Landavazo v. New Mexico Department of Human Services

749 P.2d 538, 106 N.M. 715
CourtNew Mexico Court of Appeals
DecidedJanuary 12, 1988
Docket10191
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 749 P.2d 538 (Landavazo v. New Mexico Department of Human Services) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Landavazo v. New Mexico Department of Human Services, 749 P.2d 538, 106 N.M. 715 (N.M. Ct. App. 1988).

Opinion

OPINION

APODACA, Judge.

Petitioner Richard Landavazo (applicant) appeals the New Mexico Department of Human Services, Income Support Division (HSD), fair hearing decision upholding its county office’s denial of his application for food stamp benefits. Relying on Cruz v. New Mexico Dep’t of Human Services, 100 N.M. 133, 666 P.2d 1280 (Ct.App.1983), and Saenz v. New Mexico Dep’t of Human Services, 98 N.M. 805, 653 P.2d 181 (Ct.App.1982), we originally proposed summary reversal of HSD’s decision on the basis that the hearing officer should have considered the new evidence applicant offered at the fair hearing concerning his physical disability and the modifications he made to his vehicle after the county office had denied his application. We subsequently reconsidered our proposed disposition and proposed to affirm the hearing officer’s determination. We did so on the basis that the evidence applicant offered at the fair hearing did not tend to establish his eligibility for benefits at the time the county office considered his application. In so doing, we proposed to limit the application of Cruz and Saenz. Applicant has now filed a memorandum in opposition to our proposed disposition. Not being persuaded by the memorandum, we affirm the hearing officer’s decision.

Background

The county office denied the application because the resource maximum for applicant’s household was exceeded by the value of his vehicle. See 1 HSD Income Support Division Program Manual (ISDP Manual) §§ 428.1 (Revised March 1, 1987); 428.432; 428.4321 (Revised November 1, 1982). Applicant subsequently requested a fair hearing pursuant to NMSA 1978, Section 27-3-3 (Repl.Pamp.1984). Subsequent to denial of the application by the county office, but before requesting the fair hearing, applicant made certain modifications to his vehicle that his doctor considered necessary to accommodate applicant’s physical disability. Applicant argued at the fair hearing that as a result of his physical disability and the modifications he made to his vehicle, his vehicle should be excluded from consideration as a resource because it constituted a “specially equipped” vehicle necessary to transport a physically-disabled household member. See ISDP Manual § 428.431(e) (Revised July 1, 1986).

At the fair hearing, applicant presented evidence of his physical condition and the modifications he made to his vehicle. HSD upheld the decision of its county office on the basis that its denial of applicant’s application was correct when taken. The hearing officer did not consider the new evidence concerning applicant’s physical disability and the modifications to his vehicle, nor did she decide whether applicant’s vehicle should be excluded from consideration as a resource under ISDP Manual Section 428.431(e).

Issues

Applicant raises two issues on appeal: (1) whether HSD’s decision is arbitrary and capricious; and (2) whether HSD failed to follow its own regulations in refusing to exclude applicant’s vehicle from consideration as a resource under ISDP Section 428.-431(e).

Discussion

We will first address a procedural matter before considering the substantive issues of this appeal. Our second calendar notice proposing summary affirmance was filed on November 20, 1987. Applicant filed a memorandum in opposition on December 3, 1987. See SCRA 1986, 12-210(E)(3). After taking into account the three-day mailing period set out in SCRA 1986, 12-308(B), applicant’s memorandum in opposition was timely. HSD filed a response (response) to applicant’s memorandum in opposition on December 11, 1987. Applicant filed a reply (reply) to HSD’s response on December 22, 1987. Rule 12-210(E)(3) requires memoranda to be filed within ten days of the date of service of a calendar notice. Under these time limits, HSD’s response and applicant’s reply were not timely filed. In addition, our rules of appellate procedure do not provide for the filing of responses and replies back and forth between the parties to their memoranda in support of, or in opposition to, a calendar notice. Thus, we have not considered HSD’s response and applicant’s reply in deciding this appeal. We now proceed to a discussion of the merits.

We will not disturb an administrative decision by HSD unless it is: (1) found to be arbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion; (2) not supported by substantial evidence in the record as a whole; or (3) otherwise not in accordance with law. NMSA 1978, § 27-3-4(F) (Repl.Pamp.1984); New Mexico Human Services Dep’t v. Garcia, 94 N.M. 175, 608 P.2d 151 (1980). As noted previously, applicant’s application for food stamp benefits was originally denied by the county office because the resource maximum for the household was exceeded by the value of applicant’s vehicle. See ISDP Manual §§ 428.1 and 428.-4321. Applicant does not claim this original determination was incorrect, or that he was eligible for benefits at that time. Instead, he argues his application should be granted because he became eligible for benefits as a result of the modifications he made to his vehicle after the county office denied his application.

Applicant relies on Cruz and Saenz for the proposition that the hearing officer should have considered the new evidence concerning the modifications to his vehicle at the fair hearing. In those cases we stated a hearing officer must consider all evidence presented at the fair hearing. However, Cruz and Saenz are distinguishable. There, the issue was not whether HSD acted properly on the basis of information known at the time of the original determination, but whether new evidence tending to establish the applicants’ eligibility for benefits at the time HSD’s representatives originally took action terminating or denying their benefits should be considered at the fair hearing. In this case, on the other hand, the new evidence concerning the modifications applicant made to his vehicle constituted a change in circumstances after the county office denied his application, and would not establish applicant’s eligibility for benefits at that time.

Applicant argues his medical condition for which he modified his vehicle predated the application and therefore does not constitute a changed condition or circumstance. While applicant’s medical condition is a relevant consideration in determining whether his vehicle falls under the exclusion contained in ISDP Manual Section 428.431(e), this is not the only consideration. One other consideration is whether his vehicle constituted a “specially equipped” vehicle. See id. Since the modification of the vehicle constituted a changed condition or circumstance subsequent to the denial of his application by the county office, the hearing officer did not err in refusing to consider the evidence applicant offered at the fair hearing. Cf. Cruz v. New Mexico Dep’t of Human Services; Saenz v. New Mexico Dep’t of Human Services.

Applicant does not argue the county office’s denial of his application on April 20, 1987 was incorrect, or that he was entitled to benefits at that time.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Nation v. Roybal
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2023
Deborah S. v. Cara S.
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2020
Peterson v. Neubauer
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2010
Carter v. New Mexico Human Services Department
2009 NMCA 063 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2009)
Dickenson v. Regent of Albuquerque, Ltd.
815 P.2d 658 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 1991)
Montoya v. New Mexico Human Services Department
771 P.2d 196 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
749 P.2d 538, 106 N.M. 715, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/landavazo-v-new-mexico-department-of-human-services-nmctapp-1988.