WATER & WASTEWATER OPERATORS

This House Memorial (HM 20) requests the New Mexico House of Representatives recognize certified water and wastewater operators as essential workers and fund a study to explore adding them to state health insurance and retirement benefit programs. It highlights their critical role in maintaining safe drinking water (removing contaminants like lead and PFAS) and treating wastewater to protect public health, ecosystems, and community infrastructure. The memorial does not create new laws but asks for a study on potential benefits, directly affecting certified operators who manage essential water infrastructure. It is a procedural request, not a policy change, and was postponed indefinitely in committee.