Legislature and New Mexico governor meet halfway on gun control and housing, but fall short on paid leave

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) – new MexicoThe Democrat-led legislature passed some of the governor’s key priorities on public safety reforms, gun control, housing construction and the use of incentives to create new solutions to climate change as the 30-day legislative end nears. Session Thursday afternoon.

Legislators created an annual budget plan that slows the pace of spending tied to oil production bonuses in the Permian Basin that overlaps parts of southeastern New Mexico and beyond. texas,

Finalized Tuesday, the budget bill funnels the bulk of the multibillion-dollar general fund surplus into a series of trust accounts designed to preserve future spending if the world’s thirst for oil subsides. Falters, as well as debt-free spending on roads.

Senator George Munoz of Gallup, the chief budget negotiator, told the Senate panel, “We may see a day of reckoning sooner than you think.” “You can’t just look at today and say, ‘I’m going to spend this today, and what’s going to happen tomorrow?'”

A new $960 million trust consolidates the governor’s years-long campaign to guarantee tuition-free college for residents. But lawmakers also stopped short of Democratic Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s spending request to finance housing construction and rejected a paid family leave proposal by a narrow margin.

Lujan Grisham announced Public health emergency on gun violence Last year, the right to carry guns in some parks and playgrounds in the greater Albuquerque area was suspended after a spate of shootings there left children dead.

The legislature increased penalties for second-degree murder and introduced a bill that extends the cooling-off period on gun purchases to seven days, allowing more time to complete federal background checks. But a long list of gun and crime bills died.

Lawmakers passed a bill that would tighten the review process for felony defendants who are accused of committing additional felonies while on pretrial release. Those defendants will stand before their original judges for hearings about whether to revoke or modify the conditions of their release, said sponsor and state Senator Daniel Ive-Soto of Albuquerque.

A bill by Democratic Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth of Santa Fe would ban the open carrying of weapons at polling places, exempting people with concealed handgun permits.

“This legislation reinforces what we already know: Guns don’t belong in polling places,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement Wednesday.

New Mexico lawmakers have sent a bill to the governor to regulate artificial intelligence in the creation of political ads, which would require disclaimers on campaign ads containing “deepfake” images, audio or video. The bill does not ban those advertisements.

Legislators filibustered on a proposal to make it a crime to pose as a fake presidential elector, and the bill never brought it to a floor vote. New Mexico is one of the few states where Republicans signed the certificate declaring Donald Trump the winner in 2020.

In the fields of climate change and energy, legislators passed a bill aimed at Reducing climate-warming pollution from cars and trucks Through financial incentives that reward businesses that produce cleaner fuels. Similar low-carbon fuel standards are already in effect in California, oregon And Washington. Lujan Grisham indicated she would sign the bill.

Climate-friendly provisions are woven into Democratic state Rep. Derrick Lente’s tax relief package that also lowers personal income taxes and collects more taxes on investment income. The bill provides a refundable credit for the purchase of new or used plug-in electric vehicles.

Legislators have sent the governor a budget bill that increases general fund spending by $653 million, or 6.8%, to $10.2 billion for the fiscal year starting in July.

This spending increase is a fraction of the projected $3.5 billion surplus in general fund income for the same period. Roads, public schools, housing initiatives and Medicaid spending figure prominently in the plan, along with a 3% pay increase at state government, K-12 schools and public colleges and universities.

The budget includes a $50 million financial lifeline for rural hospitals, $15 million in rate increases and student loan repayment for medical training.

The bill includes funding from an agreement with opioid manufacturers and pharmacies to better coordinate services to infants exposed to illicit drugs before birth.

Most New Mexico families with infants exposed to illicit drugs, marijuana and alcohol in the womb are skipping subsidized addiction treatment and other voluntary support services after a state change in 2020 that prevented automatic referrals to protective services. Have given.

Lujan Grisham can veto any and all provisions of a budget bill but cannot add appropriations. The Governor has until March 6 to sign the bills into law. Unsigned bills are “pocket vetoes”.

Lujan Grisham applauded the passage of $125 million in loan funding to encourage housing construction and a companion bill that expands the mission of the New Mexico Finance Authority to residential building.

The governor failed to ensure her proposal to develop a strategic new source of water for industrial purposes by buying and selling water obtained from ancient, salty underground aquifers or recycled from oil field waste.

A major plan to establish Special Endowment for Native American Education Programs Passed the House on a 68-0 vote but never reached the Senate for final debate. Sponsors say the endowment will help reverse the vestiges of forced assimilation of Native American children.

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