Latest news with #ChristineChandler
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Despite changes, paid worker leave bill voted down again
Mar. 15—SANTA FE — A renewed attempt to enact a state-run paid worker leave plan bit the dust Saturday in a Senate committee, as changes made to the bill in an attempt to get it across the Roundhouse finish line instead led to the measure's defeat. After a barrage of concerns from Democrats and Republicans, from a lack of funding to hurting businesses to the bill not going far enough, the Senate Finance Committee on Saturday voted 8-3 not to pass House Bill 11. "We'll just keep soldiering on until we get the bill through," bill sponsor Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos, told the Journal after the committee vote. "I was hoping and expecting it was going to be this year, and that expectation was based on all the compromises we had made and all the listening we had done." Indeed, the measure was once a very different bill. First introduced in 2019 as the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, the many iterations have explored different funding mechanisms, including scenarios where only employees pay into a leave fund to the state fully covering it. The approach to this year's bill, which sponsors ironed out last month to help it pass through a key House committee, came in two parts: $9,000 baby rebates for new, working parents and up to six weeks paid medical leave, covered by new premiums on workers and most employers. The legislation as introduced initially this year would've mandated higher premiums from employers and employees to pay for parental and medical leave and allowed for more medical time off. Bill sponsors made the changes to appease some more moderate Democrats and business leaders, and HB11 successfully passed the House for the first time — something bill sponsor Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, has been urging the House to do. The Senate in the last two years has passed the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act. Stewart said on Saturday afternoon that HB11 wasn't the right solution, with its reduced medical leave timeframe and baby rebates. "The changes made this year resulted in a bill that no longer upholds many of the provisions we strongly supported in the original version. ... It just doesn't quite work for what families really need or when they need it," Stewart said in a statement. She added, "We're not done yet. We will continue working to find a solution that benefits both New Mexico families and the businesses that support our workforce." Bill sponsor Rep. Linda Serrato, D-Santa Fe, said the House sponsors did what they needed with the bill to get it through the chamber it's historically held up in. It passed with seven extra votes. "As legislators, we all realize perfection is the enemy of the good, and I think we have to do what we can to meet in the middle," Serrato told the Journal. Chandler said it's perplexing the Senate Finance Committee in the last two years has passed a more expansive Paid Family and Medical Leave Act but wouldn't let the slimmed-down version through this year. Three Democrats who voted for the bill in past years voted against it Saturday: Sens. Pete Campos of Las Vegas, Benny Shendo of Jemez Pueblo and Roberto "Bobby" Gonzales of Ranchos de Taos. Even the Democrats who voted in favor of the bill started the debate with a list of concerns and questions about it. Sen. Linda Trujillo, D-Santa Fe, said it doesn't go far enough, while Sen. Michael Padilla, D-Albuquerque, reiterated concerns he voiced earlier in the week about where money for the baby rebates would come from. The "no" vote from Senate Finance Chair George Muñoz, D-Gallup, wasn't a surprise, as he's consistently voted against the bill in the past. This year, he called it one of many unfunded mandates the House of Representatives wants the Senate to pass. On Saturday, he said the bill is too extreme. "We can never take a baby step," Muñoz said. "If you have just mothers with 12 weeks (leave) and families taking care of parents for medical assistance, I'd vote for this all day long." At the end of the day, not all once-supportive advocates backed the bill either. "We really do think that New Mexicans deserve full, comprehensive paid family and medical leave," said Tracy McDaniel, policy director at the Southwest Women's Law Center. She's been very involved in the bill's legislative progress in the past and acted as a bill expert earlier this year. However, she said bill sponsors didn't invite advocates to the table when overhauling the bill last month, and she was disappointed to see paid medical leave timeframes dialed down as well as being unsure of the proposed state-funded baby rebates. "We're going to have to be working with sponsors in the interim around how we create something that really works well for New Mexicans," McDaniel said. "The (paid family and medical leave) coalition continues to think that a contribution-based model works well. ... That's really the way that we create a solvent, sustainable fund." Republicans have for years vehemently opposed the measure, which they say would make it harder for New Mexico businesses to operate by not only having to find replacement employees for up to 12 weeks but also having to pay new premiums. The sentiments echo those of influential business leaders in New Mexico, as well as small-town employers. Rita Chaparro owns Rope's Western and Casual Wear in Clayton, a town of about 2,500 people in northeastern New Mexico. She learned about the paid leave proposal from the Journal. "It will literally kill our small businesses," Chaparro said. "We cannot add another tax." Her own store wouldn't be affected, as it only has two employees — the legislation would only tax employers with five or more workers. But Chaparro said she's concerned about the other shops and restaurants in the town that are struggling to stay open. "We're really having a hard time. So no more adding anything to our plate, please," she said. Republican members of the Senate Finance Committee on Saturday also had issues with the lack of details in the 36-page bill. "It just sounds like an absolute employment nightmare," said Sen. Nicole Tobiassen, R-Albuquerque. "And I can see the lawsuits." While it may be the end of the line this year for a Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, bill sponsors and advocates say they'll be back. "If you're asking if the House will stop fighting for working families? Never," Serrato said.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Solvency questions swirl around paid leave proposal as session nears homestretch
