NM PRISON RAPE ELIMINATION ACT

HBHB0292

HOUSE BILL HB0292

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Dayan Hochman-Vigil
and
Elizabeth "Liz" Stefanics

and
Nicole Chavez

AN ACT

RELATING TO CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS; ENACTING THE NEW MEXICO
PRISON RAPE ELIMINATION ACT; PROVIDING REQUIREMENTS; PROVIDING
EXCEPTIONS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

SECTION 1.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be
cited as the "New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act".

SECTION 2.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the
New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act:

A. "agency" means the unit of a state, local,
corporate or nonprofit authority with direct responsibility for
the operation of a facility that confines inmates, detainees or
residents, including the implementation of policy as set by the
governing, corporate or nonprofit authority;

B. "agency head" means the principal official of an
agency;

C. "community confinement facility" means a
community treatment center, a halfway house, a restitution
center, a mental health facility, an alcohol or drug
rehabilitation center or other community correctional facility,
including residential reentry centers, other than a juvenile
facility, in which individuals reside as part of a term of
imprisonment or as a condition of pretrial release or
post-release supervision while participating in gainful
employment, employment search efforts, community service,
vocational training, treatment, educational programs or similar
facility-approved programs during nonresidential hours;

D. "contractor" means a person that provides
services on a recurring basis pursuant to a contractual
agreement with an agency;

E. "detainee" means a person detained in a lockup,
regardless of adjudication status;

F. "direct staff supervision" means that security
staff are in the same room with, and within reasonable hearing
distance of, a resident or an inmate;

G. "employee" means a person who works directly for
an agency or a facility;

H. "exigent circumstances" means any set of
temporary and unforeseen circumstances that requires immediate
action in order to combat a threat to the security or
institutional order of a facility;

I. "facility" means an individual prison, jail,
lockup, community confinement facility, detention facility,
juvenile facility, place, institution, building or part of a
building, set of buildings, structure or area, whether or not
enclosing a building or set of buildings, that is used by an
agency for the confinement of individuals;

J. "facility head" means the principal official of
a facility;

K. "gender nonconforming" means a person whose
appearance or manner does not conform to traditional societal
gender expectations;

L. "inmate" means a person incarcerated or detained
in a prison or jail;

M. "intersex" means a person whose sexual or
reproductive anatomy or chromosomal pattern does not fit
typical definitions of male or female;

N. "jail" means a confinement facility of a state
or local law enforcement agency whose primary use is to hold
persons pending adjudication of criminal charges, persons
committed to confinement after adjudication of criminal charges
for sentences of one year or less or persons adjudicated guilty
who are awaiting transfer to a correctional facility;

O. "juvenile" means a person under the age of
eighteen, unless under adult court supervision and confined or
detained in a prison or jail;

P. "juvenile facility" means a facility primarily
used for the confinement of juveniles pursuant to the juvenile
justice system or criminal justice system;

Q. "law enforcement staff" means employees
responsible for the supervision and control of detainees in
lockups;

R. "lockup" means a facility that contains holding
cells, cell blocks or other secure enclosures that are:

(1) under the control of a law enforcement,
court or custodial officer; and

(2) primarily used for the temporary
confinement of individuals who have recently been arrested or
detained or are being transferred to or from a court, jail,
prison or other agency;

S. "medical practitioner" means a health
professional who, by virtue of education, credentials and
experience, is permitted by law to evaluate and care for
patients within the scope of the medical practitioner's
professional practice;

T. "mental health practitioner" means a mental
health professional who, by virtue of education, credentials
and experience, is permitted by law to evaluate and care for
patients within the scope of the mental health practitioner's
professional practice;

U. "pat-down search" means a running of the hands
over the clothed body of an inmate, a detainee or a resident by
an employee to determine whether the individual possesses
contraband;

V. "prison" means an institution under federal or
state jurisdiction whose primary use is for the confinement of
individuals convicted of a serious crime, usually for a term in
excess of one year in length, or a felony;

W. "qualified medical practitioner" means a medical
practitioner who has successfully completed specialized
training for treating victims of sexual abuse;

X. "qualified mental health practitioner" means a
mental health practitioner who has successfully completed
specialized training for treating victims of sexual abuse;

Y. "resident" means a person confined or detained
in a juvenile facility or in a community confinement facility;

Z. "restricted housing", whether instituted
pursuant to disciplinary, administrative, inmate classification
or other action, means confinement of an inmate locked in a
cell or similar living quarters in a correctional facility for
twenty-two or more hours each day without daily, meaningful and
sustained human interaction;

AA. "security staff" means employees primarily
responsible for the supervision and control of inmates,
detainees or residents in housing units, recreational areas,
dining areas and other program areas of a facility;

BB. "strip search" means a search that requires a
person to remove or arrange some or all clothing so as to
permit a visual inspection of the person's breasts, buttocks or
genitalia;

CC. "substantiated" means that an allegation was
investigated and determined to have occurred;

DD. "transgender" means a person whose gender
identity is different from the person's assigned sex at birth;

EE. "unfounded" means that an allegation has been
investigated and determined by definitive evidence not to have
occurred. An allegation where the evidence is sufficient to
conclude that the conduct at issue occurred or may have
occurred but the conduct did not amount to a violation of the
New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act is excluded from the
definition of "unfounded";

FF. "unsubstantiated" means an allegation has been
investigated, and the investigation produced insufficient
evidence to make a final determination as to whether or not the
event occurred;

GG. "volunteer" means an individual who donates
time and effort on a recurring basis to enhance the activities
and programs of an agency;

HH. "youthful inmate" means a person under the age
of eighteen who is under adult court supervision and
incarcerated or detained in a prison or jail; and

II. "youthful detainee" means a person under the
age of eighteen who is under adult court supervision and
detained in a lockup.

SECTION 3.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] SEXUAL ABUSE AND SEXUAL
HARASSMENT--NEW MEXICO PRISON RAPE ELIMINATION ACT
COORDINATOR.--

A. An agency shall have a written policy mandating
zero tolerance toward all forms of sexual abuse and sexual
harassment and outlining the agency's approach to preventing,
detecting and responding to sexual abuse and sexual harassment.

B. An agency shall employ or designate an
upper-level, agency-wide New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act
coordinator with sufficient time and authority to develop,
implement and oversee the agency's efforts to comply with the
provisions of the New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act in the
agency's facilities.

C. If an agency operates more than one facility,
each facility shall designate a New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act compliance manager with sufficient time and
authority to coordinate the facility's efforts to comply with
the provisions of the New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act.

D. "Sexual abuse" includes:

(1) sexual abuse of an inmate, a detainee or a
resident by another inmate, detainee or resident; and

(2) sexual abuse of an inmate, a detainee or a
resident by an employee, a contractor or a volunteer.

