LAND GRANT-MERCED ASSISTANCE FUND CHANGES

HB0088

HOUSE BILL 88

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

INTRODUCED BY

Matthew McQueen
and
Elizabeth "Liz" Stefanics
and
Pete Campos

FOR THE LAND GRANT COMMITTEE

AN ACT

RELATING TO LAND GRANTS; AMENDING THE LAND GRANT-MERCED
ASSISTANCE FUND TO CHANGE THE REQUIREMENT THRESHOLDS FOR FULL
AND SEVENTY-FIVE PERCENT DISTRIBUTIONS FROM THE FUND; MAKING
THE LAND GRANT-MERCED ASSISTANCE FUND NONREVERTING; MAKING
TECHNICAL CHANGES.

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

SECTION 1.
Section 49-11-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2022,
Chapter 32, Section 2) is amended to read:

"49-11-6. LAND GRANT-MERCED ASSISTANCE FUND CREATED--DISTRIBUTION.--

A. The "land grant-merced assistance fund" is
created
as a nonreverting fund
in the state treasury and shall
be administered by the department of finance and
administration. The fund consists of gifts, grants, donations,
appropriations to the fund and distributions to the fund made
pursuant to the Tax Administration Act.

B. On or before [
September 1, 2023 and on or
before
] September 1 of each [
subsequent
] year, the state
auditor shall provide a list to the land grant council of the
land grants-mercedes that are in compliance with the Audit Act
and the category of compliance required for each land grant-merced pursuant to Subsection B of Section 12-6-3 NMSA 1978.

C. Within thirty days of the receipt of the list of
Audit-Act-compliant land grants-mercedes and their Audit Act
compliance levels provided by the state auditor pursuant to
Subsection B of this section, the land grant council shall
determine the land grants-mercedes on the list that are
assistance-qualified pursuant to Paragraph (1) of Subsection F
of this section and their distribution categories pursuant to
Subsection D of this section and provide a list of those
determinations to the department of finance and administration
and the state treasurer.

D. An assistance-qualified land grant-merced with
an annual revenue, calculated on a cash basis of accounting,
exclusive of capital outlay funds or federal or private grants
disbursed directly by an administrating agency or previous year
distributions from the land grant-merced assistance fund, shall
receive an annual distribution amount [
starting in fiscal year
2024 and continuing in each subsequent fiscal year
] in
accordance with the following:

(1) less than [
fifty thousand dollars
($50,000)
]
one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000)
, the
assistance-qualified land grant-merced shall receive a full
distribution;

(2) at least [
fifty thousand dollars
($50,000)
]
one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000)
but [
not
more
]
less
than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000),
the assistance-qualified land grant-merced shall receive
seventy-five percent of a full distribution;

(3) at least two hundred fifty thousand
dollars ($250,000) but [
not more
]
less
than five hundred
thousand dollars ($500,000), the assistance-qualified land
grant-merced shall receive fifty percent of a full
distribution; and

(4) five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000)
or more, the assistance-qualified land grant-merced shall
receive twenty-five percent of a full distribution.

E. Within thirty days of receiving the list of
assistance-qualified land grants-mercedes pursuant to
Subsection C of this section, the state treasurer shall
distribute to each assistance-qualified land grant-merced the
amount determined pursuant to Subsections C and D of this
section. [
If the balance in the fund as of the preceding June
30 exceeds the sum of certified amounts distributed, the
difference shall revert to the general fund.
]

F. As used in this section:

(1) "assistance-qualified land grant-merced"
means a land grant-merced that has supplied an account of its
previous fiscal year revenue calculated in the same manner used
for an annual calculation pursuant to Subsection D of this
section to the land grant council, is in compliance with
Chapter 49, Article 1 or 4 NMSA 1978, including having an
elected board of trustees, and is in compliance with the Audit
Act; and

(2) "full distribution" means an amount equal
to the annual amount of money in the land grant-merced
assistance fund at the start of a fiscal year divided by the
total number of assistance-qualified land grants-mercedes as
determined by the land grant council pursuant to Subsection C
of this section for that fiscal year."

SECTION 2.
EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
provisions of this act is July 1, 2026.

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