NOTE: As provided in LFC policy, this report is intended for use by the standing finance committees of the legislature. The Legislative Finance Committee does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of the information in this report when used in any other situation.
| SPONSOR: | Gubbels | DATE TYPED: | 1/27/99 | HB | 104 | ||
| SHORT TITLE: | Industrial Hemp | SB | |||||
| ANALYST: | Pacheco-Perez | ||||||
| Recurring
or Non-Rec |
Fund
Affected | ||||
| FY99 | FY2000 | FY99 | FY2000 | ||
| $ 50.0 | Recurring | GF | |||
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Revenue Decreases)
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
Commission on Higher Education (CHE)
New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
This bill appropriates $50.0 to the Board of Regents of the New Mexico State University for purposes of the New Mexico Department of Agriculture to conduct a study of the feasibility of growing industrial hemp as a commercial crop. The NMDA shall report its findings to the Legislature.
Significant Issues
According to the CHE, this project was not included in the list of eleven special project requests made by the institution.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The appropriation of $300.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of FY01 shall revert to the general fund.
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
According to the CHE, the state higher education funding formula allows institutions to retain 100% of earned overhead on federal grants and contracts for the purpose of providing seed money and matching funds for projects such as that proposed in this bill.
According to the NMDA, the agency has administered feasibility studies for other specialty crops in the past. Commercial hemp is being grown in Canada, Australia, Great Britain, Austria, Germany, Holland, Finland, France, Spain, Romania, Hungary, Japan, Korea, China, Russia, and South Africa. and has over 50,000 commercial applications including paper, textiles, rope, plastics, and construction materials.
Also Conventional crops such as wheat, corn, and potatoes have experienced depressed prices creating a hardship for growers. Not enacting the bill could jeopardize the introduction of a new specialty cash crop for New Mexico farmers as specialty crops and niche markets are important for continued agricultural growth and especially significant to small-scale growers.
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