E. Sexual abuse of an inmate, a detainee or a
resident by another inmate, detainee or resident includes the
following acts, if the victim does not consent, is coerced into
such act by overt or implied threats of violence or is unable
to consent or refuse:

(1) contact between the penis and the vulva or
the penis and the anus, including penetration, however slight;

(2) contact between the mouth and the penis,
vulva or anus;

(3) penetration of the anal or genital opening
of another person, however slight, by a hand, a finger, an
object or other instrument;

(4) any other intentional touching, either
directly or through clothing, of the genitalia, anus, groin,
breast, inner thigh or buttocks of another person, excluding
contact incidental to a physical altercation; and

(5) as otherwise provided in Sections 30-9-1
through 30-9-21 NMSA 1978.

F. Sexual abuse of an inmate, a detainee or a
resident by an employee, a contractor or a volunteer includes
the following acts, with or without consent of the inmate,
detainee or resident:

(1) contact between the penis and the vulva or
the penis and the anus, including penetration, however slight;

(2) contact between the mouth and the penis,
vulva or anus;

(3) contact between the mouth and any body
part where the employee, contractor or volunteer has the intent
to abuse, arouse or gratify sexual desire;

(4) penetration of the anal or genital
opening, however slight, by a hand, a finger, an object or
other instrument, that is unrelated to official duties or where
the employee, contractor or volunteer has the intent to abuse,
arouse or gratify sexual desire;

(5) any other intentional contact, either
directly or through clothing, of or with the genitalia, anus,
groin, breast, inner thigh or buttocks that is unrelated to
official duties or where the employee, contractor or volunteer
has the intent to abuse, arouse or gratify sexual desire;

(6) an attempt, a threat or a request by an
employee, a contractor or a volunteer to engage in the
activities described in this subsection;

(7) a display by an employee, a contractor or
a volunteer of the employee's, contractor's or volunteer's
uncovered genitalia, buttocks or breast in the presence of an
inmate, a detainee or a resident;

(8) voyeurism by an employee, a contractor or
a volunteer. "Voyeurism by an employee, a contractor or a
volunteer" means an invasion of privacy of an inmate, a
detainee or a resident by staff for reasons unrelated to
official duties, such as peering at an inmate who is using a
toilet in the inmate's cell to perform bodily functions;
requiring an inmate to expose the inmate's buttocks, genitals
or breasts; or taking images of all or part of an inmate's
naked body or of an inmate performing bodily functions; and

(9) as otherwise provided in Sections 30-9-1
through 30-9-21 NMSA 1978.

G. "Sexual harassment" includes:

(1) repeated and unwelcome sexual advances,
requests for sexual favors or verbal comments, gestures or
actions of a derogatory or an offensive sexual nature by one
inmate, detainee or resident directed toward another; and

(2) repeated verbal comments or gestures of a
sexual nature to an inmate, a detainee or a resident by an
employee, a contractor or a volunteer, including demeaning
references to gender, sexually suggestive or derogatory
comments about body or clothing or obscene language or
gestures.

SECTION 4
. [
NEW MATERIAL
] CONTRACTS FOR CONFINEMENT OF
INMATES.--

A. An agency that contracts for the confinement of
the agency's inmates with an agency or other entity shall
include in a new contract or contract renewal the entity's
obligation to comply with the provisions of the New Mexico
Prison Rape Elimination Act.

B. A new contract or contract renewal shall provide
for agency contract monitoring to ensure that the contractor is
complying with the provisions of the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act.

SECTION 5.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] SUPERVISION AND MONITORING OF
FACILITIES.--

A. An agency shall ensure that each facility the
agency operates shall develop, document and make the facility's
best efforts to comply with a staffing plan that provides for
adequate levels of staffing and, where applicable, video
monitoring to protect inmates against sexual abuse. In
calculating adequate staffing levels and determining the need
for video monitoring, a facility shall take into consideration:

(1) generally accepted detention and
correctional practices;

(2) any judicial findings of inadequacy;

(3) any findings of inadequacy from
investigative agencies;

(4) any findings of inadequacy from internal
or external oversight bodies;

(5) all components of the facility's physical
plant, including blind spots or areas where staff or inmates
may be isolated;

(6) the composition of the inmate population;

(7) the number and placement of supervisory
employees;

(8) institution programs occurring on a
particular shift;

(9) applicable state or local laws,
regulations or standards;

(10) the prevalence of substantiated and
unsubstantiated incidents of sexual abuse; and

(11) any other relevant factors.

B. In instances where the staffing plan is not
complied with, the facility shall document and justify all
deviations from the plan.

C. Whenever necessary, but at least once each year,
for each facility that an agency operates, in consultation with
the agency's New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act
coordinator, the agency shall assess, determine and document
whether adjustments are needed to:

(1) the staffing plan established pursuant to
Subsection A of this section;

(2) the facility's deployment of video
monitoring systems and other monitoring technologies; and

(3) the resources that the facility has
available to commit to ensure adherence to the staffing plan.

D. An agency operating a facility shall implement a
policy and practice of having intermediate-level or higher-level supervisors conduct and document unannounced rounds to
identify and deter staff sexual abuse and sexual harassment.
The policy and practice shall be implemented for night shifts
and day shifts. An agency shall have a policy to prohibit
staff from alerting other employees that the supervisory rounds
are occurring, unless the announcement is related to the
legitimate operational functions of the facility.

SECTION 6.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] YOUTHFUL INMATES.--

A. A youthful inmate shall not be placed in a
housing unit in which the youthful inmate will have sight,
sound or physical contact with an adult inmate through use of a
shared dayroom or other common space, shower area or sleeping
quarters.

B. In areas outside of housing units, a facility
shall:

(1) maintain sight and sound separation
between youthful inmates and adult inmates; or

(2) provide direct staff supervision when
youthful inmates and adult inmates have sight, sound or
physical contact.

C. Pursuant to the Restricted Housing Act, a
youthful inmate shall not be placed in restricted housing for
any reason. A youthful inmate shall have access to programs
and work opportunities to the extent possible.

SECTION 7.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] CROSS-GENDER VIEWING AND
SEARCHES.--

A. A facility shall not conduct cross-gender strip
searches or cross-gender visual body cavity searches, including
a search of the anal or genital opening, except in exigent
circumstances or when performed by a medical practitioner.

B. For a facility whose rated capacity does not
exceed fifty inmates, the facility shall not permit cross-gender pat-down searches of female inmates, absent exigent
circumstances. Facilities shall not restrict female inmates'
access to regularly available programming or other out-of-cell
opportunities in order to comply with this section.

C. A facility shall document all cross-gender strip
searches, cross-gender visual body cavity searches and cross-gender pat-down searches of female inmates.

D. A facility shall implement policies and
procedures that enable inmates to shower, perform bodily
functions and change clothing without nonmedical staff of the
opposite gender viewing the inmates' breasts, buttocks or
genitalia, except in exigent circumstances or when such viewing
is incidental to routine cell checks. Policies and procedures
shall require an employee of the opposite gender to announce
the employee's presence when entering an inmate housing unit.

E. A facility shall not search or physically
examine a transgender or an intersex inmate for the sole
purpose of determining the inmate's genital status. If the
inmate's genital status is unknown, it may be determined during
conversations with the inmate, by reviewing medical records or,
if necessary, by learning that information as part of a broader
medical examination conducted in private by a medical
practitioner.

