| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
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| Date: From: Subject: | 12/9/2009 3:46:27 PM Home School Legal Defense Association New Mexico: Help Ensure Good Outcome to Proposed PED Rule, Act Now! |
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====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== New Mexico: Help Ensure Good Outcome to Proposed PED Rule, Act Now! Dear HSLDA Members and Friends: At the request of the governor of New Mexico, new rules are being proposed by the Public Education Department (PED) to require all minors who apply for drivers' permits to certify their academic proficiency and attendance in school. These new rules will impact home educators as well. The Christian Association of Parent Educators (CAPE-NM) and HSLDA have been closely following these rules and working together. Overall, the proposed rules are favorable to home education parents. Under the draft being considered, home education parents will be able to certify both the academic proficiency and attendance of their children in school, as they should be. However, there are a few minor suggestions that HSLDA has made to the PED to prevent any potential misunderstandings. It is also important PED officials realize that homeschoolers are paying attention and expect these favorable rules to pass. We would like those who can to attend the upcoming hearing on these proposed rules on Monday, December 14, 2009 at the Jerry Apodaca Education Building in Santa Fe. The hearing will be from 10 a.m. to noon. Those unable to attend can inform the PED of their opinions on these rules by submitting written comments by 5 p.m., December 14. Please take a few minutes to submit comments or make plans to attend the hearing. Your involvement is important! REQUESTED ACTION: 1) If you live locally, please come to the hearing on December 14, 2009, at 10 a.m. The hearing will be held at Mabry Hall in the Jerry Apodaca Education Building at 300 Don Gaspar Avenue in Santa Fe, NM. The building is located on the corner of Don Gaspar and De Vargas, across from the Capitol North Building. Off-street parking via parking meters can be found around the building. 2) Please submit written comments regarding these proposed rules. You may submit something like the following in your own words: "As home educating parents, we have heard about the proposed 6.30.11 NMAC rule for minors to apply for instruction permits from the Motor Vehicle Division. We believe the definition of a 'home school' program should be changed to reflect current state law under N.M.S.A. 1978, 22-1-2. We also would like the final rule to clearly allow parents to be able to certify whether or not their child has demonstrated the academic proficiency and school attendance necessary in order to apply for an instruction permit. Thank you for your efforts in these areas. Sincerely, [name]" Public comments can be submitted to: Mr. Willie Brown Office of General Counsel Public Education Department Jerry Apodaca Education Building 300 Don Gaspar Avenue Santa Fe, NM 87501-2786 Via email: Willie.Brown1@state.nm.us Via fax: (505) 827-6681 If you could also send a copy of your comments to CAPE-NM at info@cape-nm.org it would be greatly appreciated. 3) Last but not least, pray for the hearing and those involved. While this hearing and the proposed rules do not affect your rights to teach your children at home, they do impact the ability of your child (and others) to obtain a driver's permit. This situation also provides an opportunity for the home education community to interact with the PED in a favorable way that could have lasting impact. BACKGROUND: The governor of New Mexico originally initiated these new requirements for drivers' permits. When the Motor Vehicle Division designed the new rules for the permits, they did not provide a way for home educators to certify the academic proficiency and attendance requirements. Instead, the PED was given authority to implement rules to address this issue. As a result, the proposed rules, 6.30.11 NMAC, were drafted. CAPE-NM and HSLDA have worked together to ensure that home educators are enabled to provide this verification instead of requiring them to go through the local public school. HSLDA has written a letter to the PED on behalf of our members to urge them to pass the proposed rules, along with a few minor suggestions to keep the rules consistent with New Mexico state law as it relates to home educators. Under the proposed rules, the definition of a "home school" varies slightly from that in N.M. Stat. Ann. sec. 22-1-2. Our letter corrects this and one other area to better protect home educators in New Mexico law. While the current language is fine, the changes will make it a little better. Please feel free to forward this to any friends who might be interested. If you are not yet a member, you can become a part of HSLDA and help support homeschooling freedom in New Mexico and around the globe. Visit http://www.hslda.org/join/apply.asp to join today. Thanks for your efforts for home education freedom! Sincerely, Thomas J. (Tj) Schmidt HSLDA Staff Attorney ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> "I saved my entire membership fee with one discount" "When I called Liberty to find out what kind of discount we could get, they told us we would 10% off our car insurance and 5% off our homeowner's insurance. What we will save is more than double what it costs to join HSLDA. With one child getting his driver's license this year, the savings will be a real blessing!" 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Thank you for your cooperation. ====================================================================== | |
