AltamiranoFiscal impact reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) for standing

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

reports if they are used for other purposes.

Current FIRs (in HTML & Adobe PDF formats) are a vailable on the NM Legislative Website (legis.state.nm.us).

Adobe PDF versions include all attachments, whereas HTML versions may not. Previously issued FIRs and

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 Altamirano

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/21/07

HB

SHORT TITLE

Election of President By Popular Vote

SB 666

ANALYST Ortiz

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY07

FY08

NFI

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Attorney General’s Office (AGO)

No Responses Received From

Secretary of State (SOS)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 666 would enact and enter New Mexico into the "Agreement Among the States to

Elect the President by National Popular Vote" compact which would generally require each

participating state to award all of its electoral votes to the presidential “slate" (President and

Vice-President) receiving the most popular votes nationwide (in all 50 states and the District of

Columbia).

The popular vote counts from all 50 states and the District of Columbia would be added together

by the Secretary of State to obtain a national grand total for each presidential slate. Then, state

elections officials in all participating states would award their electoral votes to the presidential

and vice-presidential candidates who receive the largest number of popular votes in all 50 states

and the District of Columbia.

The compact will take effect when states cumulatively possessing a majority of the electoral

votes have enacted its terms into law.

Senate Bill 666 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

The Attorney General’s Office reports that this compact is being proposed by National Popular

Vote Inc., a 501(c)(4) non-profit corporation whose stated purpose is to study, analyze and

educate the public regarding its proposal to implement a nationwide popular election of the

President of the United States.

http://www.nationalpopularvote.com

. It was drafted as an

alternative to the Electoral College system for electing Presidential and Vice-Presidential

candidates. That system reflects the voters’ state-by-state choices for President in 48 states, while

reflecting the voters’ district-by-district choices in Maine and Nebraska. Although ballots list the

names of the presidential candidates, voters within the 50 states and the District of Columbia are

actually choosing Electors from their state when they vote for President and Vice President.

These Presidential Electors in turn cast the official (electoral) votes for those two offices. That

system was the subject of controversy after the 2000 Presidential Election in which Al Gore won

the popular vote but lost the Electoral College Vote, and the therefore the Presidency.

The AGO adds, to date the compact has not been enacted by any state. The California legislature

enacted the compact in 2006 but it was vetoed by the Governor. The bill has been introduced for

consideration in approximately nineteen states.

Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution provides: “Each state shall appoint, in

such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole

number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but

no Senator or Representative, or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United

States, shall be appointed an elector." (emphasis added) National Popular Vote, Inc. relies upon

the highlighted language as legal authority for this bill.

However, New Mexico has enacted the Electoral College system into state law. NMSA Sections

1-15-1 to 1-15-9. If enacted, this bill would conflict with those state law provisions.

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

If no states have enacted this and New Mexico does, what would be the impact.

EO/csd