Under guidelines issued by the Appropriations Committee, each Representative has the opportunity to request funding for up to 15 projects in their community for Fiscal Year 2025. Projects were restricted to a limited number of federal funding streams, and only state and local governments and eligible non-profit entities were permitted to receive funding. Additional information on the reforms governing Community Project Funding is available here.
In compliance with House Rules and Committee requirements, Rep. Leger Fernández certified that she and her immediate family have no financial interest in any of the projects requested.
A full list of requested projects is below.
Subcommittee: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
Project Name: Bernalillo Public School District Cochiti Multi-Cultural and Career Technical Education Center
Recipient: Bernalillo Public School District
Address: 560 S Camino Del Pueblo, Bernalillo, New Mexico
Amount Requested: $4,000,000
Project Description: The Cochiti Multi-Cultural and Career Technical Education Center, will serve as a beacon of education for approximately 300 students in the rural Cochiti Pueblo area, where 53% of the population identifies as Native American and 48% as Hispanic. Furthermore, 100% of students are on free and reduced-price lunch. This center will be located within Cochiti Pueblo, a federally designated tribe with a population of less than 1,000 and will serve a pivotal role in preserving cultural language and traditions while equipping minority students with essential early career skills. Leveraging existing funds, this project addresses critical gaps in infrastructure, providing dedicated spaces for cultural language preservation classrooms, innovation labs, and early career technical education. The investment not only empowers the diverse student body but preserves the cultural heritage of communities while fostering disadvantaged youth in obtaining critical workforce readiness skills.
Subcommittee: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
Project Name: Navajo Nation Red Lake #18 Chapter Complex
Recipient: Navajo Nation Division of Community Development
Address: 2296 Window Rock Boulevard, Arizona, 86515
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Project Description: CPF would be used to construct a new Red Lake #18 Chapter Complex. Red Lake #18 Chapter is a local government subdivision of Navajo Nation located in a small rural and isolated area in McKinley County. The median income is $27,54 and the population is 2,341. For 30 years, the Chapter has operated out of a modular facility that limits the Chapter’s ability to serve the community. It has many safety issues including inadequate meeting room space, non-ADA compliant doors and restrooms, leaking roofs, poor outdoor ADA ramps, and poor outdoor security lighting. The new complex will provide a safe and welcoming environment for community members including elders and students. It will be ADA compliant and have adequate meeting space, a commercial kitchen, a strong roof, computer rooms, and conference space for government functions. The chapter complex will become more than a governance center. It will serve as a space for elders to eat and congregate and for students to access opportunities using computers and meeting spaces. The complex is a hub for community members to receive information relating to public assistance, Navajo Nation news. It also provides a gathering space for community events and chapter meetings, and serves as a precinct station for Navajo Nation, County, and State elections.
Subcommittee: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
Project Name: Peña Blanca, NM Multi-Generational Community Center Improvements
Recipient: Sandoval County
Address: 1500 Idalia Road, Building D, Bernalillo, New Mexico 87004
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Project Description: The Peña Blanca Community Center serves the community as a multi-generational center which includes a senior center, library, community center, indoor and outdoor communal spaces, as well as a polling place. Dilapidated buildings on the site have ongoing maintenance costs and safety issues so much so that one building can no longer be used by staff and the public. The project serves to enhance equitable service to the rural and tribal communities of Sandoval County as well as providing a safe, accessible gathering space for all members of the community. Providing basic services for the community such as senior citizen support, food distribution, education, outreach and a voting site is critical for all communities to have access to. This project would provide the funding to design and build a new senior center to expand and enhance services currently being offered to citizens in the community. The new building will be energy efficient, cost effective, and have a flexible design for changing needs in the future. The new building will include office space, a small reception area, a dining hall, a warming kitchen, an activity room, a fitness area, restrooms, and a library space. Parking improvements will include relocation of ramps for ease of access and so that the site can remain a polling place during elections. The site design includes use of Low Impact Designs, ADA compliance, ease of access for the public, and modernization of the site to include technology upgrades such as HVAC and internet access.
