New Mexico

NM Lawmakers try again to give judges a raise – Source New Mexico

Published

2 years ago

February 2, 2024

NM Lawmakers try again to give judges a raise – Source New Mexico

This year marks the New Mexico Legislature’s third attempt to raise the salaries of their coequal branch of government in the judiciary. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has vetoed raises for state Supreme Court justices and most lower court judges two years in a row. But a change to this year’s bill may gain the governor’s support.

Last year, the governor said she vetoed judicial raises in part because the bill tied the salaries to those of federal judges, which she said could prove “problematic” in the future. The year before that, she didn’t give a reason for pocket vetoing the bill.

Senate Bill 70 sponsor Democratic Sen. Joseph Cervantes (D-Las Cruces) told his colleagues on the Senate Finance Committee Thursday that, against his better judgment, he took that provision out of this year’s version.

“The earlier way was superior,” he said. “And I’ll just tell you we’re trying to get the governor satisfied.”

The raises would amount to a 21% bump, according to the Administrative Office of the Courts. New Mexico Supreme Court justices’ pay would become equal to federal district court judges at $232,600.

“We’re kind of taking just about the lowest level of the federal system and making that essentially equivalent to the highest level of our state,” he explained.

The concern about not indexing the amount to the federal rate is that state lawmakers will have to come back to the table to bump the pay again in the future.

Lower court judges other than magistrates would also get a raise since they make a percentage of what the justices do.

Cervantes said the raises could help the New Mexico judiciary better compete for talent.

“We’re trying to get more experienced judges on the bench,” he said. “Right now, if you’re a public defender or district attorney, you’d see a pretty significant salary increase. But if you’re in private practice, we’re not attracting people with experience.”

Sen. George Muñoz (D-Gallup) took issue with the bill not tying judicial pay to performance, which he said is lacking.

“We’ve got a big problem with crime and performance for judges is going to be top of my list,” he said. “Maybe I’ll put it somewhere in another statute or bill that will come across, but performance needs to happen.”

Cervantes warned against painting New Mexico judges with a broad brush, offering to work with Muñoz to take up the issue of performance in the interim session when there is more time.

Meanwhile, Sen. Jeff Steinborn (D-Las Cruces) pointed out after the vote what he called “the disconnect” of lawmakers not being paid a salary at all.

“This branch of government continues to be given the short shrift,” he said of the Legislature. “And I would ask the question, do we have a hard time getting good people?”

A bill to create an independent commission to set legislative salaries for the only unpaid Legislature in the country is being heard this session.

The judicial raises proposal passed unanimously out of committee and now goes to the full Senate for consideration. If approved, it will start the process over again on the House side, where a similar bill is already working its way through. Another that would tie the raises to inflation has yet to be heard.

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New Mexico

New Mexico Public Education Department faces $35 million shortfall

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10 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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New Mexico Public Education Department faces million shortfall

The New Mexico Public Education Department is facing a $35 million deficit, which it attributes to overpayments made to Gallup-McKinley County Schools, a claim the district disputes, arguing they are being wrongly blamed for the state’s funding mismanagement.

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New Mexico

New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

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22 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

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New Mexico

What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

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What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

The governor sets the agenda for the session, including for the budget, so here is what they are looking at so far.

SANTA FE, N.M. — As the regular session of the New Mexico Legislature is set to begin Jan. 20, lawmakers have already filed dozens of bills.

Bills include prohibiting book bans at public libraries and protections against AI, specifically the distribution of sensitive and “Deepfake” images

Juvenile justice reform is, again, a hot topic. House Bill 25 would allow access to someone’s juvenile records during a background check if they’re trying to buy a gun.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham sets the agenda and puts forth the proposed budget lawmakers will address during the session. The governor is calling for lawmakers to take up an $11.3 billion budget for the 2027 fiscal year, which is up 4.6% from current spending levels.

Where would that money go? More than $600 million would go to universal free child care. Meanwhile, more than $200 million would go to health care and to protect against federal funding cuts.

There is also $65 million for statewide affordable housing initiatives and $19 million for public safety.

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