Latest news with #KatyDuhigg
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bill to allow medical 'magic mushrooms' in New Mexico gets groovy reception from lawmakers
First marijuana, now magic mushrooms. A state known for ending up at the bottom of a long list of rankings could be among the first in the nation to roll out a program for medical use of psilocybin mushrooms, commonly known as magic mushrooms. The Senate Judiciary Committee late Wednesday endorsed Senate Bill 219 on an 8-1 vote. The lone holdout, Sen. Katy Duhigg, D-Albuquerque, praised psilocybin's efficacy. "I am very torn on this because I know that psilocybin has amazing potential for substance use disorder, intractable depression," she said. "I think it's a really important medicine to have available." But Duhigg said one of her brothers, an addiction psychiatrist who has been involved in multiple studies and pilot programs using psilocybin, told her researchers have yet to develop a model for safe medical use. "He worries that if we do this as a state, and it does not have kind of the level of oversight that these projects have now with the federal government, that there's going to be some negative results ... that will set this whole movement back significantly," she said. Despite her words of caution, SB 219 cleared its second committee hearing with a number of amendments and is headed to the Senate floor. Its trip through the Roundhouse doesn't end there, though. If the bill makes it out of the Senate, it still has to go through the House and its committees. Advocates told lawmakers during Wednesday's hearing psilocybin mushrooms are not only life-changing but lifesaving. Crystal C. Romero, a retired master sergeant who served in the New Mexico Army National Guard, said she served with honor, knowing the risks and sacrifices she'd have to make. "But nothing prepared me for the battle within my head," she said, adding she was medically discharged from the military for post-traumatic stress disorder and then attempted suicide. "Had I succeeded, my three daughters would have been handed more than just a folded flag," she said. "They would have inherited my pain." Romero said she "tried everything the VA has had to offer" but still battled relentless suicidal ideation. "It wasn't until I worked with psilocybin under guided care that I found healing," she said. David Glass, an emergency room doctor and active-duty veteran who served multiple tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, said he's witnessed "the devastating impact of mental health crisis" both in the ER room and among his fellow veterans. "I can count on two hands the number of service members I know personally that died in combat. I can count on two hands the number of veterans I know that have committed suicide since taking off the uniform and leaving service," he said. "But now, I can tell you honestly and truthfully that I can now count on more than two hands the number of special operators whose lives have been saved by taking psilocybin through guided therapy in Mexico." Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, who is among the sponsors of the bill, said the measure starts with four qualifying conditions: major depressive disorder, substance use disorder, PTSD and end-of-life anxiety. Under the bill, the program would not start until Dec. 31, 2027. "The Department of Health would establish and make rules for everything, from who the qualifying license providers to producers to dosage to medical setting," he said. "Unlike cannabis, this would only be administered in a medical setting. … This would not be like cannabis. There is no car. There is no taking this at home. Very different in that respect." The bill also creates an advisory board and would allow the state's health secretary to add additional qualifying medical conditions "as there's data to support that," Steinborn said. Another sponsor, Sen. Martin Hickey, D-Albuquerque, a retired physician, said the benefits of psilocybin mushrooms would be far-reaching. "This is as important to society as the other fungus that blew in off of a windowsill onto a petri dish with pneumococcal bacteria and we got penicillin," he said. "This is a fungus that in mental health is going to have as dramatic an impact."