Subcommittee: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
Project Name: San Juan County, NM, Fire and Rescue Fire Engine Project
Recipient: San Juan County
Address: 100 S. Oliver Dr., Aztec, New Mexico 87410
Amount Requested: $552,263
Project Description: This project would allow the San Juan County Fire & Rescue Department to acquire a new fire engine pumper truck to replace an existing end-of-life unit. This new unit would replace a 2009 Rosenbauer Timber Wolf. The pumper truck would be located at the Blanco Fire Station and primarily serve the rural, mostly census-designated population in the eastern and southern portions of San Juan County.
Subcommittee: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
Project Name: Village of Cuba, New Mexico, Fire Hydrants Repair and Replace
Recipient: Village of Cuba
Address: 16E Cordova Ave., Cuba, New Mexico 87013
Amount Requested: $268,927
Project Description: The Village of Cuba is in desperate need of fire hydrant repairs to the existing system of hydrants. As a small, rural, municipality, Cuba does not have the tax base or ability to fund the entirety of these repairs. The community has been struck with large structural and wildland fires and is in desperate need of fixing and repairing the fire hydrant system. The project will include the engineering, excavation, exposure, and installation of 13 fire hydrants. Currently, the two hydrants that service the public housing are out of service. A main and crucial hydrant to the front of the High School is cracked and out of service. The hydrant that services the only grocery store in Cuba is gone. The hydrant that services the motel in the middle of town is missing. Seven additional crucial hydrants are out of service and need replacing. One crucial hydrant to be installed at the primary fire station. The funds will be used to bring the current fire hydrants in the Village of Cuba into compliance. According to the most recent census, the median income for a household in the village was $21,538. The population currently in the municipality is approximately 1800.
Subcommittee: Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
Project Name: Village of Questa, NM, Vida del Norte Family Resource Center
Recipient: Vida del Norte
Address: 62 Highway 38, Questa, New Mexico
Amount Requested: $225,000
Project Description: Funding for this project will allow Vida del Norte to acquire a building that will serve as its headquarters and the hub for the 100% Family Resource Center (the Center) to operate in Questa, a rural community in northern Taos County. Both organizations work to improve community health and reduce Adverse Childhood Experiences in Questa and surrounding areas. The development of the Center utilizes an identified building space. Further, the project will allow existing services from Vida del Norte, a local family-serving organization, to partner with outside agencies that provide services that Vida del Norte does not. The Center will link rural families to services on-site, online, or through navigation by Center staff. The center will also provide quality improvement strategies to service providers in ten service sectors, which will not only strengthen families’ access to services locally but also support service organizations’ growth to meet community needs.
Subcommittee: Commerce, Justice, Science / DOJ / Byrne JAG
Project Name: Gallup, NM Police Department Virtual Reality Training
Recipient: City of Gallup Police Department
Address: 451 Boardman Drive, Gallup, New Mexico 87301
Amount Requested: $300,000
Project Description: The funding would be used for virtual reality training technology to provide the most realistic and ultramodern training to officers. Through this project, the police department seeks to augment their current capabilities so that they can better de-escalate situations, respond to all manner of situations more effectively, and increase trust and legitimacy within the community.
The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because virtual reality training technology will improve policing and promote trust and legitimacy in the community as well as enhance public safety.
Subcommittee: Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies
Project Name: Santa Fe, NM Paseo Real Water Reclamation Facility
Recipient: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Address: 4101 Jefferson Plaza NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87109
Amount Requested: $10,000,000
Project Description: The Paseo Real Water Reclamation Facility provides public wastewater treatment and reclaimed water distribution for the residents of Santa Fe and surrounding areas of Santa Fe County. The facility has existing reclaimed water pump stations and distribution piping with inadequate storage, flow control, and flow metering capabilities. The facility treats wastewater from the city and county of Santa Fe. The effluent is then discharged into the Santa Fe River, which is classified as a nutrient impaired stream. With this classification the current treatment systems will not reach low enough nutrient contaminant levels for safe release into the Santa Fe River. Community project funding will be used for the design and development of the replacement wastewater reclamation facility. The facility will utilize state of the art treatment, control, and reliability, preparing the City of Santa Fe for higher quality effluent and protecting the water supply. Funding may also help implement a new storage tank and flow control and metering vaults that will improve reclaimed water distribution and metering for existing irrigation customers.
