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CSVANW Policy Resource Hub

Welcome to CSVANW's Policy Resource Hub

This page provides Tribal Communities with clear, accessible information about federal and New Mexico state policies that impact and support survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence, human trafficking, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).

We recognize the strength of Tribal Nations and are committed to supporting your efforts to protect, heal, and empower survivors.

Whether you are a Tribal leader, service provider, advocate, or community member, this hub is designed to equip you with the knowledge needed to navigate and implement supportive policies. Together, we can build safer communities and honor the voices and experiences of those impacted by violence.

Please refer to this page every year as we will update the state policy changes with each legislative session for New Mexico

New Mexico Policy Information

In 2019, New Mexico passed House Bill 278, creating the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force. This task force was charged with studying the prevalence and causes of violence against Indigenous women and relatives in the state. Their comprehensive report, released in December 2020, provided recommendations to improve data collection, support survivors and families, and enhance justice system responses. This taskforce has been disbanded but it should be recognized that the Senate Joint Memorial 2 is the new task force that has replaced the MMIWR Task Force under the All-Pueblo Council of Governors.
Source: Tewa Women United

Building upon previous efforts, Senate Joint Memorial 2 was introduced to continue addressing the MMIWR crisis. This memorial called for the formation of a task force comprising representatives from various Indigenous communities, survivors of violence, and relevant organizations to develop strategies to combat this issue. The attorney general was requested to
spearhead these efforts.
Source: New Mexico Legislature

In 2022, the New Mexico Indian Affairs Department released the MMIWR State Response Plan. This comprehensive strategy aims to address the MMIWR crisis through improved data collection, support for survivors and families, and enhanced collaboration between Tribal, state, and federal agencies. The plan emphasizes the importance of culturally appropriate responses and the need for systemic change to prevent violence against Indigenous communities.
Source: NM Indian Affairs Department

New Mexico’s Family Violence Protection Act provides legal avenues for victims of domestic abuse to seek Orders of Protection. The Act defines “domestic abuse” to include stalking, sexual assault, and other forms of actual or threatened harm, offering protections such as restraining orders and temporary custody arrangements. An order of protection under this act can support survivors in multiple ways, including court orders requiring the abuser to:

  • Stay away from you and your children
  • Stop contacting you
  • Not have weapons or ammunition
  • Move out of your house
  • Obey orders about property

The court is also allowed to award:

  • Child custody and visitation (temporarily)
  • Child support (temporarily)
  • Spousal support (temporarily)

Anyone who believes they are a victim of sexual assault or stalking, or anyone who believes they experienced domestic abuse from a household member (such as a current or former spouse, a parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, dating partner, or co-parent) is eligible to ask for an order of protection.

To file an order of protection, domestic violence forms are available online for free at https://nmsupremecourt.nmcourts.gov. If you do not have a computer, most courts will give you the forms for free.
Source: New Mexico Courts

In early 2025, Attorney General Raúl Torrez, alongside lawmakers and advocates, unveiled proposed legislation aimed at enhancing protections for crime victims. The amended  Victim’s Crime Act Bill, seeks to expand safeguards for children and victims of sexual assault, ensuring their rights are upheld throughout the criminal justice process.

Currently, New Mexico law establishes protections for victims, but these laws have no enforcement mechanism to make sure the protections are followed. Victims in New Mexico are also subjected to harmful secondary trauma through a difficult pretrial interview process that does not exist in other states. These bills aim to protect minors and adults, including those who have been sexually abused, from excessive pretrial interviews and to amend the Victims Rights’ Act to provide a way to enforce the protections in the Act through civil penalties and civil suits.

Key takeaways from the amended Victims of Crime Act include:

  • Amending the victims of crime act, providing for remedies for violation of victim rights:
    • The amended Victims of Crime Act would include victims of human trafficking and assault of a health care worker to the group of victims protected by the Act and create remedies for violations of the Act. For example, if a victim does not receive notice of a court hearing or a defendant’s release, the Attorney General could pursue civil penalties or the victim could sue.
  • Child forensic interviews:
    • In almost every other state in the country, victims, and especially child victims, are protected from the secondary trauma caused by defense interviews. In New Mexico, as elsewhere, defendants have a right to cross-examine victims on the witness stand as part of their right to a trial. But New Mexico goes further and requires victims to submit to invasive and lengthy pretrial interviews where they are interrogated by defense attorneys. Defense interviews of children are particularly harmful because defense attorneys are not trained in how to conduct a forensic interview, which results in suggestibility and emotional trauma to the child. The amended Victims of Crime Act would bring New Mexico in line with the rest of the country in protecting child victims from the harm caused by repetitive defense interrogations and give adult victims the right to refuse a defense interview.

