NMDDPC & Guardianship Advisory Council (GAC) Contact Lists
Note: The GAC was formerly the Guardianship Council (GC)

This page provides contact information for members of the New Mexico Developmental Disabilities Council (NMDDPC) and the Office of Guardianship’s, Guardianship Advisory Council (GAC). All information is from the NMDDDPC and may be wrong.

New Mexico Developmental Disabilities Council (NMDDPC)

The NMDDPC was created in accordance with the federal Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act to promote opportunities for all persons with developmental disabilities to live, work and participate with their peers in New Mexico communities.  It consists of no fewer then eighteen members, at least half of whom shall be persons with developmental disabilities or parents, immediate relatives or legal guardians of persons with developmental disabilities.  NMSA 1978, 28-16A-1 through 18. The new executive director, as of 2011, is Cristine Marchanr.  The NMDDPC is also also known as the DDPC. Contact information for the exective director and staff was on the DDPC website, but has been removed. This information can be obtained by sending an e-mail to NewMexicoDDPC@gmail.com.

New Mexico Developmental Disabilities Council (NMDDPC) Member List

Office of Guardianship

The Office of Guardianship was created in the Developmental Disabilities Planning Council to enter into agreements to provide guardianship services, to provide or receive payment for such services and to contract for the provision of probate guardianship services to income-eligible incapacitated persons, including temporary guardianship.  NMSA 1978, § 28-16B-1 through 6.  Frank Fajardo is the Guardianship Manager.

Guardianship Advisory Council (GAC)

The Guardianship Advisory Council (GAC) was created by the Office of Guardianship to provide advice to the Office of Guardianship regarding the needs and rights of persons who are incapacitated or allegedly incapacitated.  All members are hand-picked by the Executive Director of the DDPC.

Initially, the council agreed to subject itself to the Open Meetings Act and consisted of a diverse cross section of the guardianship community.  Subsequently, the Office of Guardianship removed GAC adherence to the Open Meetings Act thereby eliminating its obligation to advise the public of its meetings or provide an agenda or minutes.  Anyone who disagreeded with the policies and plans of the Office of Guardianship was summarily removed from the council in May of 2009.  It is now essentially a rubber stamp for anything the Office of Guardianship wants to do and used as “proof” that what the Office of Guardianship does has guardianship community approval.  Further information regarding this matter can be obtained by sending an e-mail to NewMexicoDDPC@gmail.com.

Office of Guardianship, GAC Member List

 
Why this Page was Created

This page came about because numerous efforts were made to obtain public records from the Office of Guardianship that were ignored or refused by the DDPC or OG.  At one point Mr. Fajardo, the guardianship manager for the office of guardianship was threatening to arrest members of the public he did not like if they attended GAC meetings.

Control over the activities of the DDPC and GAC was accomplished, in part, by a flat refusal by Putnam or Fajardo to provide members of the public with direct contact information for council members.  This compelled anyone who wanted to contact members of either council to go through either Putnam or Fajardo.  This gave them the opportunity to control information received by council members from the public.

The absolute control of access to council members came to an end with a court order entered on February 11, 2010 wherein the district court took notice that “ the DDPC and DDPCOG have demonstrated a pattern and practice of obstructing the public’s access to DDPC and DDPCOG public records, affairs and official acts of its officers and employees.”   By failing to comply with a New Mexico Inspection of Public Records Act request, the DDPC was compelled to provide contact information for both councils to the public--in addition to paying attorney fees and a hefty fine.

The public now as direct access to members of the DDPC and GAC.