Roosevelt County Chamber of Commerce
Sine die — well sorta
The 60-day session of the New Mexico Legislature came to a close at noon on Saturday and as usual the formal way of doing it was Sine die. That formal Latin term means adjourned without a date to resume set. Before lawmakers could get out of the building, Governor Michelle Lujan-Grisham had made it clear they were coming back real soon in special session. With time ticking down on the last day and a half and lots to be done, legislators never got back to the chore of legalizing recreational marijuana. The Governor is calling them back with that task on the call. It will probably happen within two weeks. Depending on who you listened to, a marijuana bill was either mostly complete or still had a lot of problems. Republican Sen. Cliff Pirtle of Roswell was prepared with a stack of amendments and a plan to run the clock out if HB12 came back up. It should be interesting to see if they really are close enough to get this done quickly.
Paid sick leave passes in last hour
HB20 the paid sick leave bill, recovered quickly from a cold after it was amended again in committee to strip the public employee inclusion back out of the bill. That gave the bill just enough time to pass with a little over half hour left in the session. It’s on its way to the Governor’s desk with the main compromise being that it won’t go into effect until July 2022. Some are saying this bill could give Republicans the most ammunition at the ballot box in the next election. The effect will be hard for some small businesses to overcome.
Military spouse licenses to be expedited
A measure that we’ve been supporting for several years now finally passed. HB120 allows for expedited state licensure in a number of professions for military spouses. These folks, who already hold licenses in other states have had too much red tape to get through to get to work when they arrive at a new post. If signed this will help Cannon spouses and employers in our area.
Liquor licenses get landmark reform
With SB2 lawmakers reformed the liquor license process that will make liquor licenses easier and cheaper to obtain in New Mexico. This has long been debated but always turned down because of the devaluation of so-called legacy licenses, which some vendors had bought on the open market for $325,000 and up. It should help stimulate new business in the state but may put some of those legacy holders in a tight spot if they have been used to secure financing.
Get more here
Soon after the legislature adjourned Saturday the New Mexico Chamber of Commerce posted their final update on the session. Their staff has done an outstanding job this year under very trying circumstances. They have represented state business interests well without flagging. Read that complete update by CLICKING HERE.
