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

SPONSOR Park

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

HB 841

SHORT TITLE 2

nd

Judicial District Document Management

SB

ANALYST McSherry

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$1,200.0

Non-Rec

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 841, “2

nd

Judicial District Document Management” appropriates $1,200,000 from the

general fund to the 2

nd

Judicial District Court ($900,000) and Bernalillo County Metropolitan

Court ($300,000) for the purpose of funding an electronic document management system

(EDMS) in the second judicial district court and to Bernalillo County metropolitan court for “co-

ordination with the second judicial district court.” The bill specifies that any unexpended or un-

encumbered balance at the end of FY 07 shall revert to the general fund and makes funding con-

tingent upon an “approved, detailed project plan that includes electronic document filing and

other document management functions.” The effective date of the Act would be July 1, 2006.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $1,200,000 contained in this bill is a nonrecurring expense to the general

fund. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007 shall

revert to the general fund.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

This appropriation was included in House Bill 2 during the 2005 Legislative Session and lan-

guage to extend the appropriation enacted during the 2005 Session is contained in the version of

the FY07 General Appropriation Act which passed the House.

House Bill 841 – Page 2

This bill appears to replicate the appropriation already received and recommended for extension

in the version of House Bill 2 which passed the House.

According to AOC, rollover of the EDMS funds will allow the second judicial district court to

proceed with the implementation of an EDMS without rushing to spend $900,000 before the end

of FY 06. It will also allow the Bernalillo County metropolitan court time to “coordinate with

the second judicial district.”

PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS

The electronic document management system proposed could improve both the efficiency of the

courts and allow storage of files, reducing the amount of physical storage necessary for the 2

nd

Judicial District.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

The appropriation contained in this bill is equivalent in amount and purpose to the amount ap-

propriated for FY06 in House Bill 2; the appropriation is recommended for extension in the ver-

sion of House Bill 2 which passed the housed.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

The project plan associated with the original appropriation ($1.2 million in the General Appro-

priations Act was approved by “JIFFY” the Judicial Information Division board responsible for

decision-making for the New Mexico Judiciary.

WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT ENACTING THIS BILL

If House Bill 841 is not enacted, the appropriation was already appropriated during the 2005 leg-

islative session and has already been recommended for extension in the version of House Bill 2

which passed the House.

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

1. Is this bill meant to increase the amounts appropriated to the 2

nd

Judicial District Court and

Bernalillo Metropolitan Court, or is it meant to extend the appropriation already received by the

agencies.

EM/nt