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 Romero, A
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 3/6/2025
SHORT TITLE Study Office of Peace
BILL
NUMBER
House Memorial
40
ANALYST Dinces
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
Legislative
Council Service
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Sources of Information
LFC Files
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Memorial 40
House Memorial 40 (HM40) would create a group of seven members to study whether it is
feasible to create a state office of peace and to make recommendation to the appropriate interim
committees about the potential creation of this office.
This memorial 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
Memorials contain no appropriation and do not carry the weight of law.The group to examine
whether the state should have an office of peace would be made up of University of New Mexico
(UNM) School of Law representatives. The group would be supported by the Legislative Council
Service (LCS) to coordinate meetings and to help prepare a final report regarding the group’s
work, findings and recommendations.
These meetings would have an impact on the operating budget of LCS, but this impact would
likely be minimal and within the current scope of LCS operations. UNM law may also be
minimally impacted by the creation and meeting of this group.
House Memorial 40 – Page 2
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
While there are many organizations focused on peace, LFC staff did not find evidence of any
state with its own office of peace. Nongovernmental organizations operate within this space,
including the Unites States Institute of Peace.
Since the 1920s, different members of the federal government have proposed creating the
Department of Peace, however it has never been established.
New Mexico would be unique in creating a state level office for this purpose and a work group
could help determine the merits and challenges of such an office.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
As mentioned in fiscal impacts, there are minimal administrative implications for LCS and
potentially UNM regarding staffing and coordinating the meetings of the group to determine if
the state should create an office of peace.
SD/hj/hg