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
Reps. Murphy, Block, Montoya, and
Henry
/Sen. Sharer
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 3/06/2025
SHORT TITLE New Mexico-Ireland Trade Commission
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 564
ANALYST Rodriguez
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
EDD $0.0 $123.7 $123.7 $247.4 Re curring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Economic Development Department (EDD) Agency Analysis was Solicited but Not Received From
New Mexico Governor’s Office Higher Education Department (HED) New Mexico Highlands University (NMHU)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 564
House Bill 564 (HB564) establishes the New Mexico-Ireland Trade Commission to enhance
bilateral trade, investment, and economic collaboration between New Mexico and Ireland,
focusing on technology, agriculture, energy, policy coordination, business and academic
exchanges, and infrastructure investment. The commission would consist of 16 members with
knowledge or experience of Irish affairs and trade relations between New Mexico and Ireland
and the director of the Division of International Trade at the Economic Development Department
(EDD). The commission will submit an annual report on December 1, 2025.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
HB564 allows the commission to hire professional and clerical staff to carry out the purposes of
the commission. EDD would need additional funding for at least one staff person with expertise
in international trade or an increase in contractual costs to support the responsibilities of the
commission. See “Administrative Implications” for more on current staff at EDD who work in
international trade. House Bill 564 – Page 2
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
As noted by EDD, the agency collaborated on an analysis of New Mexico’s competitiveness in
attracting foreign direct investment. The report found that Germany and Canada were the top
markets for investment attraction opportunities in the energy and natural resources, emerging
technologies, and value-added agriculture sectors overall, with Taiwan and Mexico coming in
second for the emerging technologies and value-added agriculture sectors respectively. Ireland
did not appear in the top 10 markets for foreign direct investment opportunities.
Additionally, and as noted by EDD, over the past three years, Ireland’s share of total trade with
New Mexico has remained below 1 percent, except for imports in 2024. In 2024, there was a
hike in imports of electrical machinery, which the agency says is likely an isolated case and tied
to Intel’s efforts to get ahead of changes in tariffs. EDD argues that there is little evidence to
direct limited resources toward Ireland, especially given that ED’s focus is on exports and not on
imports.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
SB564 administratively attaches the commission to EDD. The bill also directs the director of the
Division of International Trade to be a part of the commission. However, as noted by EDD, the
division has not been funded since 2010 and no longer exists at EDD, except by statue (Section
9-15-30.1 NMSA 1978). EDD does have an Office of International Trade, whose duty is to assist
New Mexico companies to capitalize on opportunities in the competitive global marketplace
specifically through the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP). The program provides funding
to eligible small businesses to export products abroad. The office does not have any full-time
staffing, and its work is supported through contractual agreements. As noted by EDD, the
director of the Economic Development Division works with the governor’s office and industry to
attract foreign direct investment to the state. Therefore, EDD would not be able to meet the
requirements of the bill to include the director of the Division of International Trade as a part of
the commission.
TECHNICAL ISSUES
Members of the commission who are not public employees are not entitled to per diem and
mileage. Normally, nonpublic employees are eligible for per diem and mileage—it is unclear of
the intent of the bill was to allow those members to be eligible.
Section 1(B)(1 and 2) specifies that the memberships of the members appointed by the
Legislature will “only for the term of the legislative session during which the members are
appointed.” This implies that new appointments should be made every legislation session. EDD
argues it would be impossible for legislators to make these appointments at the outset of every
legislative session, and for the appointees to have enough time within a 60- or 30-day session to
make any significant contribution to the commission’s work.
JR/hj/hg