0001|                       SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 55
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0002|     43rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 1997
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0003|                            INTRODUCED BY
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0004|                         MARY JANE M. GARCIA
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0005|     
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0006|                                   
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0007|     
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0008|     
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0009|     
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0010|                           A JOINT MEMORIAL
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0011|     REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH TO ESTABLISH A DOMESTIC
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0012|     VIOLENCE TASK FORCE TO PRODUCE RECOMMENDATIONS TO DEAL WITH THE
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0013|     ALARMING INCREASE OF VIOLENCE OCCURRING WITHIN THE HOMES OF NEW
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0014|     MEXICO.
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0015|     
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0016|          WHEREAS, there was a thirty-six percent increase in nights
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0017|     of institutional shelter provided to the women and children of
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0018|     New Mexico necessitated by domestic violence in the past two
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0019|     years; and
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0020|          WHEREAS, nonresident, or "out-patient", services to the
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0021|     same category of family members increased over twenty-nine
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0022|     percent for the same reasons in the same time frame; and
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0023|          WHEREAS, the total clients served in that two-year period
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0024|     increased nearly eighteen percent to a total of twenty-six
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0025|     thousand five hundred separate clients served in fiscal year
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0001|     1996; and
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0002|          WHEREAS, no appropriation increase has been sought by the
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0003|     administration for this serious and growing problem since
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0004|     fiscal year 1995; and
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0005|          WHEREAS, the federal commitment this year is to double New
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0006|     Mexico's share to four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000); and
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0007|          WHEREAS, recent state cutbacks and other budgetary changes
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0008|     produced an average ten percent reduction in funding for
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0009|     domestic violence centers, resulting in closing some satellite
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0010|     centers; and
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0011|          WHEREAS, two thousand five hundred families will be
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0012|     deprived of domestic violence services if the threatened
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0013|     sixteen percent expenditure reduction is executed; and
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0014|          WHEREAS, the current request for proposal process used to
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0015|     allocate funds is counter productive, draining resources needed
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0016|     to provide services while simultaneously preventing or
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0017|     inhibiting healthy agency planning;
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0018|          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE
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0019|     STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of health establish and
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0020|     provide staff support, with the cooperation of the children,
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0021|     youth and families department, to a task force on domestic
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0022|     violence for the purpose of developing an efficient base
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0023|     funding formula for allocation of funding for domestic violence
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0024|     programs; and
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0025|          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force include a
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0001|     representative of the office of the attorney general, the
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0002|     children, youth and families department, the public health
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0003|     division of the department of health, the substance abuse
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0004|     division of the department of health, the maternal and child
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0005|     health bureau of the department of health, the advanced
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0006|     training bureau of the department of public safety and the
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0007|     crime victims reparation commission; representation from any
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0008|     other state agencies with responsibilities related to domestic
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0009|     violence issues; and representation from each domestic violence
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0010|     service center in the state; and
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0011|          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force elect a
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0012|     chairman from among its membership; and
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0013|          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force make a
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0014|     preliminary report to both the interim legislative health and
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0015|     human services and legislative finance committees at their
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0016|     October 1997 meetings and a final report with legislative
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0017|     recommendations at the committees' respective meetings in
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0018|     October 1998; and
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0019|          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
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0020|     sent to all affected agencies and organizations.
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0021|                                  
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