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 Lundstrom
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 1/28/25
SHORT TITLE Law Enforcement Training at Some Schools
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 48
ANALYST Jorgensen
REVENUE*
(dollars in thousands)
Type FY25 FY26 FY27 FY28 FY29
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
Existing
Training Progs.
No fiscal
impact
$300.0 $300.0 $300.0 $300.0 Recurring
Law
Enforcement
Protection
Fund
Eligible Training
Progs
No fiscal
impact
$1,600.0 $1,600.0 $1,600. 0 $1,600.0 Recurring
Law
Enforcement
Protection
Fund
Tribal and Local
Law
Enforcement
No fiscal
impact
($1,900.0) ($1,900.0) ($1,900.0) ($1,900.0) Recurring
Law
Enforcement
Protection
Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate revenue decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Department of Finance and Administration (DFA)
New Mexico Independent Community Colleges (NMICC)
New Mexico Municipal League (NMML)
University of New Mexico (UNM)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 48
House Bill 48 (HB48) amends provisions of the law enforcement protection fund (LEPF) to
make Western New Mexico University and all branch and community colleges eligible to
receive $100 thousand for faculty salary, benefits, and other instructional materials and related
course expenses.
The effective date of this bill is July 1, 2025.
House Bill 48 – Page 2
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
HB48 makes Western New Mexico University and all branch and community colleges eligible to
receive $100 thousand for faculty salary, benefits, and other instructional materials and related
course expenses. There are currently three post-secondary institutions with certified satellite
academies: Central New Mexico Community College, New Mexico Junior College, and Western
New Mexico University. These institutions would be eligible to receive $100 thousand. The bill
also permits $100 thousand to be paid to any branch or community colleges with law
enforcement programs certified by the New Mexico law enforcement academy. HB48 makes 16
additional higher education institutions eligible to receive funding should they begin a certified
law enforcement program. This is reflected in the potential law enforcement protection fund cost
of $1.6 million for eligible training programs.
The LEPF receives revenue from taxes and fees on insurance products and makes distributions
per statute. The distributions include:
1. Flat distributions to local law enforcement entities
2. Flat distributions to university law enforcement entities
3. Flat distribution to New Mexico law enforcement academy
4. Per-officer distribution to tribal police departments
5. Per-officer distribution to local law enforcement (including school district and university
police)
6. Per officer distribution to local law enforcement for school resource officer training
7. Flat distribution to law enforcement training created by HB48.
Statute provides that, should the funding in the law enforcement protection fund be insufficient
to meet all distributions, the per-officer distributions for tribal and municipal law enforcement
shall be reduced. For this reason, should the increased revenue to the existing training programs
reduce the fund’s ability to make full distribution, the amount of the shortfall will come from
tribal and local law enforcement distributions as shown in the table. Balances over $100
thousand remaining in the law enforcement protection fund at the close of a fiscal year revert to
the law enforcement retention fund which is used to provide salary increases for law enforcement
officers statewide.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The New Mexico Municipal league reports:
The potential reduction to the certified officer allocation amount would directly impact
local governments’ police funding. In FY25, municipalities received $3.7 million through
the certified officer allocation, and counties received $2 million in FY25. A reduction in
this funding stream impacts the financial resources that local law enforcement agencies
rely on to address crime and support public safety.
Law enforcement training programs receive tuition from students or sponsoring law enforcement
entities and the law enforcement academies may set program tuition and fees as they see fit. The
Local Government Division of the Department of Finance and Administration, which
administers the fund notes:
Salary and Benefits are currently not an allowable expense in the LEPF for law House Bill 48 – Page 3
enforcement officers as this expense is operational and should be budgeted through the
entity's fiscal agent, i.e. county or municipality. Similarly, the faculty salary and benefits
at a higher education institute should remain as an expense in their operating budget and
not rely on a special fund that was designed to help law enforcement gain the equipment
and training needed to reduce crime. Because advance law enforcement officer training is
an eligible expense the higher education institutions can provide the accredited training
course for a per officer cost that covers the training materials and related course
expenditures.
OTHER SUBSTANT IVE ISSUES
UNM-Gallup notes:
UNM-Gallup is seeking recurring funding to operate a police academy on its campus.
Funding is needed to start and maintain the program, including faculty salaries, benefits
and instructional costs. If passed, HB48 would allow UNM-Gallup to start a law
enforcement training program on their campus to grow their own law enforcement for
Gallup and surrounding communities. UNM-Gallup currently has space on their campus
to accommodate the program.
UNM further states: Currently, UNM-Los Alamos, UNM-Valencia, and UNM-Taos do not have
law enforcement training programs at their campuses. This funding may be used in the future to
establish such programs at these campuses, but as of time of writing this FIR, these campuses do
not plan to establish a program.
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