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 Sen. Padilla/Rep. Dixon
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 2/7/2025
SHORT TITLE
Sale of Firearms Without Background
Check
BILL
NUMBER Senate Bill 255
ANALYST Dinces
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
NMCD
No fiscal
impact
At least $23.4 At least $49.9 At least $72.4 Recurring General Fund
LOPD
No fiscal
impact
At least $275 At least $275 At least $550 Recurring General Fund
AODA
No fiscal
impact
At least $275 At least $275 At least $550 Recurring General Fund
Total
No fiscal
impact
At least $573.4 At least $599.0
At least
$1,172.4
Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Relates to Senate Bill 70 and Senate Bill 244
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) Administrative Office of the District Attorneys (AODA)
New Mexico Sentencing Commission (NMSC)
New Mexico Corrections Department (NMCD)
Department of Public Safety (DPS)
Agency Analysis was Solicited but Not Received From
Law Office of the Public Defender (LOPD) New Mexico Attorney General (NMAG) Department of Health (DOH)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Senate Bill 255
Senate Bill 255 (SB255) amends Section 30-7-7.1 NMSA 1978 by creating a new violation of
this statute for facilitating firearm sales without a background check on publicly available
platforms. SB255 also increases the penalty for a violation under Section 30-7-7.1 from a
misdemeanor offense to a third-degree felony. Senate Bill 255 – Page 2
SB255 also amends Section 30-42-3 NMSA 1978 by including the unlawful sale of a firearm
without a background check and facilitation of the unlawful sale of a firearm without a
background check, pursuant to Section 30-7-7.1 NMSA 1978, as new crimes under the
Racketeering Act.
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
Incarceration drives costs in the criminal justice system, so the primary fiscal implications
examined in this analysis relate to changes in the number of individuals in prison and the length
of time served in prison that might result from this bill as well as the number of people who may
be charged with facilitation of the unlawful sale of a firearm. The creation of any new crime,
increase of felony degree, or increase of sentencing penalties will likely increase the population
of New Mexico’s prisons and long-term costs to the general fund. In addition to the potential of
new crimes to send more individuals to prison, increased sentence lengths decrease releases
relative to the rate of admissions, pushing the overall prison population higher. The Corrections
Department (NMCD) reports the average cost to incarcerate a single inmate in for one day in
FY24 was $155.63; however, due to the high fixed costs of the state’s prison facilities and
administrative overhead, LFC estimates a marginal cost (the cost per each additional inmate).
This bill will likely increase the number of individuals incarcerated and increase the time they
spend being incarcerated.
According to the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC):
As penalties become more severe, defendants may invoke their right to trial and their
right to trial by jury. More trials and more jury trials will require additional judge time,
courtroom staff time, courtroom availability and jury costs.
There will be a minimal administrative cost for the statewide update, distribution, and
documentation of statutory changes. Any additional fiscal impact on the judiciary would
be proportional to the enforcement of this law and commenced prosecutions. New laws,
amendments to existing laws and new hearings have the potential to increase caseloads in
the courts, thus requiring additional resources to handle the increase.
The Administrative Office of the District Attorneys (AODA) also highlights that this bill would
require additional resources for the Law Office of the Public Defender (LOPD), AODA, and the
judiciary. LFC staff assumed LOPD and AODA would each require at least one additional FTE
and that each agency would require additional support staff time, leading to an estimated annual
cost of $275 thousand per agency.
The New Mexico Sentencing Commission (NMSC) highlights there may also be additional costs
for NMCD:
SB255 creates a new third-degree felony, “facilitation of the unlawful sale of a firearm
without a background check”, which carries a basic sentence of three years
imprisonment. The bill also increases the penalty for the existing offense of “unlawful
sale of a firearm without a background check” from a misdemeanor, which carries a
maximum sentence of less than one year, to a third-degree felony. For individuals
convicted of a third-degree felony who were released from NM prisons in FY24, the Senate Bill 255 – Page 3
median length of stay was 19.2 months. It is difficult to determine what the effect of
passing SB255 would be on the state’s prison population, but its addition of a new third-
degree felony, along with the increased penalty for unlawful sale of a firearm without a
background check, would likely lead to more people being incarcerated by the
Corrections Department. The average per day cost to incarcerate someone in the state’s
prison system is $155.63/day; this average includes private and public facilities.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
Research shows the certainty of being caught is a more powerful deterrent to crime than severity
of sentence. As a result, increasing penalties for crimes is unlikely to produce a significant
impact on crimes committed. Prioritizing solving crimes and securing convictions, particularly
for serious offenses, could be much more impactful. In New Mexico, however, sentencing t has
grown less certain as crime has increased, with fewer violent crimes solved and more violent
felony cases dismissed. LFC’s evaluation team found in the 2
nd
Judicial District (Bernalillo
County) specifically, neither arrests, convictions, nor prison admissions have tracked fluctuations
in felony crime. In 2020, when felonies began to rise, accountability for those crimes fell.