Mar. 12—SANTA FE — As a hotly debated New Mexico paid leave proposal nears the finish line at the Roundhouse, questions are swirling about the plan's financial viability. A House-approved bill creating a state-run paid leave program and authorizing $9,000 baby rebates for working parents — spread out over three months after birth — is awaiting a key vote in the Senate Finance Committee with just over one week left in the 60-day session. Several committee members expressed misgivings Wednesday during a legislative analysis of the proposal, pointing out the bill does not specify where an estimated $193 million per year to pay for baby rebates would come from. "I don't think I've ever seen where we didn't say how we were going to pay for something when we put it on the books," said Senate Majority Whip Michael Padilla, D-Albuquerque. He also expressed concern the funding could end up being funneled out of an early childhood trust fund created in 2020 that will have an estimated $9.6 billion balance by the end of this year. Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos, one of the bill's sponsors, told reporters later Wednesday that lawmakers could appropriate money from the Early Childhood Education and Care Department's budget — not the trust fund — down the line. "Is it funded? Not really. But does it need to be funded? That's the question," she said. "Well, just recall that (baby rebates) do not start until Jan. 1, 2028, so frankly, I would think it would be inappropriate to have the cost of the program in this year's budget when, in fact, it is at least one or two budget cycles out." But even some advocates of creating a New Mexico paid family leave program have expressed solvency concerns. Tracy McDaniel, policy director of the Southwest Women's Law Center, said members of a coalition of more than 50 groups are still trying to understand the implications of changes made to the bill before it was approved by the House on a 38-31 vote. "We just want to make sure this is a fiscally sustainable program from year to year," McDaniel told the Journal. She also said backers are trying to convince senators to expand the bill by extending the amount of paid time off workers could take off annually to care for family members or recover from medical procedures. Paid leave bill's evolution Supporters of a New Mexico paid leave program have tried for years to win approval at the Roundhouse. This year's bill, House Bill 11, marks the furthest such legislation has advanced, but the proposal has also changed significantly since it was first introduced. During Wednesday's hearing in the Senate Finance Committee, lawmakers also questioned the solvency of the wellness fund, a part of the bill that would require employees and employers to make contributions into a state-run medical leave fund. Employees would pay 0.2% of their wages into the fund and employers with five or more workers would pay 0.15% of wages, allowing workers to take up to six weeks of paid leave for medical, bereavement, fostering, military exigency or sexual abuse safety purposes. But New Mexico would be the lowest-income state to adopt the paid leave program, resulting in a lower amount of dollars making it to the fund but possibly a higher uptake rate, according to a legislative analysis of the bill. The only situation in which the fund would remain solvent at the currently proposed premium rates is if only 4.5% of workers utilize the paid leave, per scenarios provided by the analysts. The other hypotheticals with 6-8% of eligible New Mexicans using the leave would put the fund in a $227-870 million deficit, according to the report. The average of utilization in other states with similar programs is 6%, though analysts note that uptake rates are extremely difficult to predict. Other states since policy adoption have increased employee- and employer-paid premiums to ensure solvency. Senate Finance Committee analyst John Kreienkamp said New Mexico legislators could also later inject a one-time cash infusion to build the fund balance. But the funding uncertainty for both portions of the bill prompted criticism from Democrats and Republicans. "I'm concerned because we certainly do not have room currently in the budget," said Sen. Nicole Tobiassen, R-Albuquerque. "I don't know where this magic pot of money is sitting." But Chandler said she feels confident the bill is on solid financial ground. She pointed out the bill requires an actuarial study for its wellness fund before premiums are enforced. For her part, Tobiassen also questioned whether remote out-of-state workers could get the baby rebates and whether estranged parents could split the $9,000 when only one parent is the main caregiver. Analysts could not fully answer those questions. Vote on bill could come down to the wire Despite hearing an analysis of the bill, the Senate Finance Committee did not vote on it Wednesday. Such a vote will likely not happen until this weekend as analysts work to research senators' questions, a top committee staffer said. Sen. George Muñoz, D-Gallup, the committee's chairman, said this week the paid