HOUSE MEMORIAL 1

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Patricia Roybal Caballero

 

 

 

 

 

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE FINANCE COMMITTEE TO CREATE A TASK FORCE TO STUDY THE FEASIBILITY AND IMPLICATIONS OF AMENDING THE CONSTITUTION OF NEW MEXICO IN ORDER TO CREATE A CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES DEPARTMENT AS AN INDEPENDENT EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT NOT UNDER THE CONTROL OR DIRECTION OF THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR AND ESTABLISH AN INDEPENDENT GOVERNING COMMISSION TO HIRE AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO ASSUME MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT.

 

     WHEREAS, when it comes to child welfare, it is imperative to have a well-structured system that timely and effectively serves vulnerable children and families; and

     WHEREAS, the system of care must meet the needs of children and families in a manner that encompasses the best interests of the children and families it serves; and

     WHEREAS, the children, youth and families department was created by the legislature in 1992 in response to the efforts of former First Lady Alice King to consolidate all services for children and families under one cabinet secretary and to carry out as its primary responsibilities the effective administration of protective services for children and families; supervision and services for delinquent youth and youth who are at risk of becoming delinquent offenders and improvement of their ability to thrive in their communities; and the administration of a behavioral health system for all children in New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, over the past three decades, the children, youth and families department has assumed numerous other obligations and responsibilities, which has diminished its effectiveness and focus on its primary areas of service; and

     WHEREAS, identifying an organizational structure that will best fulfill the children, youth and families department's primary responsibilities is critical to system improvement; and

     WHEREAS, the mission and work of the children, youth and families department have been plagued by operational missteps, leadership changes and high turnover and vacancy rates, all combining to result in dismal outcomes for New Mexico's vulnerable children and families; and

     WHEREAS, a snapshot-in-time view of the broad reach of the children, youth and families department was captured in a May 2023 KOB-TV website post of the department's online dashboard, which revealed that at the time there were one thousand seven hundred forty-four children in state custody, one thousand seven licensed foster homes and four thousand two hundred thirty-eight pending department investigations, showing that at any given time, the department touches the lives of thousands of New Mexico children and families; and

     WHEREAS, in that same KOB-TV website post, the dashboard indicated a children, youth and families department vacancy rate of twenty-five and four-tenths percent, and the department's high turnover rate has been identified as a key obstacle to operational stability and performance; and

     WHEREAS, according to a June 25, 2025 LegisStat report published by the legislative finance committee, the 2023 data available from the federal administration for children and families shows that New Mexico's child maltreatment rate was twelve and six-tenths per one thousand children, seventy percent higher than the national average of seven and four-tenths per one thousand children, and New Mexico's repeat child maltreatment rate for fiscal year 2024 was fifteen percent compared to the national benchmark of nine percent; and

     WHEREAS, the same LegisStat report notes that, although the children, youth and families department has submitted proposed federal Family First Prevention Services Act plans, which are federal plans requiring states to implement evidence-based prevention programs in order to receive plan-related Title 4 federal funds, the most recent plan submitted by the department was not approved, meaning that New Mexico continues to be one of only a few states without an approved plan and that the state continues to miss out on the opportunity for associated federal reimbursement; and

     WHEREAS, the failure of the children, youth and families department to obtain approval of a federal Family First Prevention Services Act plan is just one example of the department's continuing performance struggles, and the LegisStat report indicates that in fiscal year 2025, the department inappropriately used the majority of a twenty-million-dollar ($20,000,000) appropriation intended to provide start-up costs for behavioral health services that would have been eligible for medicaid or other federal reimbursement; and

     WHEREAS, a June 11, 2024 report on New Mexico's child welfare system by the child welfare subcommittee of the legislative finance committee provides a suggested framework to improve outcomes for New Mexico's children and families to include:

          A. implementation of evidence-based prevention and early intervention programs;

          B. development of a professional social work workforce;

          C. expansion of access to behavioral health and other services; and

          D. strengthening oversight and accountability mechanisms; and

     WHEREAS, organized pursuant to the Executive Reorganization Act, the children, youth and families department is a cabinet-level executive department that, among other duties, provides juvenile justice services, child protective services, behavioral health services and program support; and

     WHEREAS, some stakeholders have proposed that consideration should be given to whether the current executive branch structure best serves the mission of the children, youth and families department and that perhaps the department should be restructured separate from the office of the governor and instead established as a department governed by an independent commission to provide enhanced transparency and more direct oversight of the department; and

     WHEREAS, implementing such a structural change would likely require amending the constitution of New Mexico to create a children, youth and families commission appointed by the legislature; and

     WHEREAS, the proposed restructuring would change the governance and operations of the children, youth and families department by providing that a commission would be charged with the hiring and oversight of the department's executive director; and

     WHEREAS, before the time and expense of pursuing a constitutional amendment is expended, a restructuring proposal should be carefully studied and evaluated to determine whether it would enhance the children, youth and families department's ability to effectively carry out its duties in furtherance of its statutory obligations; and

     WHEREAS, a study of any proposed restructuring of the children, youth and families department should include input from key department staff with experience at various pertinent levels within the department, child welfare, behavioral health, foster care and juvenile justice experts, advocacy organizations, tribal governments, families impacted by the services or programs administered by the department and other relevant stakeholders; and

     WHEREAS, the study should identify the potential benefits, challenges and costs of moving forward with the proposed changes and identify any positive or negative implications or outcomes; and 

     WHEREAS, the study should provide a comparison of how similar commission structures function in other states, followed by findings and recommendations regarding whether the proposed structural and governance model would likely improve outcomes for New Mexico's children and families;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the legislative finance committee be requested to appoint a bipartisan task force to study the feasibility and implications of amending the constitution of New Mexico in order to create a children, youth and families department as an independent executive department not under the control or direction of the office of the governor and establish an independent governing commission to hire and oversee an executive director to assume the management and operations of the department; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be composed of no more than eighteen members, including bipartisan legislative representation, key children, youth and families department staff, subject-matter experts in social work, behavioral health, foster care and juvenile justice, tribal government representatives, stakeholders and advocacy groups representing stakeholders; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the legislative finance committee be requested to provide sufficient administrative and staff support for the task force to enable the task force to meet at least monthly and move the task force's work forward in a structured, consistent, public and transparent manner; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in evaluating the proposed changes, the task force be requested to study, recommend and report on:

          A. the potential advantages and disadvantages of transitioning from the current cabinet-level executive oversight to an independent governing commission structure;

          B. the estimated costs associated with creating and maintaining a new commission, including staffing, operations and necessary infrastructure changes;

          C. similar commission structures in other states and whether those states have experienced measurable improved child welfare outcomes;

          D. the potential impact on accountability, transparency and coordination with other state agencies;

          E. appropriate qualifications for commission members and the executive director of the newly structured department;

          F. the path forward for ensuring a smooth transition process and a time line if the proposed changes were implemented;

          G. potential legal and constitutional issues, including the need for, and pursuit of, a constitutional amendment;

          H. any input from tribal governments on how the proposed restructuring would impact Indian child welfare; and

          I. any other relevant considerations the task force deems appropriate; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be requested to make recommendations to the legislature and the governor by November 15, 2026 for consideration during the first session of the fifty-eighth legislature; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the members of the legislative finance committee, the director of the legislative finance committee and the governor.

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