F. An agency shall train security staff in how to
conduct cross-gender pat-down searches and searches of
transgender and intersex inmates in a professional and
respectful manner and in the least intrusive manner possible,
consistent with security needs.

SECTION 8.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] INMATES WITH DISABILITIES AND
INMATES WHO ARE LIMITED IN ENGLISH PROFICIENCY.--

A. An agency shall take appropriate steps to ensure
that inmates with disabilities, including inmates who are deaf
or hard of hearing, who are blind or have low vision or who
have intellectual, psychiatric or speech disabilities, have an
equal opportunity to participate in or benefit from all aspects
of the agency's efforts to prevent, detect and respond to
sexual abuse and sexual harassment. Steps shall include, when
necessary to ensure effective communication with inmates who
are deaf or hard of hearing, providing access to interpreters
who can interpret effectively, accurately and impartially, both
receptively and expressively, using any necessary specialized
vocabulary. An agency shall ensure that written materials are
provided in formats or through methods that ensure effective
communication with inmates with disabilities, including inmates
who have intellectual disabilities or limited reading skills or
who are blind or have low vision. An agency is not required to
take actions that the agency can demonstrate would result in a
fundamental alteration in the nature of a service, a program or
an activity or in undue financial and administrative burdens as
those terms are used in regulations promulgated under Title II
of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

B. An agency shall take reasonable steps to ensure
meaningful access to all aspects of the agency's efforts to
prevent, detect and respond to sexual abuse and sexual
harassment to inmates who are limited in English proficiency,
including steps to provide interpreters who can interpret
effectively, accurately and impartially, both receptively and
expressively, using any necessary specialized vocabulary.

C. An agency shall not rely on inmate interpreters,
inmate readers or other types of inmate assistants except in
limited circumstances where an extended delay in obtaining an
effective interpreter could compromise an inmate's safety, the
performance of first-response duties or the investigation of an
inmate's allegations.

SECTION 9.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] HIRING AND PROMOTION
DECISIONS.--

A. An agency shall not hire or promote a person who
may have contact with inmates, and shall not enlist the
services of a contractor who may have contact with inmates, who
has:

(1) engaged in sexual abuse in a prison, jail,
lockup, community confinement facility, juvenile facility or
other institution;

(2) been convicted of engaging or attempting
to engage in sexual activity in the community facilitated by
force, overt or implied threats of force or coercion or if the
victim did not consent or was unable to consent or refuse; or

(3) been civilly or administratively
adjudicated to have engaged in an activity described in
Paragraph (2) of this subsection.

B. An agency shall consider any incidents of sexual
harassment in determining whether to hire or promote a person
or to enlist the services of a contractor who may have contact
with inmates.

C. Before hiring a new employee who may have
contact with inmates, an agency shall:

(1) perform a criminal background records
check; and

(2) make the agency's best efforts to contact
all prior institutional employers for information on
substantiated allegations of sexual abuse or any resignation
during a pending investigation of an allegation of sexual
abuse.

D. An agency shall perform a criminal background
records check before enlisting the services of a contractor who
may have contact with inmates.

E. An agency shall conduct criminal background
records checks at least every five years of current employees
and contractors who may have contact with inmates or have in
place a system for otherwise capturing such information for
current employees.

F. An agency shall ask all applicants and employees
who may have contact with inmates directly about previous
misconduct described in Subsection A of this section in written
applications or interviews for hiring or promotions and in
interviews or written self-evaluations conducted as part of
reviews of current employees. An agency shall impose upon
employees a continuing affirmative duty to disclose any such
misconduct.

G. Material omissions regarding sexual misconduct
or the provision of materially false information shall be
grounds for termination.

H. An agency shall provide information on
substantiated allegations of sexual abuse or sexual harassment
involving a former employee upon receiving a request from an
employer for whom the employee has applied to work.

SECTION 10.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] UPGRADES TO FACILITIES AND
TECHNOLOGY.--

A. When designing or acquiring a new facility, or
in planning a substantial expansion or modification of an
existing facility, an agency shall consider the effect of the
design, acquisition, expansion or modification upon the
agency's ability to protect inmates from sexual abuse.

B. When installing or updating a video monitoring
system, an electronic surveillance system or other monitoring
technology, an agency shall consider how the technology may
enhance the agency's ability to protect inmates from sexual
abuse.

SECTION 11.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] EVIDENCE PROTOCOL--FORENSIC
MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS.--

A. An agency shall follow a uniform evidence
protocol that maximizes the potential for obtaining usable
physical evidence for administrative proceedings and criminal
prosecutions when investigating allegations of sexual abuse.

B. An evidence protocol pursuant to Subsection A of
this section shall be developmentally appropriate for youth
where applicable and shall be adapted from or otherwise based
on the most recent edition of the publication of the office on
violence against women of the United States department of
justice, "A National Protocol for Sexual Assault Medical
Forensic Examinations, Adults/Adolescents", or similarly
comprehensive and authoritative protocols developed after 2024.

C. An agency shall offer a victim of sexual abuse
access to forensic medical examinations, whether on site or at
an outside facility, without financial cost, where
evidentiarily or medically appropriate. The examinations shall
be performed by a sexual assault forensic examiner or a sexual
assault nurse examiner where possible. If a sexual assault
forensic examiner or a sexual assault nurse examiner cannot be
made available, the examination may be performed by another
qualified medical practitioner. The agency shall document the
agency's efforts to provide a sexual assault forensic examiner
or a sexual assault nurse examiner.

D. An agency shall attempt to make available to a
victim of sexual abuse a victim advocate from a rape crisis
center. If a rape crisis center is not available to provide
victim advocate services, the agency shall make available to
provide the services a qualified community-based staff member
or a qualified agency staff member. An agency shall document
efforts to secure services from rape crisis centers. An agency
may use a rape crisis center that is part of a governmental
unit as long as the center is not part of the criminal justice
system, including a law enforcement agency, and offers a
comparable level of confidentiality to a nongovernmental entity
that provides similar victim services.

E. If requested by a victim of sexual abuse, the
victim's victim advocate or a qualified agency staff member or
qualified community-based staff member shall accompany and
support the victim through the forensic medical examination
process and investigatory interviews and shall provide
emotional support, crisis intervention, information and
referrals.

F. To the extent an agency is not responsible for
investigating allegations of sexual abuse, the agency shall
request that an investigating agency follow the requirements of
Subsections A through E of this section.

G. The requirements of Subsections A through F of
this section shall apply to any state, county or local entity
outside of the agency that is responsible for investigating
allegations of sexual abuse in prisons or jails.

H. As used in this section:

(1) "rape crisis center" means an entity that
provides intervention and related assistance, such as the
services specified in 42 U.S.C. 14043g(b)(2)(C), to victims of
sexual assault of all ages; and

(2) "qualified agency staff member" and
"qualified community-based staff member" means an individual
who has been screened for appropriateness to serve in that role
and has received education concerning sexual assault and
forensic examination issues in general.

SECTION 12.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] REFERRALS OF ALLEGATIONS FOR
INVESTIGATION.--

A. An agency shall ensure that an administrative or
a criminal investigation is completed for all allegations of
sexual abuse and sexual harassment.

