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

SPONSOR Snyder

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/8/06

HB

SHORT TITLE Camino Nuevo Client Trauma Treatment

SB 404

ANALYST Earp

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$300.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Duplicates HB 92

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Higher Education Department (HED)

Corrections Department (CD)

Children, Youth & Families Department (CYFD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 404 appropriates $300,000 from the general fund to the Board of Regents of the Uni-

versity of New Mexico for the Family and Community Medicine Program to provide trauma

treatment for Camino Nuevo clients during and after incarceration. Camino Nuevo is a women's

correctional facility for parole violators located in Albuquerque.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $300,000 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.

Senate Bill 404 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

This request was not included on the list of priority projects submitted by UNM to the HED for

review. Consequently, this request was not included in the Department's fiscal year 2007

funding recommendations.

The Corrections Department notes that the department is responsible for providing medi-

cal/psychiatric treatment (through its medical services vendor) for all Camino Nuevo residents

while they are incarcerated, and that includes on-site care (provided in the prison itself) and off-

site care (if for example the prisoner needs to be temporarily taken to a hospital or clinic for

treatment). Once a woman is discharged from the Camino Nuevo prison, and/or is placed on

probation or parole in the community, then the department does not have the obligation, funds or

other resources to provide medical/psychiatric treatment to that woman. The department would

welcome any and all treatment that the University of New Mexico could provide to all such

women after incarceration because it would obviously be good for the women to get the treat-

ment they need. It would also be good for the department because it would help these women

better transition back into the community, and could help reduce recidivism rates for these

women. If the University tries to provide treatment to the women while they are still incarcer-

ated, this would duplicate the services provided by the department. This would be an inefficient

and problematic use of the appropriated money.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

UNM would be required to administer these funds. Given the legal obligation of the Corrections

Department to provide care for incarcerated individuals as noted above, careful coordination of

efforts would be required.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

Senate Bill 404 and House Bill 92 (as originally introduced) are duplicate measures.

TECHNICAL ISSUES

The Corrections Department notes that this bill does not specify whether or not it is meant to pay

for “on-site” or “off-site” medical services. It also does not define “trauma treatment”.

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

Have there been problems with the delivery of medical services to the inmates at Camino Nuevo

via the existing Corrections Department contract with Wexford.

DKE/nt