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

SPONSOR

Trujillo

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/6/07

2/10/07 HB 815

SHORT TITLE

Court-Appointed Special Advocates Program

SB

ANALYST C.Sanchez

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY07

FY08

$64.0

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Duplicates,

SB 605

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)

Bernalillo Metropolitan Court (BMC)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 815 appropriates $64,000 from the general fund to the administrative office of the

courts for FY08 to fund the court-appointed special advocates programs statewide. Any

unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 08 shall revert to the

general fund.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The LFC recommendation currently includes $139,974 ($31,974 is the three percent increase to

the Special Court Services program, and $108,000 is additional LFC money).

The additional $64,000 from HB 815 would bring the total amount of new general fund for

CASA to $203,974. All of New Mexico’s programs would benefit (except the Second Judicial

District Court, where the CASA program is a unit of the Children’s Court budget).

House Bill 815 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

The LFC recommendation currently includes $139,974 for the Special Court Services Program.

PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS

The courts are participating in performance-based budgeting. It is unknown if enactment of this

bill would impact performance measures as they relate to judicial budgeting.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

HB 815 would complete the funding of the Network’s original request for CASA. Statewide,

CASA requested $203,976 in new general fund for FY08. That appropriation would bring all 16

programs to their proper funding step, as well as increase the steps for the first time in ten years.

DUPLICATES

SB 605

ALTERNATIVES

Adopt LFC recommendation

WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT ENACTING THIS BILL

Status quo.

CS/nt