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Latest attempt to pay NM legislators a salary unlikely to be revived after tie vote
Feb. 20—SANTA FE — The latest attempt to allow New Mexico voters to decide whether legislators should be paid a salary appears to be dead for this year's 60-day session. Sen. Katy Duhigg, D-Albuquerque, the sponsor of the proposed constitutional amendment, said Thursday it was unlikely to be revived after stalling on a tie vote this week in the Senate Finance Committee. "Unless the votes were to change in (that committee), I don't think it's a great use of time," Duhigg told the Journal. But she also said she believes the proposal would have enough votes to pass on the Senate floor, if it were to arrive there. "There's definitely an increased desire for this," Duhigg said. New Mexico is the only state that does not pay its legislators a salary, though lawmakers do receive a per diem payment while in session that's intended to cover food and lodging expenses. That payment is currently set at $202 per day, but is set to jump to $247 per day in March. In addition, lawmakers can opt in to a legislative retirement plan that has been expanded in recent years. However, a number of lawmakers have resigned in recent years for financial or familial reasons, with some saying the sacrifice required to serve in the Legislature was too great. This year's proposal, Senate Joint Resolution 1, would allow voters to decide whether the state should create a nine-member commission to determine an appropriate salary level for legislators. If approved by voters, the legislative salaries would then take effect in July 2030. Mason Graham, the policy director for Common Cause New Mexico, said the issue of paying legislators a salary has been discussed at the Roundhouse for more than a decade. "We see this as a way to kind of close that financial gap, to make sure that folks who want to serve can," Graham said. He also said a similar proposal would be filed in the House of Representatives before Thursday's bill-filing deadline in a last-ditch attempt to keep the issue alive during this year's session. But that proposal would also likely have to pass through the Senate Finance Committee, where the Senate proposal stalled. Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, said the idea of paying legislators a salary is not a partisan one, even though most New Mexico Republicans have opposed it in recent years. Two Democrats — Sens. Pete Campos of Las Vegas and George Muñoz of Gallup — joined with Republicans in the Senate Finance Committee this week in casting "no" votes that ultimately blocked the proposal from advancing. During the hearing, Muñoz said paying lawmakers a salary would not necessarily improve the quality of legislators. "Now we're going to have people running for a paycheck," he said. Sen. Nicole Tobiassen, R-Albuquerque, who also voted against the proposal, said the Legislature already has a diverse membership, citing the state's first-ever female majority of lawmakers. "We're pretty diverse and we have pretty diverse backgrounds," she said. "And we're here in the spirit of what volunteerism is for every person in New Mexico." While the idea of paying New Mexico legislators a salary has struggled to win approval at the Roundhouse, lawmakers have adopted other changes intended to help "modernize" the Legislature. That includes a vote last year allowing each legislator to hire a year-round aide. Previously, only lawmakers in top leadership positions had permanent staffers. Journal staff writer Megan Gleason contributed to this report.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill barring third parties from collecting speed camera fines passes legislative committee
Feb. 11—SANTA FE — A bill that would prohibit cities using third parties to collect unpaid traffic fines from automated cameras passed a Senate committee Tuesday on a slim vote. The Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee approved the legislation on a party-line 5-4 vote, with Democrats voting in favor and Republicans in opposition. The bill, Senate Bill 91, sponsored by Rep. Janelle Anyanonu, D-Albuquerque and Sen. Katy Duhigg, D-Albuquerque, appears to be targeted at the city they represent. In recent years, Albuquerque and Bernalillo County have introduced automated cameras in select corridors that fine drivers who are speeding 10 mph over the limit. "I am not aware of any institution in our current government where we send our residents to private collection companies in order to enforce our laws," Duhigg told the committee Tuesday. "In a state dealing with lots of poverty already, I think that is very, very bad policy." Albuquerque uses the Washington-based debt collection agency, Evergreen Professional Recoveries Inc., according to city spokesperson Dan Mayfield. He added the city does not have a direct contract with the agency. Senate Minority Leader William Sharer, R-Farmington, who said he runs a debt collection agency himself, took issue with the bill. "It's the certainty of punishment, not the dollar amount. It's the certainty," Sharer said. "So if they're certain they're not going to have to pay the fee, then you've completely destroyed the program." In attendance for the committee hearing were nine Albuquerque Police Department officers, including Traffic Division Cmdr. Benito Martinez. "If there's no consequence for your actions, if you're not held accountable, we need to hold people accountable," he told the Journal following the vote. Martinez added the cameras have helped with a speeding reduction of 43% citywide with certain areas down some 83%. The bill will now go to the Senate Judiciary Committee before going to a vote on the floor to become law. "The person who is responsible for this infraction has to get a notice in some way if they haven't paid. My concern would be, that there would be another fine on top of that, or a late fee, or something like that ... like a tumbleweed, and just keep getting bigger and bigger, and then it becomes very difficult for someone to pay it," Sen. Micaelita Debbie O'Malley, D-Albuquerque, said at the hearing. But she expressed concern about the state trying to override local policy. "I'm also a little reluctant to get involved in this local control issue, too," O'Malley said. "They made the decision to do that as a city." She eventually voted in favor of the bill.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bipartisan bill would create outside agency to oversee CYFD in New Mexico