Recipient: North Central Regional Transit District
Address: 1327 North Riverside Drive, Española, New Mexico 87532
Amount Requested: $750,000
Project Description: This request is for funding to be used for land acquisition, design, construction, and construction management for an operations facility in Chama, NM. The facility will allow for vehicle maintenance, driver check-in, restroom use, and bus storage. Currently the District operates the 170 Jicarilla route that services the Jicarilla Apache nation and connects residents to the City of Farmington, where they can access essential services. It is a priority to ensure service is uninterrupted for the communities that depend on public transportation to engage doctors’ appointments, employment opportunities, grocery store visits, and community events.
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development / Housing and Urban Development / Economic Development Initiative
Project Name: City of Las Vegas, NM South Pacific Road Improvements
Recipient: City of Las Vegas, New Mexico
Address: 1700 N Grand Avenue, Las Vegas, New Mexico 87701
Amount Requested: $4,500,000
Project Description: South Pacific Avenue is a main thoroughfare for the community of Las Vegas, New Mexico. It is also a major response route for emergency personnel. South Pacific Avenue is in need of repair and improvements which, if left unaddressed, would become a safety hazard for the people of Las Vegas. Community project development will be used to plan, design, and construct new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant sidewalks; new curbs and gutters; and pave a new roadway from Grant Street to Grand Avenue on South Pacific Avenue. The project would improve transportation, decrease accidents, increase traffic capacity, improve the school zone, make it safer for pedestrians walking and crossing the road.
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development / Housing and Urban Development / Economic Development Initiative
Project Name: City of Lovington, NM Senior Center Infrastructure Improvement Project
Recipient: City of Lovington
Address: 214 South Love, Lovington, New Mexico 88260
Amount Requested: $369,750
Project Description: The funding would be used to update the Senior Center’s facilities to ensure safety, accessibility, and comfort for the city’s older adults. This involves parking lot improvement/ADA compliance measures, handicap accessibility into the building, fencing and safety improvements, replacement of handicap doors, HVAC upgrades, carpet and floor replacement, updating ramps and signage, lighting upgrades, and expanding and improving accessibility of exercise/recreational facilities.
The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because the Lovington Senior Center is a gathering place for older adults in Lovington, NM to socialize and participate in meaningful activities.
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development / Housing and Urban Development / Economic Development Initiative
Project Name: Jemez Pueblo Hazard Remediation and Pueblo Revitalization Project
Recipient: Pueblo of Jemez
Address: P.O. Box 100, Jemez Pueblo, New Mexico 87024
Amount Requested: $1,512,500
Project Description: The funding would be used for the demolition of 26 dilapidated, contaminated, uninhabitable homes, thereby allowing the construction of new homes to help address a substantial housing waitlist. The demolition of the abandoned homes will allow for the creation of a comprehensive master land use plan and redevelopment of the land to create more affordable housing for the Pueblo community.
The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because the Pueblo of Jemez suffers from an epidemic of blighted, condemned, and hazardous abandoned residential and governmental buildings on its Reservation. These structures pose a serious risk to the health and safety of the community.
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development / Housing and Urban Development / Economic Development Initiative
Project Name: Jicarilla Apache Nation Public Safety Housing Project
Recipient: Jicarilla Apache Nation
Address: PO Box 550, 25 Hawks Drive, Dulce, New Mexico 87528
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Project Description: The funding would be used to plan, design and construction for eight to ten duplexes which will house public safety and emergency management personnel to service the Jicarilla Apache Nation and surrounding communities. The Tribe already has the land.
The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because the Jicarilla Apache Nation is in need of housing for public safety and emergency service personnel. Due to the rural location of the Jicarilla Apache Nation, it is difficult for the Tribe to attract qualified public safety and emergency personnel in the region. The Jicarilla Apache Nation and the community of Dulce will benefit from having qualified personnel in the areas of public safety and emergency management services.
