Fiscal impact reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) for standing finance committees of the NM Legislature. The LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports if they are used for other purposes.

Current FIRs (in HTML & Adobe PDF formats) are available on the NM Legislative Website (legis.state.nm.us). Adobe PDF versions include all attachments, whereas HTML versions may not. Previously issued FIRs and attachments may also be obtained from the LFC in Suite 101 of the State Capitol Building North.

F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR	Regensberg		DATE TYPED	2/2/04		HB	315
SHORT TITLE		Mora County Ambulance Services				SB
					ANALYST		Johnson

APPROPRIATION

Appropriation Contained		Estimated Additional Impact		Recurring or Non-Rec	Fund Affected
FY04	FY05	FY04	FY05
	$50.0			Recurring	GF

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Relates to Appropriation in the General Appropriation Act

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Department of Health

Public Regulation Commission

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 315 appropriates $50,000 from the general fund to the local government division of the department of finance and administration to contract for ambulance services in Mora county.

Significant Issues

The department of health provided the following:

Mora County is an extremely rural/frontier county with a total population of 4,945 people, averaging only 2.6 persons per square mile. Vehicle crashes are the third leading cause of death in Mora County and account for a major portion of the approximately 320 plus EMS responses that occur there annually. In addition, many residences are spread out and personal transportation is limited for some families. The ambulance service is a critical safety net for both residents and tourists.

Due to the limited volume and the low socio-economic indicators in Mora County, there is no other source of funding that will sustain ambulance services for the area other than what is appropriated annually by the legislature.

HB 315 would provide additional support for ambulance services in Mora County, above what the Department of Health has contracted for historically. In the current fiscal year, Mora Valley Community Health Services is receiving $36,325 for their ambulance service. A similar amount is in the proposed Executive budget recommendation for FY 05.

If the funds appropriated were to the Department of Health, administrative functions could be accomplished within current staff monitoring the existing contract with Mora Valley Community Health Services.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $50.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2005 shall revert to the general fund.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

The Public Regulation Commission provided the following:

This bill would require the Mora Local Government and Mora Valley Community Inc., which is the ambulance service authorized to service in the Mora area, to file an application to the Commission for ambulance contract approval.

RELATIONSHIP

The department of health provided the following:

HB351 relates to the proposed General Appropriations Act that includes $36,325 in the Contractual Services line item of the Department of Health executive budget recommendation that has been utilized historically to contract for ambulance services in Mora County.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

The department of health provided the following:

The ambulance service which serves Mora Valley is certified by the Public Regulation Commission as a Basic Life Support ambulance service, but occasionally they provide more advanced (EMT-Intermediate) level of response. They have a physician medical director, EMS service director and a training coordinator. They respond when dispatched for all medical and traumatic emergencies within the Village of Mora and all of western Mora County.

The funding proposed in HB 315 provides an essential safety-net ambulance service that may not otherwise be available, or that may only be available with slower volunteer response, for a rural/frontier community.

HB 315 would provide additional funds for ambulance service in Mora County. The Department of Health (DOH) has had a similar contract for many years, but had to cut its annual contract services category due to state budget cuts within the DOH both in FY-03 and FY-04.

It is recommended that an appropriation of at least f$50 thousand dollars be used to support ambulance services in Mora County. It is also recommended that the Department of Health’s Injury Prevention and EMS Bureau continue to manage the appropriation and contract since they have the experience and expertise to monitor the contract and ensure its success.

AMENDMENTS

The department of health provided the following:

Recommended language change for HB315:

Page 1, lines 16,17 and 18 replace “local government division, department of finance and administration”, with the “department of health”.

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