Legislative Roundup
SFNM News:
Governor on guns: Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham spoke on Friday about proposed gun legislation, saying it’s possible to protect Second Amendment rights as well as improve public safety. “My message is we have an opportunity to do both,” she told reporters. “Why wouldn’t we?”
Lujan Grisham has put on her agenda an initiative, filed as House Bill 7 and Senate Bill 5, that would allow for extreme-risk protection orders, letting law enforcement obtain a court order to remove guns from people considered dangerous.
Best of both worlds? Lujan Grisham also spoke about the crime-related bills that she has put on her agenda, noting it’s possible to both pass stiffer penalties for crimes and carry out criminal justice reform aimed at rehabilitation and preventing crime.
“I want both,” she told reporters. “In our administration we are problem solving. None of that is mutually exclusive.”
Electric Avenue: Democrats introduced a bill on the House floor on Friday that would create a roadmap to modernize New Mexico’s electric grid and help it integrate better with regional energy markets. House Bill 233, sponsored by Abbas Akhil and Melanie Stansbury, both Democrats from Albuquerque, would also create an innovation fund and assist electric providers with upgrading grid infrastructure.
“This bill will be a game-changer for New Mexico and our ability to meet our state’s energy needs,” Stansbury said in a statement.
The House Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources Committee will first take up the bill.
Parole Reform: The House Judiciary Committee heard testimony Friday from state Reps. Moe Maestas, D-Albuquerque, and Alonzo Baldonado, D-Valencia, on legislation similar to a measure vetoed last year by the governor that would alter the state’s parole and probation system.
The legislation would make changes meant to eliminate “technical violations” to make it easier for offenders to comply with court orders and not end up back in prison, Baldonado said. The ultimate aim is reducing recidivism and making it easier for offenders to reintegrate into society, he said.
Maestas told committee members that Lujan Grisham’s veto last year was “a blessing in disguise” because it provided him more time to work out details and strengthen the proposal.
Rep. Greg Nibert, R-Roswell, who said he has not yet read the legislation, expressed concerns that the legislative panel is concerned with softening the criminal justice system at a time when too many offenders commit crimes and are later released.
“It sounds positive,” Nibert said. “But one thing I’ve noticed is those words, those three words, (criminal justice reform), in my community mean something entirely different than what they mean in your community. And the part of the state I represent is maybe a lot harsher on crime and criminal activity then maybe some other parts of the state.”
Some people, Nibert said, “only know a life of crime, and I hope that we deal harshly with those predators of society that cannot conduct themselves in a civil society”.
Looking Ahead: On Monday, the Senate Education Committee will hear a bill proposing to create a new trust fund for early childhood education. Senate Bill 3 is sponsored by Rep. Doreen Gallegos, D-Las Cruces, and Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming.
On Tuesday, the Senate Public Affairs committee plans to hear two high-profile bills backed by Lujan Grisham: legislation to legalize recreational cannabis and a gun bill that would let law enforcement obtain a court order to remove guns from people considered dangerous.
Quote of the Day: “We are hoarding cash in the midst of a crisis of our young people,” said Antonio Maestas, D-Albuquerque, during a hearing on a bill that would tap the Land Grant Permanent Fund for early childhood education.