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Years of trying to reform the New Mexico Children, Youth, and Families Department now have lawmakers pushing for outside oversight. Now, a new bill getting bipartisan support could make for CYFD's first watchdog agency. Story continues below Don't Miss: Family reunited with lost cat who was missing in desert for nearly a month Crime: Former APD officer used MVD info as tool to bring more clients into DWI scandal National: Former Disney Channel actress 'shot in the face' at birthday event for husband Lawmakers said their ultimate goal is to make the Children Youth and Families Department more transparent and accountable. To do that they want to give the proposed outside agency investigative power and more.'I think that many legislators can agree that the system can not get any worse and the time to act is now because the consequences really are deadly,' said Sen. Crystal Brantley (R-Elephant Butte). They're aiming to finally reform CYFD in a bipartisan effort. Two senators, including Sen. Brantley and Democrat Katy Duhigg, are two main sponsors on a bill to make New Mexico's first Office of the Child Ombud which would be an independent group that would watch over CYFD. 'The Ombud will be that problem solver who they can go to, who can address what's happening, look at the conflict, help come up with solutions, and help bring everyone together in a way that's going to have the best possible outcome for our families in New Mexico,' said Sen. Katy Duhigg, (D-Albuquerque). Under the proposal, starting in July, a nine-member committee would appoint an ombud to serve a six-year term. The committee making that pick would be split between lawmakers and the governor, filled with experts in foster care and New Mexico child welfare law. 'We've had a lot of change in CYFD secretaries over the last couple of years and I think all of us wanted to give them a chance to do this incredibly hard job, I think it's probably one of the hardest jobs in state government, but at the same time there are kids at risk here,' said Sen. Duhigg. The bill requires the ombud to collect and investigate complaints against CYFD, even giving them subpoena power. The ombud would review and suggest changes to state policy, make annual reports, and publish stats on the number of kids in the state foster system. 'I think because we've hit rock bottom, we can't get worse in the state of New Mexico, we have to address child welfare and the well-being of our children now,' said Sen. Brantley. The governor hasn't directly expressed her support for this bill yet but said in her State of the State address that she wanted lawmakers to make an outside agency that would review complaints against CYFD. Although the bill has not been heard in committee yet, Rep. Brantley said more than 30 senators have shown support for the bill after it was introduced. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmaker salaries ballot question clears first committee
Sen. Katy Duhigg (D-Albuquerque) speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on Jan. 29, 2025. (Photo by Austin Fisher / Source NM) A proposal to open up opportunities for more people to become New Mexico's state lawmakers by paying them salaries passed through its first committee hearing with bipartisan support. The Senate Rules Committee on Wednesday morning voted 7-2 on a proposal to ask New Mexicans to vote more than three years from now on whether to provide salaries to state lawmakers. Senate Joint Resolution 1 would create an independent commission to set and limit salaries for lawmakers. It still needs to go through the Senate Finance Committee before it could go to a full vote in the Senate. Albuquerque Democratic Senators Katy Duhigg and Natalie Figueroa are sponsoring the resolution, and argued it would make the Legislature more diverse and accessible to their constituents. Duhigg argued that state government has already professionalized the executive and judicial branches, but not the legislative one, making them 'not truly co-equal.' 'This would allow the Legislature to perform the really important oversight function that we are supposed to be performing, that we are supposed to be performing, that we truly can't do now,' she said. The bill would put the question on the ballot for voters in 2028. This question has been put before voters at least five times in the state's history, most recently in 1992, Figueroa said. The Citizen Commission on Legislative Salary would not be made up of lawmakers, 'so there would be no self-dealing,' Duhigg said. 'We would not be involved,' she said. Resolutions are not laws and do not need to be signed into law by the governor. If a majority of New Mexican voters choose to create the commission, details like the commissioners' terms, who appoints them and their rules would be worked out in enabling legislation in future sessions, Duhigg said. A coalition of nearly a dozen organizations, including Common Cause New Mexico, Center for Civic Policy and League of Women Voters, back the proposal, and have announced a 'day of modernization' at the Roundhouse on Feb. 11 to promote it.