B. The agency shall have in place a policy to
ensure that allegations of sexual abuse or sexual harassment
are referred for investigation to an agency with the legal
authority to conduct criminal investigations, unless the
allegation does not involve potentially criminal behavior. The
agency shall publish such policy on its website or, if the
agency does not have a website, make the policy available
through other means. The agency shall document all referrals.

C. A state, local or county entity responsible for
conducting administrative or criminal investigations of sexual
abuse or sexual harassment in prisons or jails shall have in
place a policy governing the conduct of those investigations.

SECTION 13.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] EMPLOYEE TRAINING--VOLUNTEER
TRAINING.--

A. An agency shall train an employee who may have
contact with inmates on:

(1) the agency's zero-tolerance policy for
sexual abuse and sexual harassment;

(2) how to fulfill the employee's
responsibilities under the agency's sexual abuse and sexual
harassment prevention, detection, reporting and response
policies and procedures;

(3) the right of inmates to be free from
sexual abuse and sexual harassment;

(4) the right of inmates and employees to be
free from retaliation for reporting sexual abuse and sexual
harassment;

(5) the dynamics of sexual abuse and sexual
harassment in confinement;

(6) the common reactions of victims of sexual
abuse and sexual harassment;

(7) how to detect and respond to signs of
threatened and actual sexual abuse;

(8) how to avoid inappropriate relationships
with inmates;

(9) how to communicate effectively and
professionally with inmates, including lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, intersex or gender nonconforming inmates; and

(10) how to comply with relevant laws related
to mandatory reporting of sexual abuse to outside authorities.

B. Employee training pursuant to this section shall
be tailored to the gender of the inmates at the employee's
facility. An employee shall receive additional training if the
employee is reassigned from a facility of one gender to a
facility of the opposite gender.

C. An agency shall provide each employee with
refresher training every two years to ensure that all employees
know the agency's current sexual abuse and sexual harassment
policies and procedures. In years in which an employee does
not receive refresher training, the agency shall provide
refresher information on the agency's current sexual abuse and
sexual harassment policies.

D. An agency shall document, through employee
signature or electronic verification, that an employee
understands the training that the employee has received.

E. An agency shall ensure that all volunteers and
contractors who have contact with inmates have been trained on
the volunteers' and contractors' responsibilities under the
agency's sexual abuse and sexual harassment prevention,
detection and response policies and procedures.

F. The type of training provided to volunteers and
contractors shall correspond with the services the volunteers
and contractors provide and level of contact the volunteers and
contractors have with inmates. All volunteers and contractors
who have contact with inmates shall be notified of the agency's
zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual abuse and sexual
harassment and informed how to report such incidents.

G. An agency shall maintain documentation
confirming that volunteers and contractors understand the
training that the volunteers and contractors have received
pursuant to this section.

SECTION 14.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] INMATE EDUCATION.--

A. During an agency's inmate intake process,
inmates shall receive information explaining the agency's
zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual abuse and sexual
harassment and how to report incidents or suspicions of sexual
abuse or sexual harassment.

B. Within thirty days of intake of an inmate, an
agency shall provide comprehensive education to the inmate
either in person or through video regarding the inmate's rights
to be free from sexual abuse and sexual harassment and to be
free from retaliation for reporting incidents of sexual abuse
and sexual harassment and regarding the agency's policies and
procedures for responding to incidents of sexual abuse and
sexual harassment.

C. Current inmates who have not received education
pursuant to this section shall be educated within one year of
the effective date of the New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination
Act, and an inmate shall receive education upon transfer to a
different facility to the extent that the policies and
procedures of the inmate's new facility differ from those of
the previous facility.

D. An agency shall provide inmate education in
formats accessible to all inmates, including those who are
limited in English proficiency, deaf or hard of hearing, blind
or have low vision or otherwise disabled, as well as to inmates
who have limited reading skills.

E. An agency shall maintain documentation of inmate
participation in education sessions pursuant to this section.

F. In addition to providing education pursuant to
this section, an agency shall ensure that key information is
continuously and readily available or visible to inmates
through posters, inmate handbooks or other written formats.

SECTION 15.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR
INVESTIGATIONS.--

A. In addition to the general training provided to
all employees pursuant to Section 13 of the New Mexico Prison
Rape Elimination Act, an agency shall ensure that, to the
extent the agency conducts sexual abuse investigations, the
agency's investigators receive training in conducting the
investigations in confinement settings.

B. Specialized training pursuant to Subsection A of
this section shall include techniques for interviewing victims
of sexual abuse, proper use of Miranda and Garrity warnings,
sexual abuse evidence collection in confinement settings and
the criteria and evidence required to substantiate a case for
administrative action or prosecution referral.

C. An agency shall maintain documentation that the
agency's investigators have completed the specialized training
in conducting sexual abuse investigations required pursuant to
this section.

D. A state, local or county entity that
investigates sexual abuse in confinement settings shall provide
specialized training as provided in Subsection B of this
section to the agency's agents and investigators who conduct
sexual abuse investigations.

SECTION 16.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] MEDICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH
SPECIALIZED TRAINING.--

A. An agency shall ensure that all full- and part-time medical practitioners and mental health practitioners who
work regularly in the agency's facilities have been trained in:

(1) how to detect and assess signs of sexual
abuse and sexual harassment;

(2) how to preserve physical evidence of
sexual abuse;

(3) how to respond effectively and
professionally to victims of sexual abuse and sexual
harassment; and

(4) how and to whom to report allegations or
suspicions of sexual abuse and sexual harassment.

B. If a medical practitioner employed by an agency
conducts forensic examinations, the medical practitioner shall
receive the appropriate training to conduct the examinations.

C. An agency shall maintain documentation that
medical practitioners and mental health practitioners employed
by the agency have received the training described in
Subsection A of this section either from the agency or
elsewhere.

D. Medical practitioners and mental health care
practitioners shall receive the training mandated for employees
and volunteers under Section 13 of the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act, depending upon the practitioner's status at
the agency.

SECTION 17.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] INMATE SCREENING FOR RISK OF
VICTIMIZATION AND ABUSIVENESS.--

A. Inmates shall be assessed during an intake
screening and upon transfer to another facility for the
inmates' risk of being sexually abused by other inmates or
sexually abusive toward other inmates. The screening shall
take place within seventy-two hours of arrival at the facility
and shall be conducted using an objective screening instrument.

B. An intake screening shall consider the following
criteria to assess an inmate for risk of sexual victimization:

(1) whether the inmate has a mental, physical
or developmental disability;

(2) the age of the inmate;

(3) the physical build of the inmate;

(4) whether the inmate has previously been
incarcerated;

(5) whether the inmate's criminal history is
exclusively nonviolent;

(6) whether the inmate has prior convictions
for sex offenses against an adult or a child;

(7) whether the inmate is or is perceived to
be gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex or gender
nonconforming;

(8) whether the inmate has previously
experienced sexual victimization;

(9) the inmate's own perception of
vulnerability; and

(10) whether the inmate is detained solely for
civil immigration purposes.