Improving policing and increasing cooperation and coordination among criminal justice partners
could help increase the certainty of punishment for the most violent offenses and thus provide a
stronger deterrent to serious crime. Incarceration (and length of incarceration) has also been
shown to have a criminogenic effect, meaning that time in jail or prison may make people more
likely to commit crimes in the future.
Section 30-7-7.1 was enacted in 2019 and requires background checks for all private firearm
sales, with limited exceptions. A violation under this statute is currently a misdemeanor offense
with each firearm sold contrary to the provisions of this section constituting a separate offense
(Section 30-7-7.1[E]). SB255 increases the penalty to a third-degree felony, punishable by up to
three years in prison for each offense.
Current law mandates federal instant background checks for firearm transfers, with exemptions
for immediate family members, law enforcement officers, and licensed dealers. The bill creates a
new crime of facilitation of the unlawful sale of a firearm without a background check and
makes it a third-degree felony.
According to AOC:
SB255 focuses on addressing firearm sales without a background check on publicly
available platforms. A publicly available platform is a computer application or service
that provides digital content and services to the public. This legislation appears to focus
on firearm sales on social media sites or on online classified ads since it references
“reasonable, industry standard steps could be taken to block or limit the unlawful sale of
a firearm.” Since a violation of Section 30-7-7.1 is a criminal offense, it is not clear how
a company or organization, rather than an individual, can be held criminal liable.
NMCD adds:
SB255 aims to close loopholes that allow firearm sales without background checks,
addressing concerns over gun access by prohibited individuals. The bill aligns with
federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 922(t), which requires background checks for firearm
purchases. Adding the new crime of facilitation of the unlawful sale of a firearm without
a background check to the definition of “racketeering” would provide stronger penalties Senate Bill 255 – Page 4
when done within the scope of an enterprise or within racketeering practices. When done
within the definition of “racketeering,” the offense would be a second-degree felony, and
the crime of racketeering would constitute a separate and distinct offense apart from the
enumerated predicate crimes. State v. Johnson, 1986-NMCA-084, 728 P.2d 473.
The New Mexico Department of Public Safety (DPS) notes that:
This amendment strengthens firearm sale regulations and aligns penalties with other
serious criminal activities. This bill prevents firearms from reaching individuals who are
prohibited from owning them, such as felons, domestic abusers, and those with mental
health concerns. It reduces the risk of gun-related crimes by ensuring proper background
checks. By adding unlawful firearm sales to the definition of “racketeering,” the law
strengthens penalties, discourages illegal gun trafficking, and enhances law enforcement's
ability to prosecute organized crime involving firearms. By tightening firearm sale
regulations, this law helps create a safer environment, reduces gun-related crimes, and
ensures that firearms are sold responsibly in New Mexico; therefore, NM DPS supports
this legislation.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
AOC states that changes in the number of cases filed or going to trial may impact their
performance measures.
The courts are participating in performance-based budgeting. This bill may have an
impact on the measures of the district courts in the following areas:
• Cases disposed of as a percentage of cases filed
• Percent change in case filings by case type
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
This bill relates to Senate Bill 70 and Senate Bill 244. SB70 adds racketeering crimes and SB244
addresses unlawful transfer of a firearm to a minor.
TECHNICAL ISSUES
According to AODA:
SB255’s new language includes the term “industry standards.” “Industry standards” is
vague term and would be difficult to prove without an expert. The deletion of “industry
standards” and just reasonable standards would be more practical to enforce and
prosecute.
NMSC also points out that the term “industry standards” is vague, and includes additional terms
that may need to be defined:
The definition of “facilitation of the unlawful sale of a firearm without a background
check” provided by SB255 is vague; it is unclear exactly what conduct the bill aims to
penalize. No further definitions are provided for included terms like “publicly available
platform” and “industry standard steps” that could reasonably be interpreted to include or
exclude a variety of conduct.
SD/hj/SR/rl