Governor Smith's
Plans, Amendments, Acts, & Policies!
The Recruitment and Influence of Minors for Criminal Activity Act.
A Bill Draft
The Recruitment and Influence of Minors for Criminal Activity Act is a proposed bill for the 59th Legislature of New Mexico's First Session in 2027. This bill seeks to add a new section under Chapter 30, Article 6 of the New Mexico Statutes Annotated (NMSA 1978). It aims to establish the crime of knowingly recruiting, inducing, enticing, coercing, or influencing a minor—defined as anyone under 18 years of age—to commit a criminal offense.
This offense is classified as a first-degree felony and carries a mandatory prison sentence of either 10 or 25 years, which would override the standard sentencing guidelines outlined in Section 31-18-15 NMSA 1978.
The provisions of this bill would supplement existing laws related to crimes against children and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. If enacted, the act would take effect on July 1, 2027, and it would hold accountable those who exploit children for criminal purposes.
Governor Smith's Comprehensive Plan to Address Key Infrastructure Issues in New Mexico.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
New Mexico faces significant infrastructure challenges that climate change, population growth, rural-urban divides, and funding limitations have worsened. Key issues include deteriorating transportation systems, water scarcity and aging water infrastructure, limited broadband access, and an energy grid that is transitioning to renewable sources amid reliability concerns.
This plan outlines targeted strategies to address these challenges, utilizing federal funding from programs such as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) initiative, as well as state revenues from oil and gas, and public-private partnerships. The objective is to achieve resilient and equitable infrastructure by 2036, with phased implementation beginning in 2027.
The total estimated investment needed for these initiatives is between $15 billion and $20 billion over the next ten years, with priorities set in accordance with the state’s Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan (ICIP).
K-12 Education in New Mexico: Inspired by the Mississippi Miracle.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
New Mexico's K-12 education system faces several ongoing challenges, including low student achievement, teacher shortages, aging infrastructure, and barriers that affect non-English-speaking families. This plan draws inspiration from the impressive turnaround in Mississippi—often referred to as the "Mississippi Miracle"—and proposes a comprehensive approach to improve educational outcomes in New Mexico.
Between 2013 and 2022, Mississippi achieved significant progress, moving from 49th to 21st in fourth-grade reading proficiency thanks to targeted literacy reforms, teacher support, and consistent policy implementation. To adapt these successful strategies to New Mexico's unique context, which includes diverse Hispanic, Native American, and immigrant populations, this plan emphasizes enhancing literacy, upgrading infrastructure, expanding language services, and ensuring equitable resource allocation.
Over a five-year implementation period, this initiative could position New Mexico as a national leader in inclusive education. Projected improvements include increases in NAEP scores, graduation rates, and family engagement. The estimated annual costs range from $50 million to $100 million, which could be funded through state oil and gas revenues, federal grants, and reallocations.
Governor Smith's 505 Plan for Healthcare in New Mexico.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
This plan outlines a strategic expansion of medical schools in New Mexico, increasing the total from two— the University of New Mexico School of Medicine in Albuquerque and Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine in Las Cruces— to five schools. The expansion aims to address physician and nurse shortages, particularly in underserved rural and tribal areas.
The initiative includes establishing one new medical school on the Navajo Nation and two additional schools in densely populated regions that are currently far from existing institutions. This expansion will improve the geographic distribution of medical education. Each new medical school will also incorporate a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program to help address the state’s anticipated nursing shortage, projected to reach a deficit of 5,000 nurses by 2030.
Additionally, the plan integrates safe patient-to-nurse ratios to enhance the quality of care and ensure patient safety. It also includes medical malpractice reform to alleviate litigation burdens, reduce insurance costs, and attract more healthcare professionals.
The initiative is expected to be completed within 8 to 10 years, with an estimated total cost ranging from $950 million to $1.15 billion. Funding will be sourced from state appropriations, federal grants, tribal partnerships, and private donations. The expected outcomes include a 50% increase in annual medical graduates and an additional 1,000 BSN graduates each year by 2037, improved healthcare access, and reduced provider burnout.
