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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Pinto
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
1/30/06 HB
SHORT TITLE
TRIBAL LANDS TANF PROGRAMS
SB 8
ANALYST Weber
APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)
Appropriation
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
FY06
FY07
$1,500.0
Recurring
General Fund
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Duplicates Senate Bill 10
Relates to Appropriation in the General Appropriation Act
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Responses Received From
Human Services Department (HSD)
Indian Affairs Department (IAD)
SUMMARY
Senate Bill 8 appropriates $1.5 million from the general fund to the Human Services Department
for the purpose of augmenting the temporary assistance for needy families programs on the
Navajo and Zuni tribal lands. $1 million is appropriated to the Navajo nation and $500 thousand
to the Zuni.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The appropriation of $1.5 million contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.
Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007 shall revert
to the general fund.
pg_0002
Senate Bill 8 – Page
2
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
Human Services reports the following:
Both the Navajo Nation and the Zuni Tribe operate a Tribal TANF program on their respective
tribal lands, which is approved and directly funded by the federal government. The bill would
supplement federal dollars by authorizing HSD to provide the Navajo Nation and the Zuni Tribe
with general fund monies to spend on their tribal TANF Programs.
The use of general fund monies to fund the Tribal TANF expenditures will avoid the legal
problems created by a 2003 appropriation of federal TANF monies associated with New
Mexico’s state TANF program for the tribes.
Under the federal law relating to the state TANF program, the state is required to expend a
specific amount of state general funds (so-called Maintenance of Effort, or MOE, funds) in
association with the State TANF program. States are authorized to use MOE funds or state funds
that are not MOE funds to supplement the funding for the Tribal TANF programs that comes
from the federal government requirement. HSD recommends that any tribal TANF funding not
be part of the state Maintenance of Effort (MOE) funds because several additional requirements
the tribes may have difficulty meeting (such as reporting, timing and reimbursement
requirements) may apply to the funding. Moreover, although the general fund dollars may be
credited toward the TANF MOE requirement, the legislature should be aware that complications
may arise under the federal TANF reauthorization bill, which is likely to pass this spring and
become effective 10/1/2006. Under the federal bill, if state MOE funds are used for cash
assistance, families must meet the federal work participation rates of 50% all families and 90%
2-parent families. This would be difficult for both the tribes/pueblos and HSD to track and
report. HSD may opt to exclude these general fund dollars from the MOE requirement, because
fewer legal restrictions apply if the state funds are not MOE funds and HSD recommends, in
fact, that any Tribal TANF funding not be part of the state MOE funds.
Since the Navajo Nation is located in New Mexico, Utah and Arizona and its tribal TANF
program operates in all three states, the bill should specify that the funding can be used only for
the New Mexico service population of the Navajo tribal TANF program
.
The Indian Affairs Department contributes:
The Pueblo of Zuni has administered the TANF program since July 2002 to address the high
concentration of poverty and unemployment on Pueblo lands. The TANF program helps clients
with getting an education or for seeking employment. (Testimony of Michelle Walela, Director
of the Zuni Education and Career Development Center, Pueblo of Zuni, 11/7/05, Minutes of the
Indian Affairs Committee, State Legislature)
The Navajo Nation TANF program has addressed the high rate of poverty and unemployment in
the Navajo Nation and developed a FY 2007 Service Plan. This service plan addresses the
Navajo Nation’s goal to assist those most in need to achieve self-reliance through the TANF
program for employment and educational pursuits. (Testimony of Roxanne Gorman, Navajo
Nation TANF Director, 11/7/05 Minutes of the Indian Affairs Committee, State Legislature).
pg_0003
Senate Bill 8 – Page
3
Both tribes have submitted their plans to increase services to the State as required in HB 2, 2005
Regular Session General Appropriations Act.
TECHNICAL ISSUES
These funds would not be related to the New Mexico state TANF program. To avoid confusion
consideration may be given to appropriating the funds to the Indian Affairs Department. Since
TANF programs are so varied consideration may be given to defining how the funds should be
used such as cash assistance, child care, work training program, education or administration.
MW/yr