Source: New Mexico Department of Justice

Proposed in February 2025, the Turquoise Alert System is a critical proposed tool for protecting Native people and ensuring that missing persons are found quickly and safely. The Turquoise bill will address multiple factors leading to higher percentages of missing and murdered Indigenous peoples throughout the state, including:

  • Higher Risks for Native People: Native women, children, and men are at a higher risk of being victims of violence, including domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and missing person cases.

  • Current Gaps in the System: Native communities, especially those in rural and isolated areas, often face significant barriers when trying to access help for missing persons or violence. The Turquoise Alert System will help fill these gaps by making sure there is a fast and coordinated response to missing Native people.

  • Lack of Timely Action: When a Native person goes missing, response times can be delayed. With the Turquoise Alert, information will be broadcast immediately to the public, media, and law enforcement, helping to quickly locate and protect missing people.

The Bill will provide multiple changes to enhance emergency response for missing Indigenous people. It:

  • Creates the Turquoise Alert System: The bill creates a new emergency notification system to alert the public when a Native person (enrolled or eligible for enrollment in a federally or state-recognized tribe) is missing and endangered.

  • Provides Rapid Alerts: Once a missing Native person is confirmed, the Turquoise Alert will be broadcast through multiple channels—media outlets, law enforcement, and cell phone networks—to spread the word quickly and effectively.

  • Involves Law Enforcement, Media, and the Public: Law enforcement agencies, media, and even mobile phone carriers will all be involved in spreading the alert, ensuring wide coverage and rapid response.

  • Records and Documentation: The bill requires that important information (like the missing person’s age, gender, and location) be recorded and tracked to monitor the effectiveness of the alert system.

  • Supports Local Law Enforcement: The Department of Public Safety (DPS) will train state law enforcement agencies to use the Turquoise Alert system properly, ensuring that alerts are issued and handled efficiently.

  • Allows Termination Once the Person is Found: Once the missing person is located, the alert can be officially terminated, ensuring that law enforcement and media can shift their focus to other priorities.

Key benefits of the bill include:

  • Speed and Efficiency: The Turquoise Alert ensures that missing Native people are found faster by broadcasting alerts quickly and widely. This increases the chances of locating the missing person safely.

  • Increased Coordination: The bill ensures that local, state, and federal agencies, as well as the media and mobile phone companies, work together in a coordinated effort to locate missing people.

  • Protection for Native People: This bill will help protect Native people by providing faster responses to missing persons cases, increasing awareness, and saving lives.

  • The Turquoise Alert System helps quickly locate missing Native people by broadcasting alerts through media, law enforcement, and mobile phones.

  • The bill ensures that law enforcement, media, and mobile companies work together to respond rapidly to missing persons cases.

  • Supporting this bill is crucial for the safety and protection of Native people in New Mexico.

This bill was successfully passed on April 7th 2025.

Source: 2025 CSVANW: Turquoise Alert Bill General Talking Points Guide

Federal Policy Information

Savanna’s Act is a U.S. federal law aimed at addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW). It was signed into law on October 10, 2020. Named after Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, a 22-year-old Spirit Lake Dakota woman who was murdered in 2017, the act strengthens resources and data coordination to help solve and prevent these crimes.

Purpose: To improve the federal response to missing or murdered Indigenous persons by:

  • Enhancing coordination among law enforcement agencies.

  • Improving data collection and analysis.

  • Ensuring tribes have access to resources and information.

Improved Law Enforcement Protocols

“The Attorney General shall… develop law enforcement and justice protocols to address missing or murdered Indians.”

  • The Department of Justice (DOJ) must develop standard protocols for responding to cases involving missing or murdered Indigenous persons.

  • This includes procedures for data collection, response times, and inter-agency cooperation.

Tribal Consultation and Inclusion

“The Attorney General shall consult with Indian tribes on how to improve Tribal access to databases.”

  • Tribes must be consulted on how these protocols are created and implemented.

  • Tribes are to be given better access to national crime databases, such as:

    • NCIC (National Crime Information Center)

    • NamUs (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System)

Data Collection and Reporting

“The Attorney General shall provide training to law enforcement on recording Tribal affiliation in relevant databases.”

  • Law enforcement must accurately record Tribal affiliation when entering data about missing persons.

  • The DOJ must report annually to Congress on the number of missing and murdered Indigenous people, the status of cases, and coordination efforts.

Grants and Support for Tribal Law Enforcement

“The Attorney General may make grants to Tribal governments… for the implementation of protocols and data enhancement.”

