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As the curtains close on the 30-day session of the New Mexico Legislature, we extend our gratitude for your unwavering support and advocacy. Your advocacy efforts have not gone unnoticed, and we are deeply thankful for your commitment.
As the curtains close on the 30-day session of the New Mexico Legislature, we extend our gratitude for your unwavering support and advocacy. Your advocacy efforts have not gone unnoticed, and we are deeply thankful for your commitment.
Here’s a brief overview of the session’s key accomplishments and challenges:
NEWMEXICOKIDSCAN ADVOCACY IMPACT
- Over 2,984 advocates engaged with our updates
- Our team of advocates grew by 31 members
- Legislators were contacted 771 times
LEGISLATIVE OVERVIEW
Despite substantial engagement, it’s evident that education did not receive the attention it deserved this legislative session. There were 777 bills introduced, 54 of which were related to K-12 education. Of those 54 bills, 21 bills were ruled germane and three were given a message by the Governor, meaning 24 bills were eligible for debate and passage. Of those 24 bills, only five progressed to the opposite chamber and four reached the Governor’s desk. This underscores the critical need for legislators to prioritize New Mexico’s education crisis.
POLICY PRIORITY #1 – READING MATERIALS FUND
Our priority bill, SB 193, aimed at allocating $12.5 million to the Reading Materials Fund and sponsored by Senate Pro-Temp Mimi Stewart, successfully navigated through the Senate Education Committee. However, it came to a halt in the Senate Finance Committee when our appropriation was omitted from the state budget.
Despite the absence of our requested $12.5 million for the Reading Materials Fund in the state budget, New Mexico is continuing to invest in structured literacy implementation. The state budget allocates substantial funding to structured literacy efforts, including $14 million for early literacy and reading support, $30 million for summer reading intervention programs, $2.5 million for secondary educator training, and $200,000 specifically designated to address learning gaps through structured literacy tutoring.
POLICY PRIORITY #2 – STRENGTHENED EARLY LITERACY POLICY
Despite our optimism following Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s State of the State address where she called for New Mexico to “double-down” and “super-charge” our literacy efforts, we encountered difficulties in introducing legislation focused on strengthening New Mexico’s early literacy policies. Our intent was to address early literacy policy gaps by introducing legislation that would require individual reading improvement plans for struggling readers. Though we were unsuccessful, we remain committed to pursuing these crucial policy changes in 2025.
POLICY PRIORITY #3 (NON-LEGISLATIVE) – ENSURE NEW MEXICO CTE COURSES ARE ALIGNED
This legislative session, our state continued to increase investments in Career & Technical Education, including an appropriation of $40 million to support CTE programs. This year, we aim to collaborate with the NMPED to audit all CTE courses, ensuring alignment with meaningful career and college pathways.
POLICY PRIORITY #4 (NON-LEGISLATIVE) – PILOT AUTOMATIC ENROLLMENT IN ADVANCED COURSEWORK
During the interim, we plan to partner with at least one school district to initiate a pilot program for automatic enrollment in advanced coursework. This program aims to seamlessly transition students who score above proficient in 8th grade to advanced or AP courses in high school.
POLICY PRIORITY #5 –ENSURE HIGH QUALITY CHARTER SCHOOLS CAN GROW
Our goal to oppose legislation hindering the growth of charter schools succeeded in countering the threat posed by Senate Joint Resolution 9. SJR 9 was a constitutional amendment proposing the re-introduction of a statewide school board while eliminating the role of Secretary of Public Education and dissolving the Public Education Commission. The resolution quickly passed through the Senate but was tabled and subsequently died in the House Education Committee, preserving the Public Education Commission as the sole-statewide charter school authorizer.
PASSED EDUCATION LEGISLATION
This year, only four K-12 education bills were successfully passed by the New Mexico Legislature, including:
HB 171 – School Graduation Requirement Changes: Sponsored by Representative Andres Romero and Representative Ryan Lane, HB 171 amends New Mexico’s graduation requirements emphasizing student choice and flexibility. While the bill garnered significant support, we expressed concerns about the removal of Algebra II as a core requirement. The bill passed through the legislature with bipartisan support and was signed into law by the Governor. The graduation requirements will take effect for students entering ninth grade in 2025. Read more about HB171 in this NMEducation story.
HB 207 – Public School Capital Outlay Grants: Sponsored by Representative Joy Garratt, HB207, addresses the critical facility needs of charter schools in New Mexico by enhancing their access to school facilities through grants from the Public School Capital Outlay Fund for lease assistance. HB 207 was championed by our partners at Public Charter Schools of New Mexico.
SB 76 School A Local Share Adjustment Waiver: Sponsored by Senator Mimi Stewart, SB76, amends the local share adjustment waiver for school district capital outlay.
SB 137 School Board Training: Sponsored by Senator Mimi Stewart, SB13, enhances mandatory training for local school boards and governing bodies of charter schools, including increasing the number of mandatory training hours. SB137 was supported by Think New Mexico and our partners at Teach Plus New Mexico.
Though the legislative session has ended, our work is far from over. We appreciate your advocacy and commitment over the past 30 days. To continue supporting our work towards improving New Mexico’s public education system, we encourage you to visit our Literacy Action Center. Our Literacy Action Center features 7 steps you can take to understand the literacy crisis in New Mexico and learn more about how you can make a difference.
CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT THE LITERACY ACTION CENTER
Thank you for your advocacy and continued support!