The economic impact is projected to yield a return on investment of $2.5 million per physician and $1 million per nurse annually. This indicates that the plan will pay for itself after the first full class graduates.
Governor Smith's New Mexico Affordable Housing Plan: Building a Sustainable Future (2027-2032).
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
New Mexico is currently facing a severe affordable housing crisis, characterized by a shortage of up to 90,000 housing units, rapidly rising home prices and rents, and an increasing number of homeless individuals. This plan outlines a comprehensive strategy to address these challenges, starting in 2027. The goal is to create or preserve 25,000 affordable housing units by 2032, reduce housing cost burdens for low-income households by 20%, and decrease homelessness by 30%.
To achieve these objectives, the plan will utilize current assessments, best practices from other states, and available funding sources. It emphasizes increasing the housing supply through regulatory reforms, preserving existing housing stock, expanding rental assistance, and leveraging public-private partnerships.
Implementation will involve collaboration among various state agencies, including the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (MFA), local governments, non-profit organizations, and developers. The estimated annual budget for this initiative is between $250 million and $300 million, sourced from federal, state, and private funds. Success will be measured through annual progress reports and key performance indicators.
The New Mexico Investigative Authority (NMIA) Act.
A Bill Draft
The New Mexico Investigative Authority (NMIA) Act establishes the NMIA as an independent state agency responsible for overseeing investigations across all three branches of government and various state-funded entities, including municipal law enforcement agencies (defined as state, county, or municipal police departments, sheriff's offices, and other law enforcement entities). The NMIA's goals include ensuring proper handling of investigations, holding accountable those involved in misconduct, promoting transparency, reviewing internal affairs investigations in the judiciary, executive, and legislative branches, and addressing complaints related to rights violations, corruption, miscarriages of justice, ethics issues, and similar matters.
For each complaint received, the NMIA must issue a public statement within 30 days regarding whether an investigation will be conducted and determine the appropriate jurisdiction.
The NMIA is overseen by a tribunal consisting of three members, each serving a single six-year term. Elections are held statewide and are staggered every two years. The chairperson is the member who is in the final two years of their term.
The NMIA has the authority to subpoena witnesses and documents, conduct hearings and investigations, refer cases for prosecution, issue reports and recommendations, impose administrative sanctions (following due process), and adopt rules. The organization promotes accountability, transparency, and justice while maintaining necessary confidentiality.
Governor Smith's Young Families First Initiative.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
The Young Families First Initiative is a collaborative program launched by the State of New Mexico to support expectant parents by providing access to valuable job training and guaranteed employment opportunities. Through partnerships with national companies and local organizations, the initiative offers accelerated training programs—lasting approximately six months—in both remote-capable and skilled manual labor roles that provide stable incomes.
This program is specifically designed for New Mexicans who are expecting their first or second child, including both mothers and fathers. It emphasizes family stability by requiring a two-year employment commitment and offering job guarantees after training.
The initiative aims to reduce financial stress for new families, increase workforce participation, and address labor shortages in key sectors, ultimately fostering economic growth in the state.
Governor Smith's CYFD Reform: A Comprehensive Plan to Transform New Mexico's Children, Youth, and Families Department.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
The CYFD Reform Plan is a multi-year initiative to overhaul the New Mexico Children, Youth, and Families Department (CYFD) and address its most pressing challenges. This plan is informed by ongoing evaluations, including arbiter reports and legislative scrutiny, which highlight systemic issues such as staffing shortages, funding deficits, case backlogs, failures in child safety, and inadequate foster care placements. These problems have persisted despite previous settlements, such as the 2020 Kevin S. agreement, resulting in preventable child deaths, worker burnout, and inefficient allocation of resources.
The reform plan is set to launch in January 2027 and will be implemented in phases: immediate stabilization in 2027, structural reforms from 2028 to 2029, and long-term sustainability starting in 2030. The key goals are to reduce incidents of child maltreatment by 50% within five years, achieve 90% compliance with federal and state standards, and build a resilient workforce. Success will be assessed through independent audits, key performance indicators (KPIs), and community feedback.
