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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

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ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

02/07/07

HB 574

SHORT TITLE Sex Offender Therapist Training

SB

ANALYST Geisler

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY07

FY08

$150.0

Recurring

General

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Relates to HB 166

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Department of Health (DOH)

Children, Youth & Families Department (CYFD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 574 would appropriate $150,000 from the general fund to the Department of Health

(DOH) to fund adolescent sex offender therapy training and certification for therapists who pro-

vide services to entities funded by DOH including community mental health centers, rape crisis

centers, youth violence prevention agencies and similar organizations in Native American com-

munities. Funds would be used for travel, tuition and training and certification costs for those

therapists who have contracted with DOH to continue to provide their services for a period of

one year following certification. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end

of the fiscal year 2008 shall revert to the general fund.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

DOH notes that the appropriation in HB 574 is not included in the FY08 executive budget

request for DOH.

House Bill 574 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

DOH notes training for therapist in the field specific to sex-offender training is highly needed

and necessary to deal with on-going and growing problem.

Sexual violence is a serious problem in New Mexico. Research from the National Violence

Against Women Prevention Research Center (NVAWPRC) suggests that 19% of New Mexican

adult women have been raped at least once during their lifetime. This rate places New Mexico

9th in the nation for lifetime prevalence of rape among adult women in the US. Unpublished re-

sults from the Statewide Survey of Victimization in New Mexico in 2006 found that 24% of fe-

males and 5% of males have been victims of completed or attempted rapes in 2005. Survey re-

sults also showed that 33% of all adult women and 7% of adult men (18 and older) in New Mex-

ico have been victims of completed or attempted rape sometime in their life.

CYFD notes that national research indicates that the rate of sexual assaults committed by youth

is increasing, with current estimates that a fifth of all rapes and half of all molestations nation-

wide are committed by youth ages 13-17. The development of specialized therapists trained to

treat sex offenders – including therapists who specialize in working with youth - is an increas-

ingly important need in the behavioral health system.

RELATIONSHIP

HB 574 relates to HB 166 which would appropriate $150,000 to the Department of Health to

provide funding for a two-week training course for 60 therapists working in community mental

health centers, rape crisis centers, youth violence prevention agencies, agencies providing ado-

lescent sex offender therapy and similar agencies in the Native American community.

GG/sb