NEW MEXICO LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
2010 New Mexico Legislature
House Memorial 60--Calling on Congress to Enact Immigration Reform
Somos Un Pueblo Unido worked with Representative Miguel García (D-Bernalillo) to propose House Memorial 60, recognizing immigrants' economic contributions to New Mexico and calling on Congress to enact immigration reform. HM 60 was passed UNANIMOUSLY by the House of Representatives in February, 2010.
To download a copy, click here
2009 New Mexico Legislature
House Bill 489--Protecting New Mexico's Workers from Wage Theft
Wage theft hurts workers, honest businesses, and local economies. in 2009, Somos worked to pass a state law, HB 489 sponsored by Representative Miguel García (D-Bernalillo), that provides stronger protections against retaliation and stiffens penalties for unscrupulous employers who steal wages from workers. New Mexico went from being one of the states with the weakest anti-wage theft laws to being one of the strongest. For HB 489 fact sheet click here. To download copy of bill click here.
House Bill 428--Banning Bias-based Policing
Somos worked alongside the NAACP and the Drug Policy Alliance to make New Mexico the 23rd state to ban racial profiling and other forms of bias-based policing. HB 428, sponsored by Representative Nathan Cote (D-Doña Ana), prohibits disparate treatment by law enforcement officials based on race, national origin, language, sexual orientation, political affiliation and other factors. Somos is currently at the forefront of state efforts to ensure implementation of the new law. To see a copy of bill, click here.