Rep. Rebecca Dow Introduces Bill to Stabilize Foster Placements, Warns Governor's CYFD Order Is a "Band-Aid on an Empty Gas Gauge" Without HB 65
SANTA FE — Representative Rebecca Dow (R-Socorro) has introduced House Bill 65, a targeted, three-year pilot program aimed at addressing one of the most urgent failures in New Mexico's child welfare system: the lack of safe, stable placements that has forced children in state custody to sleep in CYFD offices.
Earlier today, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham issued an executive order directing CYFD to end the practice of children staying overnight in state offices. While the order acknowledges a serious and unacceptable problem, it does not create new foster homes, therapeutic placements, or crisis support to make that goal sustainable. HB 65 provides the tools and funding needed to turn that directive into a permanent solution.
HB 65 creates a Short-Term Stabilization Pilot Program that prioritizes keeping vulnerable children in safe, home-like environments while providing intensive, evidence-based behavioral health support. The program focuses on children with the highest needs, including adolescents, sibling groups, and children experiencing repeated foster care placements.
The pilot program would expand therapeutic foster care options, provide 24/7 crisis support, and offer incentives to qualified foster families and small, home-based providers to help close long-standing placement gaps across multiple counties.
"An executive order alone doesn't create placements for kids who have nowhere else to go," said Rep. Rebecca Dow. "HB 65 is about putting children first by stabilizing placements, supporting foster families, and using proven, evidence-based care to make sure no child is ever forced to sleep in a government office again."
HB 65 would be administered by the Children, Youth and Families Department in collaboration with the Health Care Authority and outside child welfare experts, ensuring accountability and a focus on measurable outcomes.
The bill includes a $2.5 million appropriation and is structured as a limited pilot program to ensure effectiveness, oversight, and responsible use of taxpayer dollars.
*** HB 65 and Governor's executive order attached ***
