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 López
/Sedillo Lopez
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 3/3/2025
SHORT TITLE Termination of Parental Rights
BILL
NUMBER Senate Bill 406
ANALYST Garcia/Greenham
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 At least $105.0 At least $105.0 At least $210.0 Recurring
General Fund
and Title IV-E
AOC No fiscal impact
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
Recurring General Fund
Total No fiscal impact At least $105.0 At least $105.0 At least $210.0 Recurring
General Fund
and Title IV-E
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Office of Family Representation and Advocacy (OFRA) Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Senate Bill 406
Senate Bill 406 (SB406) proposes an amendment to Section 32A-4-28 NMSA 1978, which
governs the termination of parental rights in abuse and neglect cases. Specifically, SB406 seeks
to remove the rebuttable presumption of abandonment as a basis for terminating parental rights.
SB406 eliminates this provision, requiring that termination of parental rights be based on either
actual abandonment or a finding that the conditions leading to neglect or abuse are unlikely to
change despite reasonable efforts to assist the parent.
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
SB406 could increase the complexity of cases in which the Children, Youth and Families Senate Bill 406 – Page 2
Department (CYFD) moves to terminate parent rights, requiring additional resources to establish
actual abandonment. This could lead to longer case resolution times, additional court hearings,
and increased caseloads for the judiciary.
CYFD reports “no direct fiscal impact on the Children, Youth and Families Department.”
However, by eliminating a basis for termination of parent rights, a prerequisite for adoption, this
bill may result in extended foster care placement and delay CYFD from achieving permanency
for children. Consequently, this could necessitate additional resources from CYFD’s permanency
and legal teams. CYFD did not provide a specific cost estimate.
According to previous LFC reports, the annual cost of a child in foster care is estimated at $21
thousand. This analysis assumes the bill may result in at least five children requiring an
additional year of foster care, at a cost of $105 thousand annually. New Mexico would be
eligible for drawdown federal Title IV-E (foster care) funding to cover a portion of any
additional costs associated with legal expenses or maintenance payments for children in foster
care.
The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) notes minimal administrative costs result from
the need to update, distribute, and document any statutory changes, and any new law has the
potential to increase caseloads. AOC did not provide a specific estimate of potential costs.
The Office of Family Representation and Advocacy (OFRA) notes no fiscal impact resulting
from the bill.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, a uniform state law approved by
the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, defines as “abandoned” a
child who is “left without provision for reasonable and necessary care or supervisions.”
According to American University, Washington College of Law, all states, except Massachusetts
and Virginia, contain this definition in their statutes. Beyond this definition, state laws different
about what is needed for a parent to be deemed to have abandoned a child. State definitions may
include:
Failure to provide reasonable care, support, communication, or visitation with a child;
Failure to perform duties as parents, or as unwillingness to take physical custody of
the child or make arrangements for the child’s care.
Within the court system, the party moving for termination has the burden to prove abandonment
has occurred. Within child welfare, a rebuttable presumption of abandonment is one that can be
used in court proceedings to terminate parental rights, based on conditions such as the parent’s
repeated absence or the child’s long-term care by another family.
Under current law in New Mexico, a court may terminate parental rights if a child has been in
the care of another family for an extended period, the parent-child relationship has deteriorated, a
psychological bond has developed between the child and their caregivers, the child no longer
wishes to reside with the biological parent, or the substitute family wishes to adopt.
SB406 eliminates the rebuttable presumption of abandonment as a basis for terminating parental Senate Bill 406 – Page 3
rights in abuse and neglect cases.
AOC notes that some states (e.g., Alabama, Washington) still employ presumptions of
abandonment in their termination statutes that are similar to New Mexico’s current factors.
The changes in SB406 were recommended by the Children’s Code Reform Task Force, which
reported:
The elements of presumptive abandonment, as it stands in the Abuse and Neglect Act,
most often arise a result of state removal of a child and are often conditions created by
the removal itself, the child’s time away from the family, and the experience of foster
care, not by the faults or habits of the parent prior to or after removal.
OFRA supports the bill, indicating the current law allows termination based on conditions
created by the state’s intervention rather than parental wrongdoing. OFRA contends SB406
aligns with the Children’s Code, which prioritizes family preservation and prevents parental
rights from being severed due to systemic delays or limited visitation opportunities while a child
is in foster care. Additionally, SB406 would bring New Mexico’s child welfare laws more in line
with national trends emphasizing the need for clear evidence of parental unfitness, rather than
relying on the passage of time and foster care placement as a basis for termination.
CYFD raises concerns that removing this legal mechanism may delay permanency for children
in foster care. CYFD states, without the presumption of abandonment, termination may not be
granted even when a child has formed a strong psychological bond with a resource family and no
longer has a meaningful connection to their biological parent. CYFD warns this could prolong
foster care placements, create uncertainty for families willing to adopt, and potentially
discourage individuals from becoming foster parents if the pathway to adoption is perceived as
more uncertain.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
CYFD reports state and federal laws impose limits on the duration a child may remain in foster
care without achieving permanency, and CYFD is held to performance measures regarding the
length of time children spend in foster care. This bill proposes the elimination of one of the
grounds for terminating parent rights, which CYFD notes, “may unnecessarily extend the time
children remain in foster care, potentially delaying their path to permanency.”
OTHER SUBSTANT IVE ISSUES
OFRA notes the amendment proposed in SB406 does not remove presumptive abandonment as
grounds for termination of parent rights under the Adoption Act (Section 32A-5-1) and suggests
this basis is appropriate in private adoptions, as there has been no state actor intervening in the
parent/child relationship and no state actor required to make efforts to assist the parent.
RMG/MG/hg