  • Funding is available to support Tribal governments and law enforcement in improving their investigative capabilities and coordination with federal and state agencies.

Indigenous women face disproportionately high rates of violence and murder. Savanna’s Act acknowledges these disparities and aims to:

  • Increase accountability.

  • Empower tribes.

  • Create a reliable system for responding to these tragedies.

Source: Department of Justice

In 2022, the U.S. government renewed and strengthened the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) to give Native communities more tools to keep our women, children, and families safe.

This law helps improve how Tribal Nations can respond to violence and brings more support for survivors. It also recognizes the authority of Tribes to handle certain crimes committed by non-Native people on Tribal lands.

Tribes can now prosecute non-Native people who commit more kinds of crimes on Tribal lands. Before, Tribes could only charge non-Natives for domestic violence and dating violence. Now, VAWA 2022 adds more crimes, like:

  • Sexual violence

  • Sex trafficking

  • Child abuse

  • Stalking

Alaska Tribes can take part in a new pilot program that allows Tribal courts in Alaska Native villages to hold non-Native offenders accountable, too.

More funding is now available for:

  • Culturally specific services (programs led by Native people for Native people)

  • The Rape Prevention & Education Program

  • Programs that support restorative justice and healing for survivors

VAWA 2022 includes important truths about what Native people have faced:

  • Native women are over 2.5 times more likely to experience violence than other women in the U.S.

  • Over 4 in 5 Native women (84%) have faced violence in their lifetime.

  • Most of the violence (over 90%) is committed by non-Native people.

  • In some places, Native women are murdered at rates more than 10 times the national average.

  • Homicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for Native women ages 10–24, and 5th for ages 25–34.

The law also highlights how confusing jurisdiction laws have made it harder for Tribal Nations to protect their people. Criminals have used these gaps to get away with harming Native women and children.

VAWA 2022 is a step toward restoring Tribal authority, strengthening local justice systems, and ensuring our communities can protect our own people.

Source: Congress.gov

The Domestic Violence Offender Gun Ban, commonly known as the Lautenberg Amendment, is a federal law enacted in 1996 that prohibits individuals convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence offenses from possessing firearms. This legislation aims to enhance the safety of domestic violence survivors by restricting abusers’ access to guns.

In June 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court, in an 8-1 decision, upheld the constitutionality of this ban in the case of United States v. Rahimi. The Court ruled that preventing individuals subject to domestic violence by restraining orders from possessing firearms does not violate the Second Amendment. This decision reinforced legal protections for domestic violence survivors, acknowledging the heightened risk posed by armed abusers.

This ruling underscored the importance of firearm restrictions in safeguarding individuals affected by domestic violence.

Sources: SCOTUSblog

In 1984, Congress took action to address domestic violence as a public health issue by enacting the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA). The Office of Family Violence Prevention and Services (OFVPS) administers the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA), the primary federal funding stream dedicated to the support of emergency shelter and related assistance for victims of domestic violence and their children.

The Office of Family Violence Prevention and Services is committed to:

  • Providing shelter and other supportive services for victims and their children

  • Coordinating statewide improvements within local communities, social service systems, and programming regarding the prevention and intervention of domestic violence through the leadership of State Domestic Violence Coalitions and FVPSA State Administrators

  • Increasing public awareness about the prevalence of domestic violence, dating violence, and family violence

  • Supporting local and community-based domestic violence programs with specialized technical assistance addressing emerging issues such as trauma-informed care; the co-occurrence of domestic violence and child maltreatment; culturally specific domestic violence services; and effective interventions for children exposed to domestic violence

FVPSA funding reaches over 1,500 domestic violence shelters and programs, supports over 240 tribes and Tribal organizations to address and prevent domestic violence, and provides for a network of state coalitions and national technical assistance providers — all working to ensure vital crisis services are available to individuals experiencing domestic or dating violence and their dependents.

The FVPSA Program recognizes the interrelated aspects of domestic violence with homelessness, economic hardship, workplace readiness, physical and behavioral health concerns, and culturally specific needs, and works across the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to address these issues, including meeting the needs of children exposed to family violence.

These coordinated efforts ensure that survivors can more easily access supportive services, violence-prevention resources, health care, housing, early childhood education, child support, responsible fatherhood programs, and much more. FVPSA Program efforts through grants and technical assistance resulting in:

  • 24-hour hotline with caring advocates providing connections to community resources

  • Services, shelter, and support to 1.3 million survivors

  • Support to more than 1,500 local domestic violence agencies

  • Culturally appropriate and peer-led programs reaching more than 240 Tribes

  • Collaborative training, technical assistance, and resource development at the intersection of domestic violence, homelessness, and housing

  • Increased knowledge sharing and capacity building for culturally specific services and meeting the needs of children exposed to violence in the home

  • Community-level coordination with 56 Domestic Violence Coalitions

For organizations working with survivors of domestic violence, FVPSA Program resources, technical assistance, and grant support may help increase your service capacity, community engagement, and survivor-centered practice.

