Fiscal impact reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) for standing finance
committees of the Legislature. LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports if they
are used for other purposes.
F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Reeb/Hall/Chavez, N.
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 2/6/2025
SHORT TITLE Additions to “Delinquent Act”
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 163
ANALYST Garcia
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
AODA
Indeterminate
but minimal
At least $291.0 At least $291.0 $582.0 Recurring General Fund
LOPD
Indeterminate
but minimal
At least $291.0 At least $291.0 $582.0 Recurring General Fund
CYFD (Juvenile
Justice
Services)
Indeterminate
but minimal
$1,400.0 to
$2,600.0
$1,400.0 to
$2,600.0
$2,800.0 to
$5,200.0
Recurring General Fund
AOC
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
Recurring General Fund
Total
Indeterminate
but minimal
$1,982.0 to
$3,182.0
$1,982.0 to
$3,182.0
$3,964.0 to
$6,364.0
Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Conflicts with House Bill 134
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) Administrative Office of the District Attorneys (AODA)
Law Office of the Public Defender (LOPD)
New Mexico Sentencing Commission
Office of Family Representation and Advocacy (OFRA)
Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD)
Agency Analysis was Solicited but Not Received From
List all agencies that failed to respond to a request for analysis.
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 163
House Bill 163 amends Section 32A-2-3(A) NMSA 1978 of the Delinquency Act by
reorganizing and creating new language about alcohol-related and cannabis-related offenses.
New violations include: House Bill 163 – Page 2
Buying, attempting to buy, receiving, or possessing cannabis;
Being present in a licensed retail cannabis establishment, except in the presence of the
child’s parent, guardian, custodian, or adult spouse;
Smoking a cannabis product in a public place or privately owned property or producing
cannabis.
The bill includes an exemption for medical cannabis possession under the Lynn and Eric
Compassionate Use Act.
This bill does not contain an effective date and, as a result, would go into effect 90 days after the
Legislature adjourns if enacted, or June 20, 2025.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
Incarceration drives costs in the criminal justice system; any change in the number of individuals
in juvenile detention facilities, jail, or prison and the length of time served in juvenile detention
or a secure facility that might result from this bill could have significant fiscal impacts. The
creation of any new delinquent act may increase the population of New Mexico’s juvenile secure
facilities and being supervised in the community, consequently increasing long-term costs to
state.
Juvenile Justice Services at CYFD
In 2020, the Justice Policy Institute estimated the national average cost for secure confinement of
juvenile was $588 per day, or $214 thousand annually. The 2023 LFC Program Evaluation Unit
progress report on Juvenile Justice Services noted the per-client cost in a secure juvenile justice
facility was $383 thousand, though the evaluation noted the cost per client had increased 44
percent since FY19, as the number of clients in secure facilities decreased. The bill could result
in more juveniles placed in secure facilities, increasing JJS costs.
The bill would result in more referrals of Delinquent Act offenses to Juvenile Justice Services,
which would require CYFD to respond to referrals and supervise more juveniles. CYFD notes,
since a pandemic low, JJS has experienced an annual increase of 1,000 referrals to JJS, almost all
from law enforcement, and projects an increase of up to 900 referrals annually associated with
Delinquency Act changes proposed in the bill.
CYFD projects JJS would need to hire 10 additional juvenile probation officers to assist with
handling the projected increase in referrals at a cost of $1.4 million annually. The 2023 LFC
juvenile justice report estimated the per-referrals, per-year cost of field supervision to be $2,900,
which could translate to increased costs of up to $2.6 million annually.
Thus, this analysis assumes increased costs to CYFD JJS ranging between $1.4 million and $2.6
million, given the projected increase in referrals. In recent years, JJS actual expenditures have
been below budgeted levels, and CYFD could potentially absorb some of the cost increases
within their existing budget.
Judiciary
AOC reports the courts would likely experience minimal administrative costs associated with House Bill 163 – Page 3
updating, distributing, and documenting statutory changes, and any bill that results in additional
hearings or caseloads in the court may result in increased costs. The courts did not provide a
precise estimate for fiscal impact.
LOPD notes offenders would be entitled to public defender representation, resulting in the need
for additional attorneys and administrative costs. LOPD estimates the need for an additional
attorney, including benefits, support staff, and operating costs, to be roughly $291 thousand
annually.
AODA also reports the bill could increase case filings against delinquent children and, thereby,
increase the workload of district attorneys’ offices and administrative costs. AODA did not
provide a specific cost estimate. This analysis assumes AODA may have additional costs at a
level similar to LOPD.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The bill makes cannabis-related offenses delinquent acts under the Delinquency Act, which
applies to juveniles, and groups them in the same subsection as alcohol-related offenses. The bill
references Section 26-2C-30 NMSA 1978, stating the offenses pursuant to that statute of
“buying, attempting to buy, receiving or possessing cannabis” are delinquent acts and increases
consequences to a juvenile for these actions.
Section 26-2C-30 provides that a person under 21 shall not possess cannabis products and a
person in violation is guilty of a civil violation, resulting in a sentence to a four-hour drug
education course and four hours of community service.
Delinquent offenses are punishable for up to two years in a juvenile facility.
CYFD reports, prior to New Mexico’s legalization of cannabis in 2021, the possession of
cannabis was a delinquent offense and in the top 15 delinquent offenses received by JJS each
year. JJS reported 800 to 1,000 referrals annually in FY16 through FY19.
Due to the widespread access, availability, and use of cannabis, CYFD JJS anticipates a
significant increase in referrals to JJS should this bill be enacted.
AOC notes House Bill 163 would criminalize offenses for children that would only be civil
penalties for adults under the age of 21:
Section 26-2C-30 NMSA 1978 makes a person who violates this subsection is guilty of a
civil violation. Meanwhile, possession of alcohol by a minor, also listed as a delinquent
act in Section 60-7B-1 NMSA 1978 is a criminal offense punishable by a misdemeanor.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
AOC notes the courts reports on performance-measures related to cases disposes and cases filed,
and this bill could impact performance on these measures.
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
House Bill 163 – Page 4
House Bill 163 conflicts with House Bill 134, which makes broad changes to the Delinquency
Act within the Children’s Code, some of which conflict with the organization of House Bill 163.
TECHNICAL ISSUES
Several agencies note the language and punctuation in Subsection A as drafted are confusing and
redundant.
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