizes its commitment to basic education and the activities of the Division of Quality and Effective Education and will conduct further review during the September session of Congress.
At this time, your Committee recommends $402,298 in funding for the Division for FY21, with $366,598 from SEG and the remaining $35,700 from Domestic Revenue.

The Committee notes here that the Budget Book for FY21 includes the Division of Special Services.

This Division is not covered by this report.


The grant funding the special education portion of both State and National education departments is received annually in July and a full review is done at that time with a separate report issued by your Committee.

OVERALL BUDGET SUMMARY FY2021--DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION FY20 Approp.

FY21 Pres.

Recommend FY21 Comm.


Recommend Domestic Revenue SEG Personnel 437,497 437,497 437,497 294,685 142,812 Travel 200,546 200,546 134,046 34,046 100,000 Contractual 159,226 159,226 159,226 48,069 111,157 OCE 49,651 49,651 49,651 38,022 11,629 Fixed Assets 4,500 1,000 1,000 -0- 1,000 Total 851,420 847,920 781,420 414,822 366,598 #Employees 21 21 21 13 8 13 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.


21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 B.

Board of Regents--College of Micronesia-FSM The President recommends a slight increase for the COM-FSM Board of Regents for this coming year.

In the past three fiscal year the recommendation by your Committee and the subsequent appropriation have been $115,000, for this coming fiscal year FY21 the President recommends $120,000.

The Committee concurs with this recommendation.


Once a new President is installed at the College your Committee will conduct a follow up public hearing to review the current performance and plans for the coming year.
C. Grants, Subsidies and Contributions FY20 Appropriated FY21 President’s Recommendation FY21 Committee Recommendation Aid to Non Public Schools Aid to Students at CMI Aid to Students at PCC National Scholarship 800,000 600,000 600,000 40,000 40,000 40,000 150,000 100,000 100,000 3,000,000 3,000,000 3,000,000 Nat’l Close-Up 75,000 75,000 75,000 Merit Scholarship 275,000 300,000 300,000 COM Board Mtg.
5,000 5,000 5,000 Aid to Students in Japan Aid to Students in China Aid to Students in Fiji 100,000 100,000 100,000 35,000 35,000 35,000 35,000 35,000 35,000 14 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

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21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 Caroline College 75,000 75,000 75,000 Faithwalk College 75,000 75,000 75,000 Total 4,665,000 4,440,000 4,440,000 The President recommends $4,440,000 in funding for the section Grants, Subsidies and Contributions for the FY21, which represents a decrease from the $4,665,000 for this current fiscal year FY20.
Your Committee has received information and documents regarding the needs of our Nation’s students in higher education programs overseas.

In particular, communication from the NDOE Post Secondary Specialist indicates that it is still premature to make projections regarding the needs of these students.

Some students have returned to the FSM and may continue courses online, others have remained in their host country and will likely be able to continue course work on campus in the fall semester.
Your Committee would like to emphasize that it remains committed to the individual students in higher education and to the future of the Nation which needs educated new workers to drive the FSM forward.

The above funding was sufficient for the current school year for our students, however, some items in this category may need to be reduced while others may need an increase due to the unique challenges the pandemic presents.
The Committee especially notes that it may revise its recommendation as to Aid to Non-Public Schools.

The private schools providing primary school and high school education in our Nation have excelled in producing well educated and disciplined graduates.

In this current fiscal year the Committee recommended and the Congress appropriated $800,000 to supplement the budgets of these schools based on per capita student enrollment.
The Committee is aware that some volunteers and expatriate teachers may not be able to come to the FSM in the coming school year, and that the enrollment for these schools in question due to the travel restrictions and concerns surrounding the Coronavirus.

For these reasons the Committee is concurring at this time with the President’s recommendation of $600,000 for FY21 for subsidy of Non-Public Schools.

15 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

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21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 At this time your Committee concurs with the funding recommendations by the President the next few months will be needed to evaluate where and how many of our students will be studying in the fall semester the Committee requests a summary of where students will be attending in the fall semester and how many will be continuing their education online.
It will also examine this section in detail at the next session of Congress and make any adjustment it deems necessary in an amended report.

