0001| .                       HOUSE BILL 307
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0002|     42ND LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION,
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0003|     1996
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0004|                         INTRODUCED BY
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0005|                           BEN LUJAN
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0006|     
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0007|                                
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0008|     
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0009|     
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0010|     
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0011|                             AN ACT
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0012|     RELATING TO DISTRICT ATTORNEYS; ENACTING THE DISTRICT ATTORNEYS'
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0013|     EXPERT WITNESS ACT; CREATING A FUND; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.
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0014|     
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0015|     BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
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0016|       Section 1.  SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the
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0017|     "District Attorneys' Expert Witness Act".
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0018|       Section 2.  PURPOSE.--The purpose of the District
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0019|     Attorneys' Expert Witness Act is to:
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0020|            A.  provide district attorneys' offices with a
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0021|     contingency fund in the event that general fund appropriations
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0022|     are insufficient to cover the cost of expert witness expenses;
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0023|     and
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0024|            B.  assist district attorneys' offices with the
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0025|     timely prosecution of criminal cases. 
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0001|       Section 3.  DISTRICT ATTORNEYS' EXPERT WITNESS FUND
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0002|     CREATED--ADMINISTRATION--DISTRIBUTION.--
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0003|            A.  There is created in the state treasury the
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0004|     "district attorneys' expert witness fund" to be administered by
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0005|     the administrative office of the district attorneys.
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0006|            B.  All balances in the district attorneys' expert
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0007|     witness fund are appropriated to the administrative office of
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0008|     the district attorneys for payment to district attorneys'
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0009|     offices for the purpose of paying expert witness expenses. 
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0010|     Payments shall be made only upon an offer of proof by a district
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0011|     attorney that general fund appropriations are insufficient to
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0012|     cover the cost of expert witness expenses.  
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0013|            C.  Payments from the district attorneys' expert
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0014|     witness fund shall be made upon vouchers issued and signed by
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0015|     the director of the administrative office of the district
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0016|     attorneys upon warrants drawn by the secretary of finance and
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0017|     administration.
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0018|       Section 4.  APPROPRIATION.--Seventy-five thousand dollars
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0019|     ($75,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the district
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0020|     attorneys' expert witness fund for expenditure in fiscal year
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0021|     1997 to carry out the purposes of the District Attorneys' Expert
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0022|     Witness Act.  Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining
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0023|     at the end of fiscal year 1997 shall revert to the general fund.
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0024|       Section 5.  EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
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0025|     provisions of this act is July 1, 1996.
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0001|                                                          State of New Mexico
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0002|                    House of Representatives
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0003|   
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0004|                    FORTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE
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0005|                      SECOND SESSION, 1996
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0006|   
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0007|   
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0008|                                             February 10, 1996
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0009|   
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0010|   
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0011|   Mr. Speaker:
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0012|   
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0013|       Your JUDICIARY COMMITTEE, to whom has been referred
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0014|   
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0015|                         HOUSE BILL 307
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0016|                                
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0017|                                 has had it under consideration and reports same with
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0018|   recommendation that it DO PASS, and thence referred to the
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0019|   APPROPRIATIONS AND FINANCE COMMITTEE.
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0020|   
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0021|                                Respectfully submitted,
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0022|   
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0023|   
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0024|   
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0025|                                <u>                                 
</u>    |
<u></u>0001| <u>  </u>                            Cisco McSorley, Chairman
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0002|   
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0003|   
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0004|   Adopted <u>                    </u>    Not Adopted <u>                     
</u>    |
<u></u>0005| <u>  </u>
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0006|            (Chief Clerk)                       (Chief Clerk)
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0007|   
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0008|                      Date <u>            </u>
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0009|   
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0010|   The roll call vote was<u> 7 </u> For<u> 1 </u> Against
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0011|   Yes:          7
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0012|   No:      Stewart
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0013|   Excused: Baca, King, Larranaga, Luna, Sanchez, R.G.
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0014|   Absent:  None
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0015|   
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0016|   
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0017|   
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0018|                                                              
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0019|   H0307JC1
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