Legislation begins with several pre-filed bills

The legislative session began today, Jan. 16, and local representatives and senators have already pre-filed some bills or co-sponsored them.

Here are the pre-filed or co-sponsored bills for Sandoval County officials so far:

Rep. Kathleen Cates

• House Bill 8: Proposing an act relating to government conduct; declaring the public policy of the state regarding conduct of current and former legislators and public officers and employees; clarifying and codifying provisions of the governmental conduct act; prescribing and increasing penalties.
• House Bill 24: Proposing an act relating to property; requiring that at least 55% of units of condominiums created on or after July 1 are owner-occupied; requiring that at least 35% of the members of the governing body of associations that manage a condominium created on or after July 1 own and occupy units within that condominium.
• House Bill 25: Proposing an act relating to human rights; making housing discrimination based on a renter’s or buyer’s source of income an unlawful discriminatory practice pursuant to the human rights act.
• House Bill 26: Proposing an act making an appropriation to the health care authority department to increase the recommended limit on environmental modification services for eligible Medicaid recipients.
• House Bill 93: Proposing an act relating to taxation; creating a gross receipts tax deduction for environmental modification services made to the homes of Medicaid recipients.
• House Bill 94: Proposing an act relating to labor; requiring the health care authority department to collect and report data relating to the direct care worker workforce; requiring a biennial personal care services cost study; requiring the health care authority department to implement the cost study’s recommendations; making an appropriation.
• House Bill 122: Proposing an act making an appropriation to the secretary of state to convene a county redistricting task force.
• House Bill 123 (co-sponsored by Sen. Harold Pope): Proposing an act prohibiting book banning.

Rep. Alan Martinez

• House Bill 52: Proposing an act making an appropriation for domestic violence training in Sandoval County.

Rep. Josh Hernandez

• House Bill 21 (co-sponsored by Joy Garratt and Harlan Vincent): Proposing an act relating to charter schools; requiring the chartering authority to provide an oversight and expenditure plan for the money retained from a charter school’s state equalization guarantee distribution; requiring reports.
• House Bill 81 (co-sponsored by Andrea Reeb and Harlan Vincent): Proposing an act relating to taxation; creating the gun storage income tax credit.

Rep. Matthew McQueen

• House Bill 23: Proposing an act relating to the state game commission; reforming the state game commission appointment process; setting term limits for commissioners; adding requirements for appointment and removal of commissioners.
• House Bill 48 (co-sponsored by Bill Tallman): Proposing an act relating to public lands; setting the royalty rate on future oil and gas development leases on state trust lands to enhance revenue for beneficiaries.
• House Bill 133(co-sponsored by Kristina Ortez): Proposing an act relating to the environment; amending the oil and gas act; allowing the oil conservation division of the energy, minerals and natural resources department to regulate certain transfers of oil and gas wells and authorize the conversion of oil and gas wells for energy storage and geothermal development; increasing the amount of fees and financial assurance associated with operating oil and gas wells; increasing civil penalties; allowing fees to be adjusted to account for inflation; requiring the capture of 98% of natural gas produced beginning in 2027; providing for certain setbacks from oil and gas facilities.

Sen. Katy Duhigg

• Act removing incremental increases to the cannabis excise tax.
• Act relating to cannabis regulation; changing definitions; providing powers and duties; providing procedures for criminal history background checks; removing prohibition against a person owning both a cannabis license and a license under the liquor control act; prohibiting co-location of cannabis activities and alcoholic beverage sales or service activities to the public or members of private clubs; providing for investigatory confidentiality; providing for seizure and destruction of illegal, adulterated or misbranded cannabis products; allowing for licensee conversion from nonprofit to for-profit corporate status; changing packaging requirements; replacing licensure with registration of cannabis training and education programs; including the cannabis regulation act in the racketeering act, the delinquency act and the uniform licensing act; including cannabis in a list of contraband in jails and prisons; creating crimes; prescribing penalties; repealing a delayed repeal; amending, repealing and enacting sections of NMSA 1978.

Sen. Craig Brandt

• Act reinstating death penalty for murdering a peace officer.
• Act making shooting threats a fourth-degree felony.
• Act allowing retired law enforcement to return to work under certain conditions with a purchase of service credit.
• Act adding “criminal gang” as a crime defined under “racketeering.”

For more information on these bills, visit nmlegis.gov.