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

SPONSOR Sanchez, B.

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/25/06

1/30/06 HB

SHORT TITLE Community Land Grant Comprehensive Planning

SB 146/aSCORC

ANALYST Hadwiger

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$300.0 Non-Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Original bill duplicated HB322

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Department of Finance and Administration (DFA)

Indian Affairs Department (IAD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of SCORC Amendment

The Senate Corporations & Transportation Committee amendment to Senate Bill 146 reduces the

appropriation to the Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments by $50 thousand (from

$100 thousand to $50 thousand) and inserts a new appropriation to the Mid-Region Council of

Governments for that amount. The total amount and purpose of the appropriations in the bill

would not change.

Synopsis of Original Bill

Senate Bill 146 appropriates $300 thousand from the general fund to the Department of Finance

and Administration (DFA) to provide technical assistance to community land grants for compre-

hensive planning, including economic development, housing, land use, infrastructure and grant

administration and training to operate as political subdivisions of the state. These funds would

be allocated as follows: $200 thousand to the North Central New Mexico Economic Develop-

ment District and $100 thousand to the Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments.

Senate Bill 146/aSCORC – Page

2

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $300 thousand contained in this bill is a non-recurring expense to the gen-

eral fund. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY07 would revert

to the general fund.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

DFA indicated that, with the 2003 law giving certain land grants local government status, the

Legislature through its Interim Land Grant Committee recognized the need to follow up with

technical assistance to help land grants with planning, administrative and management skills

building. The funding request follows an appropriation by the 2005 legislature of $200,000

through the Energy Mineral and Natural Resources Department for the same purpose. That fund-

ing enabled the contract planners to conduct planning for nine land grants, however, there are

another fourteen land grants in need of planning assistance. DFA noted that the two councils of

governments to whom the funds are directed in this bill have the bulk of the 23 land grants

within their region and are very familiar with the needs of each land grant.

IAD provided the following background on the two agencies that would be recipients of these

appropriations:

The North Central New Mexico Economic Development District (NCNMEDD) is an association,

formed by state statute, of local units of government and other organizations created to encour-

age and allow regional cooperation on a multitude of issues,. It was created originally to serve

the eight counties of Colfax, Los Alamos, Mora, Rio Arriba, San Miguel, Sandoval, Santa Fe,

and Taos. The NCNMEDD focuses on improving the quality of life of member communities.

The NCNMEDD is governed by a 35-member Board of Directors consisting of local elected of-

ficials, economic development committee representatives, members at large, and representatives

of Indian Tribes.

The Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments (NWNMCOG) is a voluntary association

of local governments, serving as the regional planning organization for the northwest corner of

New Mexico, also known as State Planning and Development District I. The Northwest New

Mexico Planning District (NCNMEDD) spans over 15,000 square miles of highland plateau

country and encompasses a population of nearly 200,000, about one-half of whom are members

of one of four sovereign Native American nations: the Navajo Nation; the Pueblo of Zuni; the

Pueblo of Acoma; and the Pueblo of Laguna. Most of the region's land base is comprised of pub-

lic lands (including Federal Indian reservations), and approximately one-half of the region's

population lives in non-municipal rural communities. Representatives of Indian Tribes serve on

the Board, including members from the Crownpoint Navajo Chapter.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

DFA indicated that, because DFA already contracts with each of these planning agencies to pro-

vide administrative and planning services for their member local governments, it would be easy

to amend these contracts to include deliverables associated with land grant planning and techni-

cal assistance in this bill.

Senate Bill 146/aSCORC – Page

3

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

Original bill duplicated HB322

DH/yr:mt