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 Lord/Block
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 3/18/2025
SHORT TITLE Family In Need of Court-Ordered Services
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 382
ANALYST Mercer-Garcia
APPROPRIATION*
(dollars in thousands)
FY25 FY26
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
$1,000.0 Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
CYFD
No fiscal
impact
Up to $3,200.0 Up to $3,200.0 Up to $6,400.0 Recurring General Fund
AOC
No fiscal
impact
Indeterminate Indeterminate Indeterminate Recurring General Fund
OFRA
No fiscal
impact
At least
$1,400.0
At least
$1,400.0
At least
$2,800
Recurring General Fund
Total
No fiscal
impact
At least
$4,600.0
At least
$4,600.0
At least
$9,200
Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Conflicts with Senate Bill 362
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) Office of Family Representation and Advocacy (OFRA) Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) New Mexico Attorney General (NMAG)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 382
House Bill 382 (HB382) amends the Family in Need of Court-Ordered Services (FINCOS) Act
to expand the definition of “family in need of court-ordered services” under Section 32A-3B-2
NMSA 1978 to include families who were subject to investigation by the Children, Youth and House Bill 382 – Page 2
Families Department and for whom credible evidence was found that the child was abused or
neglected, as provided by the Abuse and Neglect Act (Section 32A-4)
HB382 appropriates $1 million from the general fund to the Administrative Office of the Courts
(AOC) for expenditure in FY26 to assist AOC in expanding the Family in Need of Court-
Ordered Services (FINCOS) Act. Any unexpended or unencumbered balances remaining from
the appropriation shall revert to the general fund.
The effective date of this bill is July 1, 2025.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The appropriation of $1 million contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.
Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY26 shall revert to the
general fund. The expansion of the program will continue in future fiscal years; therefore, the
additional costs are assumed to be recurring.
AOC notes potential increased costs because of increased hearings. In addition, the bill
appropriates $1 million to AOC to assist in “expanding the scope” of the FINCOS Act but does
not define “expanding the scope.” The agency notes that, “AOC is not the proper entity to
receive an appropriation for the purpose of expanding the FINCOS Act.”
CYFD did not provide specific fiscal impacts in their analysis. However, in 2024 the department
reported an identical bill would likely expand the CYFD service population and legal filings,
requiring an estimated 25 additional social and community service positions and 5 attorney
positions at a cost of roughly $3.2 million annually.
The FINCOS Act requires the assignment of attorney guardians ad litem for children under 14
and attorneys for children over the age of 14, increasing caseloads within the Office of Family
Representation and Advocacy’s (OFRA). In addition, while appointment of counsel for parents,
guardians, and custodians is not mandatory in FINCOS cases, OFRA anticipates the courts
would appoint OFRA for these parties. OFRA did not provide specific cost estimates. In
analysis for an identical bill in 2024, LFC estimated these additional costs to be at least $1.4
million annually.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The FINCOS Act permits the filing of a petition when a child or family has refused family
services or CYFD has exhausted the available voluntary services requiring court intervention. In
existing statute, family subjects are narrowly defined as: 1) whose child is absent from school,
without an authorized excuse, more than 10 days during the school year; 2) where a child is
absent from their residence more than 12 hours without consent of the parent, guardian, or
custodian; 3) where a child refuses to return home or there is no good cause to believe that the
child will run away if forced to return home; 4) where a parent, guardian, or custodians refuse to
allow the child to return home (when an abuse or neglect petition is not in the child’s best
interest); and 5) where the child is (a) alleged to be engaged in an act that if committed by an
adult would be designated as prostitution or (b) the child is a victim of human trafficking.
House Bill 382 – Page 3
Both AOC and CYFD report that the number of families for whom FINCOS Act petitions are
filed is relatively small, and the FINCOS Act is only currently utilized in a handful of cases
annually.
The bill would allow CYFD to file petitions under the FINCOS Act when an abuse and neglect
petition does not result from an investigation, including instances in which the children’s court
attorney does not endorse the filing as in the best interest of the child and when the department
lacks sufficient evidence to prove abuse or neglect by clear and convincing evidence. Unlike
cases brought under the Abuse and Neglect Act, the FINCOS Act does not require CYFD to
prove by clear and convincing evidence that a child has been abused or neglected. Instead, the
FINCOS Act requires clear and convincing evidence that the child is a child of a family in need
of court-ordered services. AOC notes that this burden of proof, when expanded beyond situations
of truancy, run-aways, or disrupted families, could be subject to over-use or disproportionately
impact families in underserved communities, including instances in which the root causes of
family circumstances maybe result of poverty.
CYFD notes the bill would potentially qualify families who have experienced an investigation,
but for whom substantiated abuse or neglect was not found, for FINCOS cases. CYFD reports
“significant legal concerns” with the bill, which would allow a family to be placed under court
supervision based on “credible-evidence” of abuse or neglect, a lower standard than a fully
substantiated finding of abuse or neglect.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
CYFD has a variety of performance measures related to child safety and well-being, including
repeat maltreatment. The bill could result in increased FINCOS case filings and caseloads, which
could impact agency performance on a variety of performance measures.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
AOC reports potential administrative impact on the courts resulting from additional hearings.
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
Conflicts with SB362, which defines only substantiated cases as eligible for FINCOS petitions,
at the discretion of CYFD children’s court attorneys.
TECHNICAL ISSUES
CYFD reported the language contained in the bill related to a family “that was investigated by
the department” is vague and ambiguous.
House Bill 382 – Page 4
OTHER SUBSTANT IVE ISSUES
CYFD reported potential disparate impacts of the bill, stating:
Investigations involving Native families are substantiated at a rate nearly 8 percent higher
than all substantiated investigations combined for non-Native families. Most of these
substantiations are related to neglect. [These families may be] consequently funneled into
FINCOS cases, where the courts are unable to address poverty-related issues or help
families access necessary services.
CYFD recommends instead:
The current support systems have the potential to be improved by providing families with
more accessible resources and services. For example, while a parent may be court-
ordered to seek treatment, expanding the availability of treatment options in rural
communities would greatly benefit their situation.
The Administrative Offices of the Courts reported the following issues related to HB382:
The bill appropriates $1 million to AOC to assist the courts in “expanding the scope of
the FINCOS Act but does not define “expanding the scope” nor outline what would be
required of AOC.
The courts play no role in filing petitions to initiate CYFD children’s court cases nor do
the courts play a role in completing investigations. CYFD children’s court attorneys
determine that a filing is in the best interest of the child and family, and file petitions that
must include allegations that the child or family are in need of court-ordered family
services, that the child and the family participated in or refused to participate in a plan for
family services, and that court intervention is necessary to assist CYFD in providing
necessary services to the child and family, as provided by Section 32A-3B-11 NMSA
1978.
The courts cannot order or encourage an executive agency to file a petition, and the bill’s
direction to AOC to expand the scope FINCOS Act would be problematic if interpreted
to mean the court should encourage CYFD to file petitions.
Because the burden of proof in FINCOS cases is lower than in abuse and neglect cases,
AOC notes the state may experience additional litigation and challenges due to the
evidentiary variation between the two types of cases.
RMG/hj/SL2