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committees of the NM Legislature. The LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports

if they are used for other purposes.

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attachments may 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 Ruiz

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/29/06

HB 506

SHORT TITLE Family Assessment Domestic Violence Program

SB

ANALYST McSherry

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$60.0

Recurring

General

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

House Bill 506 is a companion bill to Senate Bill 143.

Relates to $175 thousand included in the LFC and executive recommendations for the General

Appropriations Act.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)

Public Defender (PD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 506, “Family Assessment Domestic Violence Program,” appropriates $60,000 from

the general fund to the 2

nd

Judicial District Court for the purpose of expanding the court’s Family

Assessment Intervention Resources (FAIR) Domestic Violence Program.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $60,000 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.

Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007 shall revert

to the general fund

House Bill 506 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

According to AOC, the FAIR program provides intervention for families with domestic violence

based on the current domestic violence research and it is a collaborative program between the 2

nd

Judicial District, UNM and community domestic violence service agencies.

AOC reports that FAIR focuses on partnerships in which the couple has a shared child and in-

cludes assessment of amenability to treatment, counseling, review hearings and sanctions. As-

sessment would continue for three years following program completion.

PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS

The court and AOC have not proposed performance indicators for this program; however, track-

ing of recidivism of participants, graduation rates and numbers of participants would be in line

with tracking used for other programs of a similar nature.

The courts have not specified how the expansion of this program will contribute to increased per-

formance for the FAIR program; it is not clear if the current program has reached its capacity or

rather if it is not fully functional at its current level of funding.

AOC asserts that by reducing case filings the FAIR program will increase overall court effi-

ciency and improve the court’s backlog of cases.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

Increasing the number, and size of, specialized programs increases the administrative workload

in a court.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

House Bill 506 is a companion bill to Senate Bill 143 and relates to House Bill 492 which would

appropriate $422 thousand to the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court for its Domestic Vio-

lence Repeat Offender Program and House Bill 55 which increases penalties for domestic vio-

lence, and Senate Bill 393 which increases penalties for battery on a household member.

TECHNICAL ISSUES

Both the LFC and executive recommendation include $175 thousand which was appropriated to

the court in FY05. It is not clear exactly what the additional $60 thousand is proposed to fund.

WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT ENACTING THIS BILL

The 2

nd

Judicial District Court Family Assessment and Intervention Resources program would

not be funded with an additional $60 thousand dollars from the general fund. It is not clear pro-

grammatic consequences would result.

House Bill 506 – Page

3

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

1.

How many participants does the FAIR program currently have.

2.

What types of indicators are being used to determine the effectiveness of this program.

3.

What would the proposed $60 thousand be used for.

4.

Is the current FAIR program filled to capacity.

5.

Would the proposed $60 thousand fund any additional FTE for the 2

nd

Judicial District.

6.

What is the role of UNM, and the community domestic violence service programs within

the FAIR program.

7.

Has the current FAIR program contributed to reduced case filings.

EM/mt