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Veterans Department asks for recurring pay funding, Taos cemetery support and mobile unit operations
Summary
The New Mexico Department of Veterans Services asked the Legislative Finance subcommittee for recurring funds to cover personnel costs and a package of special requests — including Taos cemetery staffing, a mobile outreach unit, suicide prevention extension and transportation grants — as agency leaders warned of federal funding shifts that strain local services.
Secretary (Department of Veterans Services) told the committee that veterans services statewide are expanding and that the agency needs recurring funding to stabilize personnel costs. He asked for $1,100,000 in the ‘200’ category to make salaries and benefits solvent and to retain newly upgraded veteran service officers.
The secretary outlined a set of special appropriations: a $200,000 extension for suicide-prevention work previously funded by a two-year allocation, $150,000 annually for three years to operate a new mobile unit that will bring certified veteran service officers to rural areas, $75,000 to augment the homelessness program, $500,000 for outreach and VSO retention, and $650,000 to operate the Taos state cemetery until the site is fully ready for interments.
On Taos, the secretary said procurement began in June and that major equipment likely will arrive in December; he and staff expect interments to begin in early spring once equipment is in place and two more FTEs are hired to complete a four-person Taos crew. “If you want a cemetery to be run, it’s by the state of New Mexico,” the secretary said, stressing the agency’s recent NCA audit recognition for several cemeteries.
Members pressed the agency for detail on the recurring ‘200’ request and on how last year’s raises and reclassifications affected retention. Vice Chair Munoz repeatedly asked why a roughly $1 million shortfall in the ‘200’ category was not requested as recurring funding rather than being covered from an enterprise fund; the secretary said using available enterprise revenues this year provided temporary solvency but increases the need to plan for stability in future biennia.
The secretary also highlighted service delivery improvements: 33 VSOs statewide (including supervisors who serve part time), a newly delivered mobile unit with Starlink for connectivity, and collaboration with federal VA and tribal partners on outreach. Committee members signaled interest in follow-up detail on pay bands, vacancy rates and the mobile unit’s operational plan.
The committee did not take final action on the request during the hearing; members asked agency staff to supply a breakdown of personnel and benefit increases for follow-up review.
