New Mexico Bills

died · New Mexico · Senate Jun 3, 2025

SB 52: PUBLIC OFFICE TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT

SB 52 adjusts reimbursement rates for New Mexico public officials traveling on official business using privately owned vehicles or airplanes. It updates existing law to require reimbursement at the U.S. General Services Administration's standard mileage rate for privately owned automobiles and aircraft, rather than previous state-specific rates. This change directly affects legislators and other public officers who use personal vehicles or planes for state business. The bill was passed by the Senate in March 2025 but was postponed indefinitely by the House committees in June 2025. It focuses solely on aligning travel reimbursement calculations with federal standards.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes

died · New Mexico · Senate Jun 3, 2025

SB 172: IMMIGRANT HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

SB 172 creates the Immigrant Health Care Workforce Development Act to support underemployed immigrant health care workers in New Mexico, particularly those with prior foreign health care experience seeking licensure. The bill establishes an Acceleration Program providing training in medical English, health IT systems, and licensing pathways, along with financial support for exam fees, living costs, and career navigation. It also creates a Primary Care Physician Readiness Pathway for qualified international medical graduates, including a 6-12 month clinical readiness program and exam preparation assistance. Participants must be New Mexico residents, commit to working in an underserved community for at least one year post-licensure, and meet specific eligibility criteria like having prior foreign health care experience.

Topics ✓ Healthcare ✓ Immigration ✓ Labor & Employment

died · New Mexico · House Jun 3, 2025

HB 261: SPACEPORT DISTRICT FUND INVESTMENT

HB 261 requires Regional Spaceport Districts in New Mexico to use the State Investment Council or State Treasurer to manage their funds, directing them to invest in a designated local government investment pool. This bill directly affects spaceport districts that manage public funds related to regional spaceport operations. The key provision mandates that district boards must employ state investment services for managing their assets, including paying reasonable management fees from the funds themselves, while maintaining required investment records. The change applies to existing district funds and takes effect July 1, 2025. The bill was referred to committees but was postponed indefinitely in June 2025.

died · New Mexico · Senate Jun 3, 2025

SM 20: DAM REHABILITATION PROGRAM

This Senate Memorial (SM 20) is a non-binding resolution urging New Mexico leaders to create a statewide dam rehabilitation program. It highlights that most of the state’s dams are over 50 years old (average age 65), many face high hazard risks due to aging and recent severe storms, and the current dam safety bureau lacks resources to rehabilitate them. The resolution specifically calls for a coordinated effort to identify dam needs, prioritize projects, secure funding, and assist dam owners with planning and grant applications. It directly affects dam owners/operators and state agencies like the Office of the State Engineer.

died · New Mexico · House Jun 3, 2025

HM 44: SCHOOL EMPLOYEE INSURANCE PREMIUM WORK GROUP

House Memorial 44 requests the Legislative Education Study Committee to form a working group during the 2025 interim to study rising health insurance premiums for New Mexico school employees and the current contribution structure under the Public School Insurance Authority Act. The act currently requires school districts to cover 80% of premiums for employees earning under $50,000 annually, 70% for $50,000-$60,000, and 60% for $60,000+. The working group would include state agencies, the Public School Insurance Authority, and school district representatives to analyze these costs. The memorial does not enact new policy but seeks a study to inform future decisions, though it was postponed indefinitely in June 2025.

died · New Mexico · Senate Jun 3, 2025

SB 510: PUBLIC SAFETY CHANGES

This bill removes time limits for prosecuting human trafficking cases (previously capped at six years), raises the age for child sexual exploitation protections from 16 to 18, and creates a new crime for operating "stash houses" (locations used for drug distribution). It also adds human trafficking and stash houses to racketeering definitions, expands mental health evaluation requirements for defendants, and reforms juvenile justice procedures - including extending court discretion for sentencing young offenders and altering detention rules. These changes directly affect victims of trafficking/exploitation, defendants in related cases, and juvenile justice system participants. The bill was passed by the Senate in March 2025 but was later postponed indefinitely.