For the reasons set forth above, at this time, your Committee concurs with the President’s recommendations for all items in this section of Grants, Subsidies and Contributions totaling $4,440,000 for FY21, to be funded in its entirety from Domestic Revenue.

C. Resources--Grants, Subsidies and Contributions 1.
COM-FSM Treaty Obligation The President recommends $25,000 for the COM-FSM Treaty Obligation for FY21, which remains the same as in previous years.

The Committee concurs with this recommendation.


E. Capital and Human Resources FY20 Appropriated FY21 Presidents Recommendation FY21 Committee Recommendation on COM-FSM FMI 4,050,000 (*1,000,000 from Compact) 875,611 3,800,000 (*1,000,000 from Compact) 875,611 3,800,000 (*1,000,000 from Compact) 875,611 COM-FSM SEG 689,948 689,948 689,948 NDOE SEG project 556,074 556,074 556,074 Accreditation 250,000 370,948 250,000 16 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

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21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 project Teacher Cert.

project Quality Dev.


project 168,000 168,000 168,000 -0- -0- -0- Literacy project 181,170 Assessment project -0- -0- -0- SLO Science 250,000 250,000 PATS -0- NDOE office rent -0- -0- -0- -0- -0- -0- -0- -0- NMCT testing 112,740 112,740 112,740 Total 7,133,543 6,823,321 6,452,373 COM-FSM and FMI: The Committee appreciates the information provided by the College for this May session, and notes with appreciation that the funding recommendations for our institutions of higher education remain the same.
Your Committee understands that both the infrastructure projects for the College and the recruitment process for its new President may be adversely affected by the many challenges caused by the Coronavirus pandemic.

Those issues will be explored in detail during the September session of Congress.

Also, the Committee is aware that the College is working on alternative course instruction, such as online courses, should one or more campuses not be in a position to provide classroom instruction in the fall.
Given the uncertainty caused by the pandemic the Committee concurs with the President at this time, and recommends funding for all items regarding COM-FSM and FMI as stated in the Budget Book.

17 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

21-56 RE: PRESIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION NO.

21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 NDOE Projects: Your Committee is appreciative of the President and Department discipline in not requesting funding for new projects for the coming fiscal year.
As commented above in several sections the Committee believes that challenges to meet even the necessary activities for the core initiatives will entail hard work and creativity on behalf of the Department.

The Committee agrees with the recommended funding for each item, with the exception of two: 1) the school accreditation project and 2) the science learning outcomes.
Regarding the school accreditation project, last May 2019 during the budget hearings for the current fiscal year the Department proposed a very large increase for this project, almost triple the then budget.

Your Committee commented at that time that the budget and activities proposed were not detailed enough, and that past performance did not incline it to recommend such a significant increase.
The position of the Committee remains the same, and therefore, it recommends maintaining the same funding for the project as the current fiscal year.

As to the project for science learning outcomes, this project was funded at $250,000 for the current fiscal year FY20, and the inclusion of a request for this funding for FY21 is duplicative, and is therefore removed.

All budgets in this section will be reviewed during the September session, with particular attention to the travel requests.
Conclusion Your Committee has carefully reviewed the President’s FY2021 budget and all of the information provided by the Executive and all entities under its jurisdiction.

The recommended sums set forth above reflect your Committee’s recommendations on the level of funding for the designated activity, program or project for all of the Fiscal Year 2021.
Subject to the conditions and limitations set forth herein, and subject to the concurrence of your Committee on Ways & Means, your Committee on Education recommends approval of the amounts and sources of funds identified as Committee Recommendations.

18 of 19 STANDING COMMITTEE REPORT NO.

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21-253 SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2021 BUDGET/EDUCATION AUGUST 19, 2020 Respectfully submitted, /s/ Joseph J. Urusemal Joseph J. Urusemal, chairman /s/ Aren B. Palik Aren B. Palik, vice chairman /s/ Wesley W. Simina Wesley W. Simina, member /s/ Esmond B. Moses Esmond B. Moses, member /s/ Derensio S. Konman Derensio S. Konman, member /s/ Florencio S. Harper Florencio S. Harper, member /s/ Ferny S. Perman Ferny S. Perman, member 19 of 19