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 Block/Boone
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 3/6/2025
SHORT TITLE Reduce Early Voting Time
BILL
NUMBER Senate Bill 485
ANALYST Hanika-Ortiz
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected Statewide
Elections
No fiscal
impact
See Fiscal
Implications
See Fiscal
Implications
Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Conflicts with Senate Bill 487
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Secretary of State (SOS)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Senate Bill 485
Senate Bill 485 (SB485) amends Section 1-6-5.7 NMSA 1978 (Election Code) to reduce the
number of early voting days at a county clerk’s office or alternate site from 28 days to 15 days,
beginning the third Saturday prior to election, through the first Saturday prior to the election. The
bill also requires those early voting sites to be open for 12 consecutive hours, from 7:00 am to
7:00 pm, instead of the existing eight consecutive hours, between the hours of 7:00 am to 9:00
pm.
Furthermore, the bill removes two existing statutory rules for county clerks: (1) the first, which
required that, within 90 days of a statewide election, location and hours of early voting sites may
not be changed unless SOS agrees to that in writing; and (2) the second allowed for alternate
voting locations to close Sundays and Mondays.
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
SOS notes the requirement to stay open for early voting for 12 hours would result in substantial Senate Bill 485 – Page 2
overtime for election staff and county workers but did not share that cost. This bill is expected to
increase the costs of elections, due to counties hiring additional staff to manage the higher voter
turnout within a condensed timeframe. Additionally, polling places might require more ballot-
on-demand systems to accommodate the increased volume of voters in the shorter time span,
which would pose significant costs for initial purchasing and recurring maintenance. The fiscal
impact of SB485 is therefore indeterminate but likely substantial.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
Should SB485 pass, SOS believes it would dramatically reduce the timeline early voters have
available to cast ballots in the state, potentially reducing overall turnout in New Mexico’s
elections. Also, in case of a natural disaster or threat, SOS would no longer be able to approve
changes to early voting sites and hours of operation if the disaster or threat occurred within 90
days of a statewide election.
SOS notes that early voting was the preferred method for voting by New Mexican voters in the
last two general elections: 1) in 2024; 556.4 thousand voters cast their ballots during the early
voting period, and 2) in 2022; 353.6 thousand voters cast their ballots during the early voting
period.
PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS
SOS notes, according to the National Conference on State Legislatures and as of August 2024,
47 states offer early voting options, with 27 days the average length of time early voting occurs.
OTHER SUBSTANT IVE ISSUES
SOS explains challenges in the bill related to timing:
The third Saturday prior to an election falls outside the 15-day timeline for early voting at
clerks’ offices in the bill. When considering dates for the 2024 general election, 15 days
prior to that election would have been Tuesday, October 22nd. The third Saturday would
have been October 19th, which means voting would have started on the third Saturday
and then skipped Monday the 18th. It would reduce confusion among the public and
voters to have the period be better defined to start on the third Saturday prior the election.
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
Relates to Senate Bill 487, which would establish absentee voter assistance units among other
changes.
AHO/rl/SL2