Topics ✓ Criminal Justice

died · New Mexico · House Jun 3, 2025

HB 587: PUBLIC PEACE, HEALTH, SAFETY & WELFARE

HB 587 is a placeholder bill title for "PUBLIC PEACE, HEALTH, SAFETY & WELFARE" with no substantive policy provisions detailed in the provided text. The bill was referred to the House Rules and Order of Business Committee but was never printed and was postponed indefinitely on June 3, 2025. No specific mechanisms, affected groups, or concrete policy changes are described, as the bill did not advance beyond initial committee referral. This appears to be a procedural placeholder rather than a bill with defined legislative content.

died · New Mexico · Senate Jun 3, 2025

SB 431: LIQUOR TAX CHANGES & PROGRAMS

SB 431 changes how New Mexico distributes liquor tax revenue. It allocates 94% of liquor excise tax revenue to a new Local Alcohol Harms Alleviation Fund (replacing the previous DWI fund) and 6% to the Drug Court Fund, while creating a separate Tribal Alcohol Harms Alleviation Fund funded by a new surtax on liquor retailers. The bill also excludes liquor excise taxes from the definition of "gross receipts" in another tax law and requires legislative committees to review liquor tax rates and distributions. These changes directly affect local governments receiving funds for alcohol treatment programs, tribal communities accessing the new tribal fund, and liquor retailers paying the surtax.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes

died · New Mexico · House Jun 3, 2025

HB 122: CONDOMINIUM OWNER OCCUPANCY REQUIREMENTS

HB 122 requires that for condominiums created on or after July 1, 2025, at least 55% of units must be owner-occupied (meaning the resident owns the unit), and at least 35% of the governing board members must own and live in units within that same condominium. This applies directly to developers creating new condos after the effective date and the homeowners associations managing those properties. The bill amends New Mexico's Condominium Act to include these requirements in the declaration documents for new condominiums. It does not apply to existing condos or those created before July 1, 2025.

Topics ✗ Housing

died · New Mexico · Senate Jun 3, 2025

SB 187: DEATH PENALTY FOR MURDER OF PEACE OFFICER

SB 187 would amend New Mexico's capital sentencing law to allow the death penalty for defendants convicted of murdering a peace officer under two specific circumstances: (1) when the officer was acting in their official duty at the time of the murder, or (2) when the defendant targeted the officer solely because of their status as a peace officer. The bill does not change existing death penalty provisions for other crimes but adds these two scenarios as aggravating factors that could lead to a death sentence instead of life without parole. This bill directly affects defendants charged with murder of peace officers in New Mexico who meet these specific conditions. As of June 3, 2025, the bill was postponed indefinitely in committee and has not advanced further.

Topics ✗ Criminal Justice

died · New Mexico · House Jun 3, 2025

HB 279: ACTUARIAL REVIEW OF CERTAIN LEGISLATION

HB 279 creates a process for reviewing health care bills that could change health insurance coverage requirements. It requires New Mexico’s Legislative Council Service to hire contractors by September 2025 to analyze proposed bills, with legislators limited to requesting two reviews per chamber per session. The reviews must estimate impacts like affected residents, premium changes, cost-sharing shifts, and long-term health costs, and must include federal guideline alignment checks. The bill appropriates $100,000 for fiscal year 2026 to fund these reviews, which will be reported annually to the legislature.

died · New Mexico · House Jun 3, 2025

HB 559: GENDER IDENTITY & CHILD CUSTODY

HB 559 prohibits New Mexico courts from considering a parent's gender affirmation of their child's gender identity or a parent's decision regarding gender-affirming care when making child custody decisions. The bill specifically bans courts from treating a parent's refusal to provide gender-affirming health care (like hormone therapy or counseling) as harmful to the child, abusive, or evidence of inadequate parenting. It directly affects parents and judges in custody cases involving minors whose gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth. The law amends existing custody standards to exclude these factors, defining key terms like "gender affirmation" and "gender-affirming health care" in the process. The bill was introduced in 2025 but was postponed indefinitely in June 2025.

Topics ✓ Healthcare

Bill results