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 Silva
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 2/14/25
SHORT TITLE
Expand Dona Ana Magistrate Riding
Circuit
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 188
ANALYST Chavez
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
3
rd
District Court
No fiscal
impact
At least $4,000.0 No fiscal impact At least $4,000.0 Nonrecurring General Fund
3
rd
District Court
No fiscal
impact
At least $500.0 At least $300.0 At least $800.0 Recurring General Fund
Total
No fiscal
impact
At least $$4,500 At least $300.0 At least $4,800.0 Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Relates to House Bills 144 and 352.
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) Administrative Office of the District Attorneys (AODA)
New Mexico Attorney General (NMAG)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 188
House Bill 188 (HB188) would amend section 35-1-10 NMSA 1978 to require the magistrate
court in Dona Ana County to ride circuit to Sunland Park and Chaparral on a regularly scheduled
basis.
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
The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) points out that HB352 contains no
appropriations and does not have a delayed effective date. The judiciary follows a Unified
Budget process, and the fiscal year 2026 budget does not include capital, supplemental, or
operating funds for expanding circuit court services to Sunland Park or Chaparral. Additionally, House Bill 188 – Page 2
as of 1/31/25 (the date AOC provided analysis), there are no commercially suitable properties
available for purchase or lease in those areas. AOC asserts that, without site inspections, it
remains unclear whether a suitable lease option could be secured. Establishing a new court
facility would require a minimum of $4 million in capital outlay for building a new facility and
at least $500 thousand in increased operating funds for the 3
rd
Judicial District to cover staff,
equipment, materials, and educate justice partners and the public about the new court location.
The annual operating cost of the new court location would be at least $300 thousand, with
additional lease expenses if the judiciary does not own the building.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
AOC provides the following:
If this bill becomes law, it would require the Dona Ana County Magistrate Court to begin
riding circuit to both locations on June 20, 2025. Even if the bill were amended and
provided adequate appropriations to build and staff the new courthouse, there are
multiple facilities projects underway that take precedence due to the caseload or safety
concerns with the current locations. The soonest that this project could be completed is
the end of fiscal year 2031.
AOC currently has a funded project to purchase land and construct a magistrate court in
Anthony, New Mexico. This is part of a larger project designed to serve the access to
justice needs of southern Dona Ana County.
AOC also notes:
“Riding circuit” refers to the practice of a judge traveling to a court on a regularly
scheduled basis. Although a judge will not be present at the circuit court every day, New
Mexico does not have part time magistrate courts. All circuit courts are open to the public
for a minimum 40 hours per week. Without a workload study, it is impossible to know
whether the seven existing magistrates are sufficient to operate a circuit court.
The court location where the cases are filed is not driven by the address of litigants, it is
driven by the location where prosecutors or plaintiffs choose to file charging documents.
Without a study of law enforcement in the area, it is unknown whether any cases under
state jurisdiction would be filed in Sunland Park, which is currently served by a
municipal court. Law enforcement agencies in Dona Ana County are unlikely to file in
either location over the busier courts in Las Cruces and Anthony.
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
This bill relates to House Bill 144 (HB144), which HB144 would have the Otero County
Magistrate Court establish a riding circuit to Chaparral.
This bill also relates to House Bill 352 (HB352) would restructure various magistrate courts in
the state by closing, relocating, or modifying operations in several judicial districts which would
affect magistrate courts or magistrate circuit courts in Dona Ana County.
House Bill 188 – Page 3
OTHER SUBSTANT IVE ISSUES
AOC provides the following:
The magistrate judges are in the middle of their terms and were elected by Dona Ana
County to preside in the Las Cruces and ride circuit to the Anthony courthouse. Changing
the seat where they preside in the middle of a term is ill-advised.
ALTERNATIVES
AOC provides the following:
AOC and the 3rd Judicial District recommend the use of a justice station in lieu of circuit
courts. Further, the AOC recommends that workload and usage studies should precede
the creation of a new court.
FC/hj/SL2