RECAP: THE SECOND SESSION OF THE 56TH LEGISLATURE
OPENING
The second session of the 56th Legislature commenced on January 16th at noon, lasting for 30 days with a primary focus on budgetary matters and bills that received a message from the Governor.
STATE OF THE STATE
In a joint session of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham delivered her sixth State of the State address, marking the second such address in her second term as governor. During this address, she outlined her key legislative priorities for the 2024 session. Building upon her previous emphasis on housing and addressing homelessness, Governor Lujan Grisham presented two primary requests to the legislature. She sought $250 million in low-interest loans to expedite private sector housing development and an additional $250 million to significantly expand homebuyer assistance programs, alongside the creation of a statewide Office of Housing. Notably, she proposed tying state funding for housing development to the implementation of zoning and permitting requirements in line with national best practices by local governments.
SESSION
Throughout this session, notable achievements were made, underscoring the significance of addressing housing and homelessness issues among our legislators. The Governor officially signed several bills related to housing and infrastructure, demonstrating a commitment to tackling these critical issues. Notable among them are House Bill 195, which expanded the Opportunity Enterprise Revolving Loan Fund to support affordable housing infrastructure and workforce housing development, and Senate Bill 216, which enabled non-profit affordable housing developers to qualify for the Public Project Revolving Fund. These legislative actions aligned with significant investments aimed at addressing housing and homelessness challenges, including $125 million allocated to the Opportunity Enterprise Revolving Loan Fund for Housing, an additional $50 million injected into the NM Housing Trust Fund, supplementing its annual severance tax bonding capacity, and $19.7 million allocated for homelessness initiatives.
ADJOURNMENT
The 2024 legislative session adjourned at 12:00 PM on February 15, 2024, with 12:00 PM, March 6, 2024, marking the end of the signing period.
BILLS
Of the six hundred sixty-one bills introduced, seventy-two bills passed the House of Representatives and the Senate and were sent to the governor. Of these bills, sixty-nine were signed into law. The governor vetoed one bill, and pocket vetoed two others. We ended the session in a strong posture as no bill that the association opposed made it through the process and multiple that we supported were signed into law.
BUDGET
House Bill 2, the State Budget, is the largest in state history at $10.21 billion, showing a 6.8% increase from last year. Reserves remain high at 32.5%. Nearly $1.8 billion is allocated for projects statewide in Capital Outlay and General Obligation Bonds.
TAX PACKAGE
House Bill 252, known as the Tax Package, encompasses numerous revisions to the Tax Code. This comprehensive bill aims to lower income taxes by more than $160 million and includes measures such as limiting the capital gains deduction pursuant to the Income Tax Act, creating the Home Fire Recovery Income Tax Credit, and establishing a flat corporate income tax rate, among others.