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

SPONSOR McCoy

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/26/08

HB 397

SHORT TITLE Ciudad Soil & Water Projects

SB

ANALYST Haug

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

$100.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Higher Education Department (HED)

New Mexico State University (NMSU)

Energy, Minerals & Natural Resources Department (EMNRD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 397 appropriates $100.0 from the general fund to the Board of Regents of New

Mexico State University to support projects of the Ciudad soil and water conservation district.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $100.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any

unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2009 shall revert to the

general fund.

This request was not submitted by NMSU to the New Mexico Higher Education Department for

review and is not included in the Department’s funding recommendation for FY09.

House Bill 397 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

NMSU states:

•

Ciudad SWCD is an independent subdivision of state government, led by a board of

supervisors, the majority of which are locally elected. Local conservation districts are

tasked with implementing programs to address local conservation needs. Ciudad SWCD

serves Albuquerque and portions of Bernalillo and Sandoval counties.

•

Ciudad SWCD has adopted an annual plan for fiscal year 2007-2008, which indicates that

the district is actively working on projects related to forest health, community wildfire

protection, bosque restoration, erosion control, watersheds, drainage, and maintaining

land in agricultural production. The district provides guidance to the natural resources

conservation service for implementation of the federal farm bill in the local area.

•

Ciudad SWCD has a history of successfully implementing a variety of projects with

funding from many sources in cooperation with landowners, other local agencies and

organizations. Funds appropriated under this bill will increase the district’s ability to

leverage project funding from other sources.

According to the EMNRD:

•

Since 2001, the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department has provided

federal and state funds to the Ciudad Soil and Water Conservation District to conduct

forest health and hazardous fuel reduction thinning projects around communities and

individual homes to reduce local fire danger and improve forest health. Although the

appropriation indicated in this bill is not specifically directed to conduct forest health and

fuel reduction projects, the district’s capacity to conduct this type of work will be

enhanced.

•

This bill will likely benefit the Forestry Division’s efforts to improve forest and

watershed health, as well as reduce hazardous forest fuel loads in and around at risk

communities within the Ciudad Soil and Water Conservation District.

GH/bb