leave bill is part of what he described as $3 billion in "unfunded mandates" approved by the House. But House Speaker Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, called the legislation overdue. "No one should have to choose between taking care of a sick child or a sick parent or showing up to work and putting food on the table," Martínez said this week. Meanwhile, the bill's sponsors were not present at Wednesday's committee hearing, something some lawmakers objected to. "We're almost wasting our time here today," said Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces. Chandler later said she found out about the bill presentation Monday evening through the committee's posted agenda. She called it an unusual process but said it doesn't raise any red flags in terms of the bill's chance for winning final approval. "If we're in a search for knowledge, I'm looking forward to when the (committee) chairman ... actually schedules our bill so that we can speak to him about where we're going with it and what we've learned through the process of, actually, several years of working on this bill," she said.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Paid leave bill clears first Senate committee
A bill to extend paid time off to more New Mexico workers took a step closer to becoming law Saturday. The Paid Family and Medical Leave Act passed out of the Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee on a 6-4 party-line vote. It now heads to the Senate Finance Committee, which approved last year's version of the bill. Paid leave advocates have been pushing for years to create a state-run program. Last year's bill passed the Senate before failing narrowly in the House. This year's bill started in and has already passed the House, where a handful of more conservative Democrats who opposed the bill last year either stepped down or lost their primary races in June. 'House Bill 11 is a uniquely New Mexican version of paid family and medical leave,' Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos, the bill's House sponsor, told the Senate committee Saturday. The first component of the bill, which Chandler likened to an insurance program, would create a fund paid for by premiums on both employers and employees to pay for six weeks of paid leave for workers who get sick or need to take time off for listed reasons such as domestic violence or grieving a lost child. The second component would create the 'Welcome Child Fund' to pay new parents $3,000 a month for up to three months to take time off for a newborn or just-adopted child. 'It's unique and it's different, but I think we feel very fortunate we have strong revenues in our Early Childhood [Education and Care] Department' to pay for it, Chandler said. 'I think it'll be a great boon for us in the state to be supporting families that are having new children,' she added. The Senate committee made a few mostly technical tweaks to the bill, meaning if the Senate passes it, the House will need to agree to the changes before it goes to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's desk. The six weeks of nonparental leave is a change from previous iterations of the bill. Last year's bill would have provided for 12 weeks' leave, and an initial version this year provided for nine weeks. The public hearing looked similar to others that have been held on the bill over the past couple of years, with supporters saying it would help families with children or who are struggling with medical emergencies and opponents worrying it would drive up costs for businesses that will struggle to replace people who take leave. Bernadette Hardy, with NM Native Vote, said she lost her job when she had to take time off to give birth to her son. Shortly thereafter, her mother was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer and died. With no income, Hardy and her infant son were left homeless. 'I share my story because people should not be left in poverty because of an unforeseen tragedy,' she said. A few supporters of paid leave called on lawmakers to amend the bill to increase the amount of paid medical leave back to nine weeks. Lan Sena, director of the Center for Civic Policy and a cancer survivor, said six weeks is not enough for someone to get a transplant or treatment. 'We are being hit the hardest during our darkest times,' Sena said. Carla Sonntag, president and CEO of the New Mexico Business Coalition, said many employees as well as employers oppose the bill. 'Many of them don't want to be taxed right now,' she said. 'They need the money to feed their families.' Representatives of other business groups who spoke against the bill noted the particular difficulties sectors such as construction and agriculture have in replacing an employee who goes on leave. 'It isn't fair to the 8,500 agricultural employees in New Mexico who would have to pay into the program to subsidize it but never receive any benefit because they work less than 150 days a year,' said Tom Patterson, president-elect of the New Mexico Cattle Growers' Association. George Gunnery, the owner of Tomasita's restaurant, said he supported the parental leave component, but 'overall HB 11 is too burdensome and too big on our family-owned businesses, businesses that are currently struggling.' Gundrey said more established businesses like his would be able to adjust by raising prices or holding off on employee raises, but newer ones would struggle. He said the bill sends the wrong message to people looking to start a business: 'You are better off leaving the state and starting your business where small businesses are more supported and more appreciated.' Chandler said 13 states and Washington, D.C., have similar programs and haven't experienced the 'doomsday scenarios' she heard from commenters and Republican lawmakers. 'I think to expect that our businesses would go under really doesn't give enough credit to New Mexico businesses,' she said.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Crime package headed to New Mexico Senate
