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

SPONSOR Cervantes

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/1/2006

2/10/2006 HB 401/aHJC

SHORT TITLE Law Enforcement Citizenship Requirement

SB

ANALYST McOlash

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

NFI

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Administrative Office of District Attorneys (AODA)

NM Public Defenders Department (PDD)

Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)

Attorney General’s Office (AGO)

NM Department of Public Safety (DPS)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of HJC Amendment

The House Judiciary Committee amendment provides that the law enforcement officials must be

citizens of the United State of America while maintaining the earlier proposal that these officials

need not be citizens of New Mexico.

Synopsis of Original Bill

House Bill 401 deletes language in State Law 4-41-10 and 29-1-9 that prohibits a non-New

Mexican citizen from serving in certain law enforcement positions (special deputy sheriffs, mar-

shals, police officers).

The bill contains an emergency clause.

House Bill 401/aHJC– Page 2

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

There will be a minimal administrative cost for statewide update, distribution, and documenta-

tion of statutory changes. Any additional fiscal impact on the judiciary would be proportional to

the enactment of this law and an increase in the filing of notices of appointment in the office of

the district court clerk.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

AGO

A law enforcement officer must be: (a) certified; and (b) commissioned/appointed. It appears

possible for a law enforcement officer to meet these requirements without being a resident of

New Mexico.

It appears the current practice was borne out of the public policy that an officer should serve one

year’s residence in the state prior to employment. See N.M. Att’y Gen. Op. 60-222 (1959-1960).

WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT ENACTING THIS BILL

Law enforcement officers would still be required to be residents of the State of New Mexico.

BMC/nt:yr