An estimated initial funding requirement is $150 million in state appropriations, with additional support from federal grants and public-private partnerships.
Governor Smith's New Mexico Agricultural Support Plan.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
This plan outlines a comprehensive strategy to strengthen New Mexico's agricultural sector by prioritizing support for water and soil. It addresses the state's arid climate, ongoing drought, and groundwater depletion. Building on existing initiatives such as the New Mexico Department of Agriculture's (NMDA) Healthy Soil Program and the Natural Resources Conservation Service's (NRCS) Conservation Stewardship Program, the plan aims to enhance resilience for farmers and ranchers.
A key new component is the establishment of the New Mexico Farmers Bank, a state-owned public bank dedicated to agricultural financing. This bank will be initiated with a $500 million investment from the general fund, providing low-interest loans and financial tools for water and soil initiatives.
Implementation will begin in 2027, with phased actions planned over five years. The focus will be on conservation incentives, technology adoption, education, monitoring, and improving financial accessibility through the new bank. Expected outcomes include a 20% reduction in agricultural water use and enhanced soil health across 100,000 acres by 2032, supporting sustainable farming amid climate challenges.
Governor Smith's Stable Economic Growth Plan for New Mexico.
Plan Draft
Executive Summary:
The Stable Economic Growth Plan for New Mexico is a comprehensive 10-year strategy aimed at promoting resilient, diversified, and inclusive economic development throughout the state, starting in 2027. This plan builds on New Mexico's strengths in natural resources, federal investments, and emerging industries, while addressing vulnerabilities such as overreliance on oil and gas, workforce shortages, and infrastructure gaps. It also seeks to reduce reliance on government employment in a public sector that has become too large.
The plan's vision is to achieve average annual GDP growth of 3-4% and create 50,000 net new private sector jobs by 2032. Key goals include reducing economic volatility and lowering unemployment to below 3.5%. While promoting equitable opportunities for all residents, streamlining government operations, and decreasing the share of government employment from its current 21.6% to below 18% through private sector growth rather than public sector job cuts.
The plan emphasizes investments in high-potential industries, workforce development, infrastructure, and business-friendly policies to ensure long-term economic stability.
The New Mexico Legislature Gets Paid by New Mexicans
Constitutional Amendment.
Joint Resolution 1 Draft
For too long, the New Mexico Legislature has been influenced by lobbyists rather than focusing on the people of New Mexico. Currently, New Mexico is the only "volunteer" legislature in the nation.
To address this issue, we propose that New Mexicans start paying salaries to the legislators. This change will ensure that legislators prioritize the interests of New Mexicans instead of catering to lobbyists who currently incentivize them. It will also foster competition for all legislative seats and hold lawmakers accountable for their actions and inactions.
Being at the bottom in many critical categories highlights the need for this act. With the state budget hovering around $10 billion annually, we believe that $10 million, just one-thousandth of that budget, could provide generous compensation for legislators.
The proposal sets the salary at $85,000 per year, with the stipulation that a statewide vote by the people of New Mexico must approve any changes to this salary. This means that legislators will not be able to increase their own salaries by sending proposals to a committee.
The New Mexico Legislature Gets To Work for ALL New Mexicans
Constitutional Amendment.
Joint Resolution 2 Draft
The Plan "The New Mexico Legislature Gets To Work for ALL New Mexicans Constitutional Amendment" goes hand in hand with "The New Mexico Legislature Gets Paid by New Mexicans Constitutional Amendment." This new amendment aims to fix the problem of having just 90 days of regular sessions every two years here in New Mexico. Allowing the New Mexico Legislature the flexibility to respond to statewide issues throughout the year.
The plan suggests three regular sessions each year: a 50-day session that starts on the third Tuesday of January, a 30-day session that begins on July 11th, and a 20-day session that starts on October 1st.
Since this is a constitutional amendment, it will be up to the people of New Mexico to vote on it.