Source: Office of the Administration for Children and Families

Created in 1983 to implement recommendations from the President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime, the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) was authorized in 1988 through an amendment to the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) of 1984 to administer the Crime Victims Fund (the Fund).

Through OVC, the Fund supports a broad array of programs and services that focus on helping victims in the immediate aftermath of crime and continuing to support them as they rebuild their lives. Millions of dollars are invested annually in victim compensation and assistance in every U.S. state and territory, as well as for training, technical assistance, and other capacity-building programs designed to enhance service providers’ ability to support victims of crime in communities across the Nation.

OVC also connects victim service providers and crime victims with resources, develops research-informed training and publications, and supports innovative programs, promising practices, and resource centers.

OVC works to ensure all victims of crime have access to rights, options, and services that are delivered in culturally relevant, victim-centered, and trauma-informed ways.

Source: Office for Victims of Crime

The Department is committed to fully implementing Public Law No. 116-165, Savanna’s Act. Signed into law in October 2020, Savanna’s Act was a bipartisan effort to improve the federal response to missing or murdered Indigenous persons (MMIP), including by increasing coordination among Federal, State, Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies.

Consistent with Section 4(a) of Savanna’s Act, DOJ provides ongoing training opportunities to law enforcement agencies on how to record Tribal enrollment for victims in Federal databases.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) launched the Tribal Access Program for National Crime Information (TAP) in August 2015. The Tribal Access Program is formally authorized by Congress “…to enhance the ability of Tribal governments and their authorized agencies to access, enter information into, and obtain information from national criminal information databases…”.

Tribal agencies that participate in the Department’s Tribal Access Program (TAP) receive extensive initial training when onboarding and ongoing access to training as user agencies.

The Department is also responsible for creating and delivering the Criminal Jurisdiction in Indian Country (CJIC) training. In 2021, more than 2,000 police officers received training through CJIC as a requirement to receive a Special Law Enforcement Commission from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Moving forward, DOJ will use this class to directly address the need to accurately collect and record demographic information concerning missing persons and violent crime in Tribal communities.

Source: United States DOJ

The Not Invisible Act of 2019 aims to address the crisis of missing, murdered, and trafficked American Indians and Alaska Natives by engaging law enforcement, Tribal leaders, federal partners, and service providers, as well as improving coordination across federal agencies. The bill also mandates the creation of an advisory committee on violent crime within Indian lands and against American Indians and Alaska Natives.

Composed of Tribal leaders, law enforcement, federal partners, service providers, and survivors, the advisory committee will make recommendations to the Department of Interior (DOI) and Department of Justice (DOJ) on combating violence against American Indians and Alaska Natives. The committee will develop recommendations to address this crisis of violence by developing:

  • Administrative changes to identify, report, and respond effectively to cases of missing persons, murder, and human trafficking of American Indians within Indian lands.

  • Best practices for Tribal, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to follow in combating violent crime against Indians within Indian lands, including missing persons, murder, and human trafficking.

  • Guidance on how to address any gaps in services for Indian victims of violent crime.

The Commission will develop and make publicly available recommendations to DOI and DOJ on actions to address violent crime against American Indians and Alaska Natives no later than 18 months after its first meeting. The Not Invisible Act of 2019 requires DOI and DOJ to submit a written response no later than 90 days following receipt of the committee’s recommendations.

The Safe Homes Act allows victims of domestic violence to end their lease early and change locks to keep abusers out. The act applies to private and subsidized housing, but not public housing.

Key provisions

  • Early lease termination: Tenants can end their lease early and leave without being responsible for rent after they leave.

  • Changing locks: Tenants can change the locks to keep abusers out in an emergency.

  • Privacy protection: Landlords cannot disclose private information to a tenant’s next landlord without written permission or a legal requirement.

Other domestic violence housing protections within the act:

  • Laws that prohibit housing discrimination based on domestic violence status

  • Laws that provide an eviction defense if a landlord tries to evict a victim because of a crime or lease violation committed by the abuser

  • Laws that prohibit landlords from limiting a tenant’s right to call the police or emergency assistance

Related federal laws:
The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and familial status.

Source: Shriver Center on Poverty Law

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