The New Mexican Staff:
House overwhelmingly approves regents oversight: Voters will be asked in November 2026 whether to increase oversight over university boards of regents, if a resolution that passed the House on Saturday also makes it through the Senate.
House Joint Resolution 12, which passed 64-1, would amend the state constitution to “clearly detail regents’ responsibilities to the students and institutions they serve and provide the state with authority to take disciplinary actions, including potential removal, of regents who violate their duties,” according to a news release from House Democrats.
University oversight has been one of the themes of this year’s session, largely driven by outrage over the $1.9 million separation agreement Western New Mexico University’s board gave former president Joe Shepard after a state audit found he had “engaged in wasteful spending and improper use of public funds,” as the release put it.
“The leaders of our state’s colleges and universities have an obligation to act in good faith and in service of the students, faculty, staff, and the taxpayers who help fund these institutions,” lead sponsor Rep. Nathan Small, D-Las Cruces, said in a statement. “HJR 12 would allow New Mexicans to hold regents accountable for ethically fulfilling their duties, spending funds appropriately, and maintaining the integrity of our higher education system.”
Senate health committee signs off on housing proposals: The Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee on Sunday advanced a pair of affordable housing proposals related to the state’s mortgage finance authority, known as Housing New Mexico.
Senate Bill 145, sponsored by Sen. Bobby Gonzales, D-Ranchos de Taos, would contribute $500 million to the New Mexico Housing Trust Fund, with 30% of that set aside for affordable housing projects spearheaded by local governments — 15% each for rural and non-rural communities, based on an amendment adopted by the committee. Funds could be made available as loans for new construction, rehabilitation of existing affordable housing and other housing projects.
“I come from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and I’m very proud to see this bill here. I saw many of these initiatives across the country, so this is not new nationally, but it is absolutely new to New Mexico,” said Sen. Cindy Nava, D-Bernalillo, speaking in support of SB 145.
Senate Bill 144, also sponsored by Gonzales, would provide $500,000 to Housing New Mexico to administer the state’s Affordable Housing Act, a 2004 law that allows local governments to contribute resources — including land, buildings, infrastructure or funding — toward affordable housing goals.
Currently, 39 local governments qualify for Affordable Housing Act programs, Housing New Mexico Executive Director Isidoro Hernandez told the committee. This funding, he said, would help manage that caseload while moving the organization toward its goal of more than 50 local governments contributing to Affordable Housing Act initiatives.
While some of the committee’s Republican members voiced concerns about the long-term financial feasibility of this kind of affordable housing spending, a diverse group offered public comment in favor of the bills, with representatives of realtors, home builders, eviction and poverty prevention organizations and local housing experts all speaking in support of both.
“This funding is essential for tackling an unprecedented housing crisis and rising homelessness across the state, and unprecedented problems require unprecedented investment,” Natalie Green, housing administrator for the city of Las Cruces, said in support of SB 145.
The bills will head next to the Senate Finance Committee.
School cellphone crackdown passes: An amended version of Senate Bill 11, which would require school districts to come up with policies regulating cellphone use, passed the Senate 29-8 Saturday evening.
“This is not a ban on phone use,” said sponsor Sen. Crystal Brantley, R-Elephant Butte. “… This is minimal standards that prohibit their use during classroom hours, with a list of limited exceptions” such as emergencies or medical necessity.
Brantley joked in her closing comments that “the only strong opposition [to the bill] comes from the Diamond girls.”
Senate Education Committee chair Bill Soules, D-Las Cruces, spoke against the bill.
“We talk about it all the time that we want to have local autonomy in our schools until we don’t,” Soules said. “… This takes away from local control. I think it’s a dangerous precedent.”
However, Soules changed his mind after the bill was amended to say the policies drawn up under the bill “may” ban cellphones during class time, as opposed to “shall”.
The eight “no” votes were a mix of Democrats and Republicans.
“I don’t see that there’s any kind of evidence that we have a problem with the school districts” that requires infringing on their autonomy, said Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, D-Albuquerque.
I just wanted to help those Diamond girls out a little bit,” joked Sen. George Muñoz, D-Gallup.
“It looks like he’s with the Diamond girls,” replied Sen. Pete Campos, D-Las Vegas. “I don’t know about the mom.”
Quote of the day: “The 505 somehow came up as we were adding up the numbers.” —Housing New Mexico Executive Director Isidoro Hernandez, after noting his organization has assisted 505,000 families in its nearly 50-year history.