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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Steinborn
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
01/25/08
HM 15
SHORT TITLE Big Brothers Big Sisters Youth Mentoring Day
SB
ANALYST Padilla
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
House Memorial 15 declares Friday, January 25, 2008, “Big Brothers Big Sisters Youth
Mentoring Day" at the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives of the State of
New Mexico recognize the invaluable contributions of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The Memorial states the following:
“More boys and girls in New Mexico than ever before grow up in circumstances that
place them at severe risk of dropping out of school, youth crime and violence, drug and
alcohol abuse and teen pregnancy.
The mission of Big Brothers Big Sisters programs is to bring caring adults into the lives
of young people in order to prevent destructive behavior and instill positive values and
life skills.
New Mexico’s Big Brothers Big Sisters programs served over 3,000 children in 2007 in
counties across the entire state and these programs were nationally recognized for their
Hispanic and Native American mentoring initiatives.
Science-based research has shown that a young person who is matched with a Big
Brother or Big Sister volunteer is:
A.
forty-six percent less likely to start using illegal drugs;
B.
twenty-seven percent less likely to start drinking;
C.
fifty-two percent less likely to skip a day of school;
D.
thirty-seven percent less likely to skip a class;
E.
less likely to engage in violence."
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
The Memorial further states that the positive impact of Big Brothers Big Sisters has proved that
one adult caring for one child is the most powerful force to keep young people in school, of
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House Memorial 15 – Page
2
drugs and alcohol and out of trouble with the law. Big Brothers Big Sisters programs of New
Mexico and its school-based partners have grown twice as fast as the national average,
increasing the number of youth matched with adults by nearly 60 percent to 3,100 Big-Little
matches in the past year. All of the programs at Big Brothers Big Sisters have waiting lists and a
torrent of requests from unserved counties in New Mexico. Big Brothers Big Sisters is
committed to bring its life-changing program to all children in the states, regardless of where
they reside.
WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT ENACTING THIS BILL
The representatives, citizens, and visitors of New Mexico will not have a chance to experience
the “magic" of Big Brother Big Sisters or to be more informed about the programs available to
our New Mexico youth and volunteers through the Big Brothers Big Sisters Program.
JRP/bb