C. An initial screening shall consider prior acts
of sexual abuse, prior convictions for violent offenses and
history of prior institutional violence or sexual abuse, as
known to the agency conducting the screening, in assessing
inmates for risk of being sexually abusive.

D. Within thirty days from an inmate's arrival at a
facility, the facility shall reassess the inmate's risk of
victimization or abusiveness based upon any additional relevant
information received by the facility since the inmate's intake
screening.

E. An inmate's risk level shall be reassessed when
warranted due to a referral, a request, an incident of sexual
abuse or receipt of additional information that bears on the
inmate's risk of sexual victimization or abusiveness.

F. An inmate shall not be disciplined for refusing
to answer, or for not disclosing complete information in
response to, questions asked pursuant to Subsection B of this
section.

G. An agency shall implement appropriate controls
on the dissemination within a facility operated by the agency
of responses to questions asked pursuant to Subsection B of
this section in order to ensure that sensitive information is
not exploited to the inmate's detriment by employees or other
inmates.

H. If a screening pursuant to this section
indicates that a:

(1) prison inmate has experienced prior sexual
victimization, whether it occurred in an institutional setting
or in the community, staff shall ensure that the inmate is
offered a follow-up meeting with a medical practitioner or
mental health practitioner within fourteen days of the intake
screening;

(2) prison inmate has previously perpetrated
sexual abuse, whether it occurred in an institutional setting
or in the community, staff shall ensure that the inmate is
offered a follow-up meeting with a mental health practitioner
within fourteen days of the intake screening; or

(3) jail inmate has experienced prior

sexual victimization, whether it occurred in an institutional
setting or in the community, staff shall ensure that the inmate
is offered a follow-up meeting with a medical practitioner or
mental health practitioner within fourteen days of the intake
screening.

I. Information related to sexual victimization or
abusiveness that occurred in an institutional setting shall be
strictly limited to medical practitioners, mental health
practitioners and other staff, as necessary, to inform
treatment plans and security and management decisions,
including housing, bed, work, education and program
assignments, or as otherwise required by federal, state or
local law.

J. Medical practitioners and mental health
practitioners shall obtain informed consent from inmates before
reporting information about prior sexual victimization that did
not occur in an institutional setting, unless the inmate is
under the age of eighteen.

SECTION 18.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] USE OF SCREENING
INFORMATION.--

A. An agency shall use information from the risk
screening required by Section 17 of the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act to inform housing, bed, work, education and
program assignments with the goal of keeping separate those
inmates at high risk of being sexually victimized from those at
high risk of being sexually abusive. The agency shall make
individualized determinations about how to ensure the safety of
each inmate.

B. In deciding whether to assign a transgender or
an intersex inmate to a facility for male or female inmates,
and in making other housing and programming assignments, an
agency shall consider on a case-by-case basis whether a
placement would ensure the inmate's health and safety and
whether the placement would present management or security
problems. A transgender or an intersex inmate's own views with
respect to the inmate's own safety shall be given serious
consideration.

C. Placement and programming assignments for each
transgender or intersex inmate shall be reassessed at least
twice each year to review any threats to safety experienced by
the inmate.

D. Transgender and intersex inmates shall be given
the opportunity to shower separately from other inmates.

E. An agency shall not place lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender or intersex inmates in dedicated
facilities, units or wings solely on the basis of lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender or intersex identification or status,
unless the placement is in a dedicated facility, unit or wing
established in connection with a consent decree, legal
settlement or legal judgment for the purpose of protecting the
inmates.

F. Nothing in the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act shall be construed to limit, narrow or modify
the Restricted Housing Act.

SECTION 19.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] PROTECTIVE CUSTODY.--

A. An inmate who is at high risk for sexual
victimization shall not be placed in restricted housing unless
an assessment of all available alternatives has been made and a
determination has been made that there is no available
alternative means of separation from likely abusers. If a
facility cannot conduct such an assessment immediately, the
facility may hold the inmate in involuntary segregated housing
for up to twenty-four hours while completing the assessment.

B. An inmate placed in restricted housing pursuant
to this section shall have access to programs, privileges,
education and work opportunities to the extent possible. If a
facility restricts access to programs, privileges, education or
work opportunities pursuant to this section, the facility shall
document:

(1) the opportunities that have been limited;

(2) the duration of the limitation; and

(3) the reasons for the limitation.

C. A facility shall assign inmates to restricted
housing pursuant to this section only until an alternative
means of separation from likely abusers can be arranged, and
the assignment shall not ordinarily exceed a period of thirty
days.

D. If a restricted housing assignment is made
pursuant to Subsection A of this section, the facility making
the assignment shall clearly document:

(1) the basis for the facility's concern for
the inmate's safety; and

(2) the reason why no alternative means of
separation can be arranged.

E. Every thirty days, a facility shall afford each
inmate housed pursuant to this section a review to determine
whether there is a continuing need for separation from the
general population.

F. Nothing in the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act shall be construed to limit, narrow or modify
the Restricted Housing Act.

SECTION 20.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] INMATE REPORTING.--

A. An agency shall provide multiple internal ways
for inmates to privately report sexual abuse and sexual
harassment, retaliation by other inmates or staff for reporting
sexual abuse and sexual harassment and staff neglect or
violation of responsibilities that may have contributed to such
incidents.

B. An agency shall provide at least one way for
inmates to report abuse or harassment to a public or private
entity or office that is not part of the agency and that is
able to receive and immediately forward inmate reports of
sexual abuse and sexual harassment to agency officials,
allowing the inmate to remain anonymous upon request. Inmates
detained solely for civil immigration purposes shall be
provided information on how to contact relevant consular
officials and relevant officials at the United States
department of homeland security.

C. Employees shall accept reports made verbally, in
writing, anonymously and from third parties and shall promptly
document any verbal reports.

D. An agency shall provide a method for staff to
privately report sexual abuse and sexual harassment of inmates.

SECTION 21.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] EXHAUSTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE
REMEDIES.--

A. An agency shall not impose a time limit on when
an inmate may submit a grievance regarding an allegation of
sexual abuse. An agency may apply otherwise-applicable time
limits to any portion of a grievance that does not allege an
incident of sexual abuse.

B. An agency shall not require an inmate to use an
informal grievance process, or to otherwise attempt to resolve
with staff, an alleged incident of sexual abuse.

C. An agency shall ensure that:

(1) an inmate who alleges sexual abuse may
submit a complaint without submitting it to an employee who is
the subject of the complaint; and

(2) the complaint is not referred to an
employee who is the subject of the complaint.

D. An agency shall issue a final agency decision on
the merits of any portion of a grievance alleging sexual abuse
within ninety days of the initial filing of the grievance.
Computation of the ninety-day time period shall not include
time consumed by inmates in preparing any administrative
appeal. The agency may claim an extension of time to respond,
of up to seventy days, if the normal time period for response
is insufficient to make an appropriate decision. The agency
shall notify the inmate in writing of any such extension and
provide a date by which a decision will be made.

E. At all levels of the administrative process, if
an inmate does not receive a response within the time allotted
for reply, including any properly noticed extension, the inmate
may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that
level.

