After a month in session, the New Mexico Legislature adjourned last week on February 18, 2010.
This year session began with the introduction of House Bill 97, which would have changed the voter identification requirements. Although voter ID remains and increasingly popular issue across the country, this bill never made it to a committee vote and subsequently died. Most attention was put upon Election Day Registration bills, HB 123 and SB 161. Specifically, these bills would have allowed eligible citizens to register to vote at an early voting site and cast a ballot on the same day. Both of these bills made it out of committee, but never had a floor vote.
Supporters of HB 123 and SB 161 say the bills failed to get any significant traction because of New Mexico’s sizable budget deficit and the short Legislative session. They are hopeful for EDR bills in the future as the Senate Bill gained more momentum this year than it had in previous years, perhaps thanks to a diverse coalition that gathered in support of the bill.
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