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A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS DEPARTMENT TO CONTINUE THE

TASK FORCE ON EMPLOYMENT BARRIERS FOR PERSONS WITH CRIMINAL

CONVICTIONS CREATED IN THE 2007 LEGISLATIVE SESSION BY HOUSE

MEMORIAL 41 AND SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 4.

WHEREAS, the legislature created the task force on

employment barriers for persons with criminal convictions in

the first session of the forty-eighth legislature; and

WHEREAS, the work of that task force is not yet complete

but remains critically important; and

WHEREAS, the task force was created in order to improve

the effectiveness of facilitating the reentry of persons with

criminal convictions into communities, reducing the incidence

of recidivism and helping those with criminal convictions

attain skills and connections to achieve a successful reentry

into their communities; and

WHEREAS, the task force should review clearance

regulations for all state agencies and local public bodies to

evaluate whether existing barriers to successful reentry into

the workplace are related to the safety, trust and

responsibility required at a job and to determine whether a

less restrictive approach could protect the public while

preserving employment opportunities; and

WHEREAS, the task force should also develop and

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administer, in coordination with the New Mexico municipal

league and the New Mexico association of counties, a survey to

obtain information from local public bodies, community

colleges and state-funded universities on how their hiring

practices could affect persons with criminal convictions; and

WHEREAS, the task force should review admissions and

other community college and state-funded university

requirements to ensure that persons with criminal convictions

are not prohibited from attending or taking classes, or

selecting career paths; and

WHEREAS, the task force should investigate and develop a

proposal for a New Mexico civic justice conservation corps and

community custody program to provide full-time paid

opportunities for people transitioning out of prison; and

WHEREAS, the task force should also study the

effectiveness of establishing an independent office of

advocacy that is administratively attached to the workforce

solutions department and the possibility of establishing a

commission to oversee the office of advocacy; and

WHEREAS, the task force should, if feasible, host a

public sector job fair in collaboration with the state

personnel office, the corrections department, the city of

Albuquerque and Bernalillo county to assist persons with

criminal convictions in obtaining employment and pursuing

career paths;

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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the secretary

of workforce solutions be encouraged to continue to convene,

staff and participate with the task force on employment

barriers for persons with criminal convictions; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be requested

to present its findings and recommendations to the appropriate

interim legislative committee no later than November 1, 2008,

including its recommendations on lifting statutory barriers to

public employment, waiver or review mechanisms available to

persons with convictions and reforms and changes that may be

adopted to remove barriers and enable offenders to demonstrate

their rehabilitation; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be

transmitted to the secretary of workforce solutions, current

task force participants, the superintendent of regulation and

licensing and the director of the personnel board.