F. Third parties, including fellow inmates, staff
members, family members, attorneys and outside advocates, shall
be permitted to assist inmates in filing requests for
administrative remedies relating to allegations of sexual abuse
and shall also be permitted to file such requests on behalf of
inmates. If a third party files such a request on behalf of an
inmate, the facility may require as a condition of processing
the request that the alleged victim agree to have the request
filed on the alleged victim's behalf and may also require the
alleged victim to personally pursue any subsequent steps in the
administrative remedy process. If the inmate declines to have
the request processed on the inmate's behalf, the agency shall
document the inmate's decision.

G. An agency shall establish procedures for the
filing of an emergency grievance alleging that an inmate is
subject to a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse. After
receiving an emergency grievance alleging that an inmate is
subject to a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse, the
agency shall immediately forward the grievance, or any portion
thereof that alleges the substantial risk of imminent sexual
abuse, to a level of review at which immediate corrective
action may be taken, shall provide an initial response within
forty-eight hours and shall issue a final agency decision
within five calendar days. The initial response and final
agency decision shall document the agency's determination
whether the inmate is in substantial risk of imminent sexual
abuse and the action taken in response to the emergency
grievance.

H. An agency may discipline an inmate for filing a
grievance related to alleged sexual abuse only where the
investigation finds that the allegation is unfounded and the
agency demonstrates, by evidence other than an anonymous
source, that the inmate purposefully lied about facts
underlying the grievance and filed the grievance in bad faith.
The agency shall not discipline an inmate for filing a
grievance under the New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act
about conduct that the inmate reasonably believed to be a
violation of the New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act but
that was determined not to violate the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act.

I. Nothing in this section shall restrict an
agency's ability to defend against an inmate lawsuit on the
ground that the applicable statute of limitations has expired.

SECTION 22.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] INMATE ACCESS TO OUTSIDE
SUPPORT SERVICES.--

A. A facility shall provide inmates with access to
outside victim advocates for emotional support services related
to sexual abuse by giving inmates mailing addresses and
telephone numbers, including toll-free hotline numbers where
available, of local, state or national victim advocacy or rape
crisis organizations and, for persons detained solely for civil
immigration purposes, immigrant services agencies. The
facility shall enable reasonable communication between inmates
and these organizations and agencies in as confidential of a
manner as possible.

B. A facility shall inform inmates, prior to giving
the inmates access, of the extent to which communications
pursuant to Subsection A of this section will be monitored and
the extent to which reports of abuse will be forwarded to
authorities in accordance with mandatory reporting laws.

C. An agency shall maintain or attempt to enter
into memoranda of understanding or other agreements with
community service providers that are able to provide inmates
with confidential emotional support services related to sexual
abuse. The agency shall maintain copies of the agreements or
documentation showing attempts to enter into the agreements.

D. An agency shall establish a method to receive
third-party reports of sexual abuse and sexual harassment and
shall distribute publicly information on how to report sexual
abuse and sexual harassment on behalf of an inmate.

SECTION 23.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] EMPLOYEE AND AGENCY REPORTING
DUTIES.--

A. An agency shall require the agency's employees
to report immediately and according to agency policy any
knowledge, suspicion or information regarding an incident of
sexual abuse or sexual harassment that occurred in a facility,
whether or not it is part of the agency, retaliation against
inmates or staff who reported such an incident and any staff
neglect or violation of responsibilities that may have
contributed to an incident or retaliation.

B. Employees shall not reveal information related
to a sexual abuse report to anyone other than to the extent
necessary, as specified in agency policy, to make treatment,
investigation and other security and management decisions.

C. Unless otherwise precluded by law, a medical
practitioner and a mental health practitioner shall be required
to report sexual abuse pursuant to Subsection A of this section
and to inform inmates of the practitioner's duty to report, and
the limitations of confidentiality, at the initiation of
services.

D. If an alleged victim of sexual abuse or sexual
harassment is under the age of eighteen or considered a
vulnerable adult, the agency shall report the allegation to the
designated agency under applicable mandatory reporting laws.

E. A facility shall report all allegations of
sexual abuse and sexual harassment, including third-party and
anonymous reports, to the facility's designated investigators.

F. When an agency learns that an inmate is subject
to a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse, the agency
shall take immediate action to protect the inmate.

SECTION 24.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] REPORTING TO OTHER CONFINEMENT
FACILITIES.--

A. Upon receiving an allegation that an inmate was
sexually abused while confined at another facility, the head of
the facility that received the allegation shall notify the head
of the facility or appropriate office of the agency where the
alleged abuse occurred. The notification shall be provided as
soon as possible, but no later than seventy-two hours after
receiving the allegation.

B. An agency or facility shall document that the
agency or facility has provided a notification pursuant to
Subsection A of this section.

C. A facility head or an agency office that
receives a notification pursuant to Subsection A of this
section shall ensure that the allegation is investigated in
accordance with the provisions of the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act.

SECTION 25.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] EMPLOYEE FIRST RESPONDER
DUTIES.--

A. Upon learning of an allegation that an inmate
was sexually abused, the first security employee to respond to
the report shall:

(1) separate the alleged victim and abuser;

(2) preserve and protect any crime scene until
appropriate steps can be taken to collect evidence;

(3) if the abuse occurred within a time period
that still allows for the collection of physical evidence,
request that the alleged victim not take any actions that could
destroy physical evidence, including, as appropriate, washing,
brushing teeth, changing clothes, urinating, defecating,
smoking, drinking or eating; and

(4) if the abuse occurred within a time period
that still allows for the collection of physical evidence,
ensure that the alleged abuser does not take any actions that
could destroy physical evidence, including, as appropriate,
washing, brushing teeth, changing clothes, urinating,
defecating, smoking, drinking or eating.

B. If the first staff responder to an allegation
that an inmate has been sexually abused is not a security
employee, the responder shall be required to request that the
alleged victim not take any actions that could destroy physical
evidence and then notify security staff.

C. A facility shall develop a written institutional
plan to coordinate actions taken in response to an alleged
incident of sexual abuse among staff first responders, medical
practitioners, mental health practitioners, investigators and
facility leadership.

SECTION 26.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
AGREEMENTS--PRESERVATION OF ABILITY TO PROTECT INMATES FROM
CONTACT WITH ABUSERS AND RETALIATION.--

A. An agency or a governmental entity responsible
for collective bargaining on the agency's or governmental
entity's behalf shall not enter into or renew any collective
bargaining agreement or other agreement that limits the
agency's or governmental entity's ability to remove alleged
staff sexual abusers from contact with inmates pending the
outcome of an investigation or of a determination of whether
and to what extent discipline is warranted.

B. Nothing in this section shall restrict the
entering into or renewal of an agreement that governs:

(1) the conduct of the disciplinary process,
as long as the agreement is not inconsistent with the
provisions of the New Mexico Prison Rape Elimination Act; or

(2) whether a no-contact assignment that is
imposed pending the outcome of an investigation shall be
expunged from or retained in an employee's personnel file
following a determination that the allegation of sexual abuse
is not substantiated.

C. An agency shall establish a policy to protect
all inmates and staff who report sexual abuse or sexual
harassment or cooperate with sexual abuse or sexual harassment
investigations from retaliation by other inmates or staff and
shall designate which employees or departments are charged with
monitoring retaliation.