Reps. Christine Chandler (left) and Marianna Anaya present their criminal competency bill to the House Consumer & Public Affairs Committee Jan. 28, 2025. (Photo by Leah Romero / Source NM) After three hours of debate, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday night voted 7-1 in favor of House Bill 8, a package of six bills intended to reduce crime. The House of Representatives already passed the omnibus legislation, leaving the package one Senate vote away from reaching Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's desk. Committee members focused on House Bill 4, which would give prosecutors more options to involuntarily commit people into a locked psychiatric facility if they are deemed dangerous and unable to stand trial. Supporters at Wednesday night's committee included the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce, the Albuquerque Police Department, the Department of Public Safety, the New Mexico Nurses Association, the New Mexico Nurse Practitioner Council and Disability Rights New Mexico. Jim Jackson, a former executive director of Disability Rights New Mexico, told the committee the organization supports 'most' of the bill's competency-related provisions, particularly the one establishing community-based competency restoration programs. 'This will spare people the trauma of being sent to the forensic unit at the state hospital in Las Vegas, and provide this kind of service on the local level,' Jackson said. 'We don't have that capacity yet, but if we can develop that, I think it will be really useful.' Criticism of HB 4 remains, however, in part because there is no statewide competency restoration program in New Mexico. For instance, nearly all of the mental health professionals who evaluate people for their abilities to stand trial oppose HB4, according to Dr. Bronwyn Neeser, a forensic psychologist and former competency evaluator contract manager for the state Behavioral Health Services Division. According to Neeser, out of the 12 competency evaluation contractors working in New Mexico, 10 of them oppose HB 4, accounting for 25 of the 27 evaluators doing this work. She said they're concerned about not being able to obtain records needed to complete the evaluations; a lack of legal immunity for evaluators in their decision making; lack of additional compensation for the bigger workload; and the potential for competency evaluations to become unsealed. Neeser said she's handed amendments about competency evaluators to Rep. Christine Chandler (D-Los Alamos) and the other HB 4 sponsors but as of Wednesday, 'none of those concerns have been addressed.' 'To me, this is a blatant disregard for the professionals who will be adding a tremendous burden to their already cumbersome evaluation process,' she told the committee. 'If any legislator had bothered to reach out to the contract evaluators, they would have understood the number of evaluators with concerns.' Later in the hearing, Sen. Anthony Thornton (R-Sandia Park) asked Chandler if she has worked with the evaluators to see whether they'll be able to handle the increased workload. Chandler said she spoke with an unnamed University of New Mexico representative about the need for more forensic psychologists. She didn't mention any conversations with evaluators. 'We are investing in expanding our behavioral health system. The Senate has been showing leadership on that in coordination with the House,' Chandler said. 'It is our expectation that the investments that we're making on the behavioral health side will also be investments on needs of the courts and other evaluation systems, so if there is a gap — and I wouldn't dispute there may be a gap — the intent is to expand on services.' Thornton noted that Neeser, who was sitting in the audience, was shaking her head, and asked Neeser to comment on any concerns. Committee Chair Sen. Joseph Cervantes (D-Las Cruces) stopped him and said, 'We don't do that.' 'We don't go back to the audience,' Cervantes said. 'I assure you that it's a good practice not to do that, because you'll be here for weeks.' Opponents also included the New Mexico Business Coalition, on the grounds that it is not tough enough on crime, and the Public Safety Coalition, because it focuses on new crimes, increased criminal punishment and forced hospitalization. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats, Republicans weigh in on Public Safety Package bills
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – A package of crime bills is now headed to the Senate after a vote pushed it past the House floor. The Public Safety Package would provide resources for those in the criminal justice system suffering from mental illnesses and would enhance penalties for fentanyl traffickers, increase the penalty for shooting threats, and make it illegal to have an enhanced weapon. In addition, the set of bills would increase penalties for repeat and habitual offenders charged with theft, receiving, or transferring a stolen vehicle. 'Their cases are dismissed. We don't get them treatment, we don't work with them through the courts, and this will give the courts and the prosecutors a tool to address some of the mental health crises that they're seeing that's entering into the criminal justice system right now,' says Representative Christine Chandler (D- Los Alamos). New Mexico lawmakers look to change process to remove university regents However, the bill did see some opposition. Representative Andrea Reeb introduced an amendment that would have added changes to the Juvenile Delinquency Act, hoping to add it to the crime package. But those Republicans say this effort was killed by House Democrats who said the changes were unvetted and rushed. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
