This message is from Ellen Pinnes and The Disability Coalition. 

The governor has now signed the last of the five bills that passed in last week’s special legislative session, formally closing out that session.  Here’s a quick recap of what happened in the special session. The bills that passed were: 

HB 1

Makes appropriations to backfill funds lost due to recent Congressional action that 1) clawed back funds for public broadcasting (through President Trump’s “rescission” of those appropriations that was approved by Congress) and 2) enacted numerous changes in safety net programs in the budget reconciliation bill (HR 1, also known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”) that Congress passed and the president signed into law this summer.  Among the appropriations in the bill are:        

• funding to preserve access to SNAP (food stamps) and related programs, including a supplemental benefit for elders and people with disabilities,         
• funding for food banks,         
• funding for services to support people in meeting new work reporting requirements in SNAP and Medicaid that are mandated by HR 1,         
• funding to the Health Care Authority to hire additional staff and upgrade systems to handle the added administrative workload created by HR 1,         
• funding to the Health Care Affordability Fund (HCAF) to cover the additional help to be offered under HB 2 (below), and         
• additional funding to meet the costs of natural disasters in New Mexico. 

HB 2

Expands access to assistance from the state’s Health Care Affordability Fund so that help can be provided to more people to get insurance through the state’s healthcare marketplace (BeWell NM) that was created pursuant to the Affordable Care Act.  This is in response to Congress’s failure to extend existing enhanced premium tax credits when they enacted HR 1.  That inaction is expected to make insurance unaffordable for millions of people nationwide, leading to many of them becoming uninsured; the state money will help New Mexicans who lose the federal subsidy assistance. 

SB 1

Appropriates additional funding to the state’s Rural Healthcare Delivery Fund and expands the use of those funds in two ways:  1) allows funding to stabilize operations of rural healthcare facilities in addition to using it for start-up costs as authorized under existing law, and 2) changes existing law that authorized grants only in rural counties, so the money can be used for facilities in rural areas located within more populous counties.  These changes respond to HR 1’s provisions that are projected to lead to significant numbers of New Mexicans losing healthcare coverage through Medicaid or BeWell NM, resulting in increased uncompensated care costs for healthcare providers that will fall especially heavily on rural providers. 

SB 2

Modifies a law passed in the 2025 regular legislative session that made changes to how competency decisions in criminal proceedings are handled by the courts, to correct an unintended outcome that created case backlogs in district courts in Bernalillo County. 

SB 3

Temporarily modifies state law regarding vaccination requirements and coverage.  The bill expands childhood immunization requirements to kids in child care as well as schools.  It also eliminates references to the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), in response to disarray at the federal level, and authorizes the New Mexico Department of Health (DOH) to make these decisions itself or based on recommendations from established medical organizations.  Until June 30, 2026, the state will look not to ACIP but to the American Academy of Pediatrics for recommendations on vaccination requirements for children, and to the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American College of Physicians for coverage of adult vaccinations.  As of July 1, 2026, the law will go back to the way it existed previously.

Bills were introduced on a number of other topics, including medical malpractice and interstate medical licensure, but those weren’t authorized by the governor’s proclamation for the special session, which was intended to focus on responding to recently enacted federal changes that will have significant impacts on New Mexico.   The New Mexico Constitution limits the agenda for a special session to items authorized by the governor, so bills on other topics could not be considered by the Legislature; those topics are expected to be addressed in the regular legislative session that begins in January. 

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The Disability Coalition is funded in part by the  New Mexico Developmental Disabilities Council through Federal Program funding.Additional funding is provided by The Arc of New Mexico, Disability Rights New Mexico, the Independent Living Resource Center, and New Vistas. If you would like receive emails from The Disability Coalition, please send a message to EPinnes@msn.com with “subscribe” in the subject line.