New Mexico Legislature passes 23 bills over weekend
Students look over a gathering for African American Day at the Legislature on Feb. 14, 2025. (Photo by Julia Goldberg / Source NM)
Nearly two dozen pieces of legislation advanced through chamber votes or committee hearings in the New Mexico Legislature over the weekend.
The House of Representatives on Friday night passed House Bill 9, known as the Immigrant Safety Act, which would prohibit state agencies and local governments from entering into agreements used to detain people for violations of civil immigration law, and would require any existing agreements to end as soon as possible.
The legislation still needs to pass through the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee before reaching a vote in the full Senate. 'Behind each detention bed is a human being—parents separated from children, workers torn from their communities, and asylum seekers who fled violence only to face new trauma in detention,' New Mexico Immigrant Law Center Director of Policy and Coalition Building Jessica Martinez said in a statement. 'By passing the Immigrant Safety Act, the House has chosen to stand on the right side of history. We urge the Senate to act swiftly to complete this important work and end New Mexico's complicity in this harmful system.'
On Saturday, the House passed House Bill 255, which would expand community-based services already provided to young people exiting juvenile detention to include children and young adults in the Children, Youth and Families Department's custody; and extend how long someone remains on supervised release from juvenile detention.
'Evidence shows us that focusing on intervention and rehabilitation will lead to better outcomes for our children, while addressing the root causes of juvenile crime in our state,' lead sponsor Rep. Liz Thomson (D-Albuquerque) said in a statement. 'HB 255 helps us guide our at-risk youth down a better path, by providing them with key resources proven to be more effective at deterring crime and reducing recidivism than punitive measures alone.'
On Saturday morning, the Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee passed Senate Bill 52, which would align mileage reimbursements for lawmakers and their staff with the U.S. General Service Administration rate; a substitute version of Senate Bill 118, which would require the Motor Vehicle Division to distribute to other state agencies' organ donor application materials; Senate Bill 318, which would regulate firearms and destructive devices under consumer protection law; Senate Bill 352, which would make confidential photographs taken by medical investigators; Senate Bill 377, which would create a special license plate for New Mexico's professional soccer team, New Mexico United; Senate Bill 408, which would raise the threshold for when a state agency needs to seek competitive bids on a contract; Senate Bill 413, which would allow the State Investment Council to spend more on the Private Equity Investment Program; Senate Bill 422, which would set aside $5 million for grants to nonprofits providing affordable or transitional housing and other services for homeless people; and Senate Bill 460, which would allow the State Investment Council to make zero-interest loans to film production companies.
The Senate Finance Committee on Saturday morning passed Senate Bill 219, which would establish a program for medicinal use of psilocybin mushrooms.
Later on Saturday, the Senate passed Senate Bill 169, which would set aside $24 million for preparing sites for business development; Senate Bill 353, which would ensure potential search-and-rescue incidents are reported to the Department of Public Safety; and Senate Bill 81, which would provide property insurance to homeowners and businesses who struggle to get private insurance due to high risks from things like wildfires.
The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 480, which would require the Public Education Department to track all school-aged people who haven't graduated from high school within four years from entering ninth grade; Senate Bill 39, which would prohibit prior authorization or step therapy, when insurance companies and pharmacy benefit management companies refuse to cover a specific drug until after the patient has tried cheaper alternatives, for off-label medications or therapies for rare diseases; and Senate Bill 252, which would allow all licensed social workers to provide telehealth services.
On Saturday afternoon, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed Senate Bill 78, which would allow certified nurse anesthetists to practice independently; Senate Bill 303, which would remove the need for gaming machines to meet standards set by Nevada and New Jersey and instead require them to meet standards set by the state; Senate Bill 457, which would set aside $20 million for civil legal services to low-income people; Senate Bill 302, which would strengthen background checks for Gaming Control Board contractors; and Senate Bill 375, which would allow early discharge for people who comply with probation and makes other changes to parole.
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