D. An agency shall employ multiple protection
measures, such as housing changes or transfers for inmate
victims or abusers, removal of alleged staff or inmate abusers
from contact with victims and emotional support services for
inmates or staff who fear retaliation for reporting sexual
abuse or sexual harassment or for cooperating with sexual abuse
or sexual harassment investigations.

E. For at least ninety days following a report of
sexual abuse, an agency shall monitor the conduct and treatment
of inmates or staff who reported the sexual abuse and of
inmates who were reported to have suffered sexual abuse to see
if there are changes that may suggest possible retaliation by
inmates or staff and shall act promptly to remedy any such
retaliation. Items the agency should monitor include inmate
disciplinary reports, housing or program changes or negative
performance reviews or reassignments of staff. The agency
shall continue such monitoring beyond ninety days if the
initial monitoring indicates a continuing need. In the case of
inmates, the monitoring shall also include periodic status
checks.

F. If any other individual who cooperates with a
sexual abuse or sexual harassment investigation expresses fear
of retaliation, an agency shall take appropriate measures to
protect that individual against retaliation.

G. An agency's obligation to monitor shall
terminate if the agency determines that the allegation is
unfounded.

SECTION 27.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] CRIMINAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE
AGENCY INVESTIGATIONS.--

A. If an agency conducts its own investigations
into allegations of sexual abuse and sexual harassment, the
agency shall do so promptly, thoroughly and objectively for all
allegations, including third-party and anonymous reports.

B. If sexual abuse is alleged, an agency shall use
investigators who have received special training in sexual
abuse investigations.

C. Investigators shall gather and preserve direct
and circumstantial evidence, including any available physical
and deoxyribonucleic acid evidence and any available electronic
monitoring data; interview alleged victims, suspected
perpetrators and witnesses; and review prior complaints and
reports of sexual abuse involving the suspected perpetrator.

D. If the quality of evidence appears to support
criminal prosecution, an agency shall conduct compelled
interviews only after consulting with prosecutors as to whether
compelled interviews may be an obstacle for subsequent criminal
prosecution.

E. The credibility of an alleged victim, a suspect
or a witness shall be assessed on an individual basis and shall
not be determined by the person's status as inmate or staff.
An agency shall not require an inmate who alleges sexual abuse
to submit to a polygraph examination or other truth-telling
device as a condition for proceeding with the investigation of
the allegation.

F. An administrative investigation shall include an
effort to determine whether staff actions or failures to act
contributed to the abuse and shall be documented in written
reports that include a description of the physical and
testimonial evidence, the reasoning behind credibility
assessments and investigative facts and findings.

G. A criminal investigation shall be documented in
a written report that contains a thorough description of
physical, testimonial and documentary evidence and attaches
copies of all documentary evidence where feasible.

H. Substantiated allegations of conduct by staff or
contractors that appears to be criminal shall be referred for
prosecution. Substantiated allegations of conduct by or
exclusively between inmates that appears to be criminal shall
be referred for prosecution, except that a victim of the
criminal conduct shall be allowed to request that the matter
not be referred for prosecution. This section shall not be
construed to limit an agency's own investigation requirements
as to an allegation.

I. An agency shall retain all written reports
pursuant to this section for as long as the alleged abuser is
incarcerated or employed by the agency, plus five years.

J. The departure of an alleged abuser or victim
from the employment or control of a facility or an agency shall
not provide a basis for terminating an investigation.

K. A state, local or county entity that conducts
such investigations shall do so pursuant to the requirements of
this section.

L. A facility shall cooperate with outside
investigators.

M. An agency shall impose no standard higher than a
preponderance of the evidence in determining whether
allegations of sexual abuse or sexual harassment are
substantiated.

SECTION 28.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] REPORTING TO INMATES.--

A. Following an investigation into an inmate's
allegation that the inmate suffered sexual abuse in an agency's
facility, the agency shall inform the inmate as to whether the
allegation has been determined to be substantiated,
unsubstantiated or unfounded.

B. If an agency did not conduct an investigation,
the agency shall request the relevant information from the
investigative authority responsible for conducting the
investigation in order to inform the inmate.

C. Following an inmate's allegation that an
employee has committed sexual abuse against the inmate, an
agency shall subsequently inform the inmate, unless the agency
has determined that the allegation is unfounded, whenever:

(1) the employee is no longer posted within
the inmate's unit;

(2) the employee is no longer employed at the
inmate's facility;

(3) the agency learns that the employee has
been indicted on a charge related to sexual abuse within the
facility; or

(4) the agency learns that the employee has
been convicted on a charge related to sexual abuse within the
facility.

D. Following an inmate's allegation that the inmate
has been sexually abused by another inmate, an agency shall
subsequently inform the alleged victim whenever:

(1) the agency learns that the alleged abuser
has been indicted on a charge related to sexual abuse within
the facility; or

(2) the agency learns that the alleged abuser
has been convicted on a charge related to sexual abuse within
the facility.

E. All notifications or attempted notifications
pursuant to this section shall be documented.

F. An agency's obligation to report pursuant to
this section shall terminate if the inmate is released from the
agency's custody.

SECTION 29.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] EMPLOYEE DISCIPLINE AND
CORRECTIVE ACTIONS FOR CONTRACTORS AND VOLUNTEERS.--

A. An employee of an agency shall be subject to
disciplinary sanctions up to and including termination for
violating the agency's sexual abuse or sexual harassment
policies.

B. Termination shall be the presumptive
disciplinary sanction for an employee who has engaged in sexual
abuse.

C. Disciplinary sanctions for violations of agency
policies relating to sexual abuse or sexual harassment, other
than actually engaging in sexual abuse, shall be commensurate
with the nature and circumstances of the acts committed, the
employee's disciplinary history and the sanctions imposed for
comparable offenses by other employees with similar histories.

D. Terminations for violations of an agency's
sexual abuse or sexual harassment policies, or resignations by
employees who would have been terminated if not for their
resignation, shall be reported to law enforcement agencies,
unless the activity was clearly not criminal, and to any
relevant licensing bodies.

E. A contractor or volunteer who engages in sexual
abuse shall be prohibited from contact with inmates and shall
be reported to law enforcement agencies, unless the activity
was clearly not criminal, and to relevant licensing bodies.

F. A facility shall take appropriate remedial
measures, and shall consider whether to prohibit further
contact with inmates, in the case of any other violation of an
agency's sexual abuse or sexual harassment policies by a
contractor or volunteer.

SECTION 30.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] DISCIPLINARY SANCTIONS FOR
INMATES.--

A. An inmate shall be subject to disciplinary
sanctions pursuant to a formal disciplinary process following
an administrative finding that the inmate engaged in inmate-on-inmate sexual abuse or following a criminal finding of guilt
for inmate-on-inmate sexual abuse.

B. Sanctions pursuant to Subsection A of this
section shall be commensurate with the nature and circumstances
of the abuse committed, the inmate's disciplinary history and
the sanctions imposed for comparable offenses by other inmates
with similar histories.