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development / Housing and Urban Development / Economic Development Initiative
Project Name: Portales, NM Waste Transfer Facility Expansion
Recipient: City of Portales
Address: 1028 W Community Way, Portales, New Mexico 88130
Amount Requested: $4,200,000
Project Description: The funding would be used for the expansion of the transfer station and to make it easier to take larger amounts of waste to Clovis when necessary. This would lower the cost of solid waste transportation, lessen road damage, lower the cost of fuel and collection vehicle maintenance, and lower the cost of waste management services overall. It would also improve public health and safety, promote sustainability, and create job opportunities for the local community.
The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because Portales operates its own trash services. Its waste transfer facility is small and fills up midway through the week. As a result, a trash truck will then haul waste to Clovis. That requires additional fuel use and wear and tear on the trucks. It also means that one of the few trash trucks is not available to pick up trash. Trash is supposed to be picked up weekly but that doesn’t always happen.
Subcommittee: Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development / Housing and Urban Development / Economic Development Initiative
Project Name: Raton, NM Ports to Plains
Recipient: City of Raton, New Mexico
Address: 224 Savage Avenue, Raton, New Mexico 87740
Amount Requested: $1,600,000
Project Description: This planning project supported by New Mexico Department of Transportation assists New Mexico in completing a City Location Study at Raton. Determining the alignment between US 87 (Future Interstate 27) and Interstate 25 will allow the city to begin developing that area. Following the designation of the Ports-to-Plains Corridor in New Mexico as a Future Interstate in the FY2022 Appropriations legislation, the project would initiate interstate highway planning on U.S. 87 / U.S. 64, specifically along the I-27 / I-25 interchange in Raton. These planning funds would be used for Project Definition, Phase A: Alternative Identification and Screening, Phase B: Detailed Alternative Analysis, Phase C: Environmental Documentation, and Preliminary Design. By enhancing transportation routes, the project facilitates trade, commerce, and regional connectivity, bolstering economic development across various sectors. Recently, it was announced that the Department of Defense has designated the Ports to Plains route coming through Raton to move defense equipment quickly from Fort Carson in Colorado to Port Arthur in Texas, making it a critical infrastructure project for the Country.
Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernández strives to ensure that the federal government invests in the programs and policies that create opportunities for New Mexico's 3rd Congressional District and our nation. She welcomes constituents and advocacy groups to submit for consideration any programmatic, language, or community project funding requests they deem a priority for Fiscal Year 2025.
PROGRAMMATIC AND LANGUAGE REQUESTS:
Programmatic request: a request to fund a specific program in the appropriations bill at a specified level.
Example: Provide $1,000,000,000 for the USDA ReConnect program.
Language request: a request to include specific bill or report language that does not direct funding to a particular entity but encourages, urges, or directs some type of action by an agency.
Example: The Committee encourages USDA to study the impact of expanded broadband on rural communities’ economic prosperity.
To submit a programmatic or language request, please complete this FORM. The deadline for submissions was March 29, 2024.
COMMUNITY PROJECT FUNDING:
Community Project Funding (CPF) request: a funding request for a specific governmental entity or non-profit organization to carry out a specific community project. For-profit entities are not eligible for funding.
Example: Provide $500,000 for a specific entity in City, State.
CPF requests may only be made for certain types of projects. Those types are determined by the House Appropriations Committee. Each project account must meet the specified eligibility and/or matching requirements. This is a highly competitive process as our office can only select a limited number of requests for submission to the Appropriations Committee. The Committee will ultimately decide which projects move forward.
The deadline to submit CPF requests to our office was Friday, April 19 at 5pm MT.
Please note that this limited timeline is due to external deadlines that our office does not control.
Note: The House Appropriations Committee has not yet released final information on FY25 Community Project Funding. To provide interested applicants with more time to submit projects, we’re accepting submissions based on the guidelines for FY24. Please note that eligible accounts and requirements may be subject to change by the Appropriations Committee.
*Disclaimer: All requests must comply with House Rules. Submission of your request does not create a binding commitment on any party nor a guarantee that any organization or program will be awarded funding from any federal agency through the appropriation process. Furthermore, the submission, review, and approval of applications for federal funding will be carried out consistent with federal agency rules and regulations. Failure to complete this form fully and provide sufficient information for review may nullify your request.
