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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Tripp
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
2-10-06 HB 836
SHORT TITLE
CATRON COUNTY DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
PREVENTION
SB
ANALYST Lucero
APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)
Appropriation
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
FY06
FY07
$116.0
Recurring
General Fund
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Relates to SB7, SB124, SB221, HB58, HB213, HB246
Relates to Appropriation in the General Appropriation Act
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Responses Received From
Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
House Bill 836 appropriates $116.0 from the general fund to Children, Youth and Families De-
partment for the purpose of domestic violence prevention and treatment services in Catron
County.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The appropriation of $116.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any
unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of 2007 shall revert to the general
fund.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
Child and adolescent data: (An Analysis of 2004 Data from the New Mexico Interpersonal
Violence Data Central Repository Betty Caponera, PhD, June 2005)
pg_0002
House Bill 836 – Page
2
•
More children (7,170) received services from DV service providers in 2004, which
represents a 35% increase over 2003
•
There were 4,463 children present at the scene of their family violence episodes in
2004.
•
75% of children who witnessed domestic violence incidents were 11 years old and
under as reported by DV Service Providers.
•
34% (2,292) of the children victim-witnesses were between 0-5 and 41% (2,742) age
6-11.
•
30% (1,708) of children victim-witnesses as reported by domestic violence service
providers’ experienced physical abuse and 5% (253) experienced sexual abuse.
Other Statistics:
•
Many of our New Mexico children and youths are victims of domestic violence
(
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
In 2004 there were more than 26,000 reported cases of domestic violence
(
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
Domestic violence does not discriminate; victims and perpetrators come from every
ethnicity, class and age group (
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
Studies have shown that child abuse occurs in up to 70% of families that experience
domestic violence (
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
A 2003 study by Research and Polling done for the Children’s Cabinet showed that
one of the greatest concerns of adults was how the impact of witnessing domestic vio-
lence harms a child for years to come, ruining their relationships and continuing the
cycle of violence (
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
Children who witness domestic violence are more likely to fail in school and with-
draw from society (
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
Domestic violence is often said to happen in a cycle
(
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
Studies have shown that the most effective steps for reducing domestic violence are
to hold the batterer accountable and to get effective treatment
(
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
Victims of domestic violence often lack information, economic resources and a sup-
port network (
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
•
The most dangerous time for a victim of domestic violence is when he or she is trying
to leave an abusive relationship (
http://www.ltgovernor.state.nm.us
).
From the Family Violence Prevention Fund Website:
On January 5, 2006 President Bush signed the Violence Against Women Act of 2005 into law.
The Violence Against Women Act of 2005 contains groundbreaking initiatives to help children
exposed to violence, train health care providers to support victims of abuse, encourage men to
teach the next generation that violence is wrong, and provide crisis services for victims of rape
and sexual assault. H.R. 3402 is part of the Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005. It
also continues efforts to improve the law enforcement response to violence against women and
provide supportive services, such as transitional housing, to women and children forced to leave
their homes because of violence. “The Violence Against Women Act of 2005 provides cities and
pg_0003
House Bill 836 – Page
3
towns with the tools they need to combat domestic violence, assist victims and go after abusers
when it occurs.”
First passed in 1994, the Violence Against Women Act was the first federal law to comprehen-
sively address violence against women. It was re-authorized in 2000, continuing the essential
work begun earlier and adding important services for immigrant, rural, disabled and older
women.
The new re-authorization will expand and extend the law for five years, with funding appropri-
ated at approximately $3.9 billion. Congress must determine actual authorization levels each
year, however, and does not always fund programs at the levels in the appropriation.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
The bill could positively affect existing CYFD performance outcome measures of, “Percent of
adult victims receiving domestic violence services who are living in a safer, more stable envi-
ronment as measured by the Domestic Violence Assessment Tool,” and “Percent of adult victims
receiving domestic violence services who show improved client competencies in social living,
coping and thinking skills as measured by the Domestic Violence Assessment Tool.”
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
CYFD will not be compensated for the increased administrative cost of contracting these ser-
vices. The administrative cost to release requests for proposals, to monitor the contract perform-
ance, and performance measure reporting is not considered in the bill.
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
Relates to SB7, SB124, SB221, HB58, HB213, HB246
TECHNICAL ISSUES
At this time, the New Mexico Coalition Against Domestic Violence does not list a domestic vio-
lence services provider in Catron county. CYFD does not have a current contract with a domes-
tic violence services provider in Catron County.
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
In order to ensure New Mexico’s victims of domestic violence have access to services the barri-
ers to shelter care must be lifted. Child and adolescent counseling and crisis intervention and
ongoing training and education in public schools and community centers that provide services to
families dealing with domestic violence issues must occur. This bill does not mention public
school prevention programming.
DL/mt