C. The disciplinary process shall consider whether
an inmate's mental disabilities or mental illness contributed
to the inmate's behavior when determining what type of
sanction, if any, should be imposed.

D. If a facility offers therapy, counseling or
other interventions designed to address and correct underlying
reasons or motivations for sexual abuse, the facility shall
consider whether to require an offending inmate to participate
in the interventions as a condition of access to programming or
other benefits.

E. An agency may discipline an inmate for sexual
contact with an employee only upon a finding that the employee
did not consent to such contact.

F. For the purpose of disciplinary action, a report
of sexual abuse made in good faith based upon a reasonable
belief that the alleged conduct:

(1) occurred shall not constitute falsely
reporting an incident or lying, even if an investigation does
not establish evidence sufficient to substantiate the
allegation; or

(2) violated the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act shall not constitute falsely reporting an
incident or lying, even if an investigation determines that the
conduct did not constitute a violation.

G. An agency may, in the agency's discretion,
prohibit all sexual activity between inmates and may discipline
inmates for such activity. An agency shall not deem such
activity to constitute sexual abuse if the agency determines
that the activity is not coerced.

SECTION 31.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] ACCESS TO EMERGENCY MEDICAL
AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES--ONGOING SERVICES.--

A. An inmate victim of sexual abuse shall receive
timely, unimpeded access to emergency medical treatment and
crisis intervention services, the nature and scope of which are
determined by medical practitioners and mental health
practitioners according to the practitioners' professional
judgment.

B. If no qualified medical practitioners or
qualified mental health practitioners are on duty at the time a
report of recent abuse is made, security staff first responders
shall take preliminary steps to protect the victim and shall
immediately notify the appropriate medical practitioners and
mental health practitioners.

C. An inmate victim of sexual abuse while
incarcerated shall be offered timely information about and
timely access to emergency contraception and sexually
transmitted infection prophylaxis in accordance with
professionally accepted standards of care, where medically
appropriate.

D. Treatment services pursuant to this section
shall be provided to a victim of sexual abuse without financial
cost and regardless of whether the victim names the victim's
abuser or cooperates with any investigation arising out of the
incident.

E. A facility shall offer medical and mental health
evaluation and, as appropriate, treatment to all inmates who
have been victimized by sexual abuse in a prison, jail, lockup
or juvenile facility.

F. The evaluation and treatment of a victim of
sexual abuse pursuant to this section shall include, as
appropriate, follow-up services, treatment plans and, when
necessary, referrals for continued care following the victim's
transfer to, or placement in, release from custody.

G. A facility shall provide a victim of sexual
abuse pursuant to this section with medical and mental health
services consistent with the community level of care.

H. Inmate victims of sexually abusive vaginal
penetration while incarcerated shall be offered pregnancy
tests.

I. If pregnancy results from the conduct described
in Subsection H of this section, the victim of the conduct
shall receive timely and comprehensive information about and
timely access to all pregnancy-related medical services that
are lawful in the state, including the option to terminate the
pregnancy.

J. Inmate victims of sexual abuse while
incarcerated shall be offered tests for sexually transmitted
infections as medically appropriate.

K. Treatment services pursuant to this section
shall be provided to a victim without financial cost and
regardless of whether the victim names the abuser or cooperates
with any investigation arising out of the incident.

L. A prison shall attempt to conduct a mental
health evaluation of a known inmate-on-inmate abuser within
sixty days of learning of the abuser's abuse history and offer
treatment when deemed appropriate by mental health
practitioners.

SECTION 32.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] SEXUAL ABUSE INCIDENT
REVIEWS.--

A. A facility shall conduct a sexual abuse incident
review at the conclusion of every sexual abuse investigation,
including where the allegation has not been substantiated,
unless the allegation has been determined to be unfounded. The
review shall occur within thirty days of the conclusion of the
investigation.

B. A review team shall include upper-level
management officials, with input from line supervisors,
investigators and medical practitioners or mental health
practitioners.

C. A review team shall:

(1) consider whether the allegation or
investigation under review indicates a need to change policy or
practice to better prevent, detect or respond to sexual abuse;

(2) consider whether the incident or
allegation was motivated by race, ethnicity, gender identity,
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex identification,
status or perceived status or gang affiliation or was motivated
or otherwise caused by other group dynamics at the facility;

(3) examine the area in the facility where the
incident allegedly occurred to assess whether physical barriers
in the area may enable abuse;

(4) assess the adequacy of staffing levels in
the area during different shifts;

(5) assess whether monitoring technology
should be deployed or augmented to supplement supervision by
employees; and

(6) prepare a report of the review team's
findings and any recommendations for improvement and submit the
report to the facility head and the facility's New Mexico
Prison Rape Elimination Act compliance manager.

D. A facility shall implement the review team's
recommendations for improvement or shall document the
facility's reasons for not doing so.

SECTION 33.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] DATA COLLECTION.--

A. An agency shall collect accurate, uniform data
for every allegation of sexual abuse at facilities under the
agency's direct control using a standardized instrument and set
of definitions.

B. An agency shall aggregate the incident-based
sexual abuse data collected pursuant to this section at least
annually.

C. The incident-based data collected pursuant to
this section shall include the data necessary to answer all
questions from the most recent version of the survey of sexual
violence conducted by the United States department of justice
or a similarly comprehensive and authoritative survey.

D. An agency shall maintain, review and collect
data pursuant to this section as needed from all available
incident-based documents, including reports, investigation
files and sexual abuse incident reviews.

E. An agency shall obtain incident-based and
aggregated data pursuant to this section from every private
facility with which it contracts for the confinement of its
inmates.

SECTION 34.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] DATA REVIEW FOR CORRECTIVE
ACTION.--

A. An agency shall review data collected and
aggregated pursuant to Section 33 of the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act in order to assess and improve the
effectiveness of the agency's sexual abuse prevention,
detection and response policies, practices and training,
including by:

(1) identifying problem areas;

(2) taking corrective action on an ongoing
basis; and

(3) preparing an annual report of the agency's
findings and corrective actions for each facility as well as
the agency as a whole.

B. Reports pursuant to this section shall include a
comparison of the current year's data and corrective actions
with data and corrective actions from prior years and shall
provide an assessment of the agency's progress in addressing
sexual abuse.

C. An agency's report shall be approved by the
agency head and made readily available to the public on the
agency's website, or if the agency does not have a website, by
other means.

D. An agency may redact specific material from the
agency's reports when publication would present a clear and
specific threat to the safety and security of a facility but
shall indicate the nature of the material redacted.

E. An agency shall ensure that data collected
pursuant to this section are securely retained.

F. An agency shall make all aggregated sexual abuse
data, from facilities under the agency's direct control and
private facilities with which the agency contracts, readily
available to the public at least annually through the agency's
website or, if the agency does not have a website, through
other means.

G. Prior to making aggregated sexual abuse data
publicly available, an agency shall remove all personal
identifiers.

H. An agency shall maintain sexual abuse data
collected pursuant to Section 33 of the New Mexico Prison Rape
Elimination Act for at least ten years after the date of the
initial collection unless federal, state or local law requires
otherwise.

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