Leaders signal focus on affordability, health care, public safety and immigration ahead of 30-day budget session

Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News

LAS CRUCES - With just days to go before New Mexico’s 30-day legislative session begins, House Democrats are starting to sketch out what they want the political weather to look like in 2026.

In a Friday news release, House Democratic leaders said their priorities for the upcoming session center on affordability, health care access, public safety and family well-being, with the budget as the main focus of the short session.

The Legislature convenes at noon Tuesday, Jan. 20.

Because 30-day sessions are limited by the state constitution, lawmakers are primarily supposed to focus on passing a state budget. The governor can add other topics to the agenda, known as “the call,” and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is expected to include health care, public safety and immigration issues, among other items.

What House Democrats are signaling

House Democrats say they want to:

• Make life more affordable through housing and cost-of-living policies
• Expand access to health care and lower out-of-pocket costs
• Invest in public safety, including gun policy, supervised release and youth services
• Revisit immigration and immigrant-support policies

Speaker of the House Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, framed the agenda as a response to rising costs and uncertainty tied to federal policy.

“While the Trump administration makes life harder and more expensive for your family, your House Democrats are focused on delivering real, pragmatic solutions to the issues that matter most—from healthcare and housing to the safety of our communities and well-being of our kids,” said Martinez. “New Mexico is ready to show the nation what it looks like to stand up to chaos and cruelty and to lead the way forward with values, vision, and compassion.”

Majority leaders also pointed to health care as a top issue, saying New Mexico plans to continue state-level subsidies that help keep insurance premiums down and pursue changes aimed at lowering patient costs and attracting more providers.

On public safety, Democrats said they want a mix of enforcement and prevention, including gun safety proposals, changes to supervised release and expanded services for at-risk youth, including children in state custody.

Immigration is also likely to be back on the table. House Democrats said they plan to reintroduce the Immigrant Safety Act, which passed the House in 2025 but stalled in the Senate. They also floated ideas related to ICE accountability, data privacy and creating an Office of New Americans.

The budget is already on the table

While lawmakers will ultimately decide the final budget, Gov. Lujan Grisham has already released her proposed $11.3 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year. Her recommendations emphasize child care, education and protecting the state from possible federal funding cuts.

That proposal now serves as the starting point for legislative negotiations, with the House and Senate expected to make their own changes as the session unfolds.

How much of the governor’s plan survives — and what gets added or cut — will be one of the central fights of the 30-day session.

Who’s shaping the agenda

The priorities outlined in the release are coming from House Democratic leadership, including:

• Speaker Javier Martínez of Albuquerque
• Majority Floor Leader Reena Szczepanski of Santa Fe
• Majority Whip Day Hochman-Vigil of Albuquerque

They are setting the tone for what House Democrats want to pursue, but the details will be written and debated by lawmakers from across the state, including those who represent southern New Mexico.

Several House members represent parts of Doña Ana County and the surrounding region, including:

• Nathan Small, D-Las Cruces
• Joanne Ferrary, D-Las Cruces
• Angelica Rubio, D-Las Cruces area
• Micaela Lara Cadena, D-Mesilla Valley
• Sarah Silva, D-Doña Ana County
• Raymundo “Ray” Lara, D-southern Doña Ana County
• Jenifer Jones, R-District 32, which includes parts of Doña Ana County along with Hidalgo and Luna counties
• Doreen Gallegos, D-Alamogordo area
• Rebecca Dow, R-Truth or Consequences area

Small, who chairs the House Appropriations and Finance Committee, will have a particularly central role in shaping the House version of the state budget, making him one of the most influential southern New Mexico lawmakers during the 30-day session.

While leadership sets the direction, it will be these local legislators who ultimately vote on whether those priorities become law and how they affect communities in southern New Mexico.

What this could mean locally

Several of the issues House Democrats are previewing line up with long-running concerns in southern New Mexico, including:

• Rising housing and rental costs
• Long waits for medical appointments and emergency care
• Ongoing debates over crime, youth violence and law enforcement resources
• Immigration enforcement and its impact on border and border-adjacent communities

How those concerns are addressed will depend on which bills are filed, how the budget is written and which proposals survive the legislative process.

What comes next

House Democrats say this is the agenda they want to advance, though the details will depend on what bills are filed and how the budget is written.

Among the big questions ahead:

• What issues the governor will officially include on the call
• Which bills lawmakers actually introduce
• How closely the Legislature follows the governor’s budget proposal
• Which proposals move through committees and which stall

Once the session begins, those answers will start to emerge through bill filings, committee hearings and early budget drafts.

For now, House Democrats are putting their priorities on the table before the gavel falls — giving New Mexicans an early look at what one side of the Roundhouse says it wants to fight for and what might soon move from talking points to law.

Damien Willis is founder and editor of Organ Mountain News. If you have a personal story to share or a lead we should follow up on, reach out at OrganMountainNews@gmail.com or connect with him on X at @damienwillis.