Anti-hazing bill passes Senate committee

A state higher education bill prohibiting hazing while mandating other prevention efforts passed the Senate Education Committee on Friday.

Senate Bill 10, sponsored by Sen. Harold Pope and Rep. Pamelya Herndon, both Albuquerque Democrats, next goes to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Pope, who was a member of a University of New Mexico fraternity, said he was inspired to craft his bill based on news reports he has seen about hazing and the fact that New Mexico is one of only six states in the nation without laws prohibiting it.

“Even before I ran for state Senate, this is something that I think we needed as a state,” Pope said.

UNM spokesperson Cinnamon Blair said following Friday’s committee hearing that the university condemns hazing and wants to maintain a safe environment for students.

The anti-hazing bill would make it a misdemeanor for anyone to commit hazing or fail to report it. It would also require higher education institutions to prohibit hazing on and off campus and to educate the campus community on the dangers of that conduct, including through a newly formed campus committee. The bill would require institutions to keep a report on the number and details of hazing incidents.

The measure passed the Senate committee Friday following a change requested by lawmakers that the legislation not pertain to K-12 schools. Pope and other lawmakers said they needed more time to think about the implications of criminalizing hazing for minors and school districts.

A similar bill, Senate Bill 148, sponsored by Sen. Antonio “Moe” Maestas, D-Albuquerque, and supported by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, would also make hazing and failure to report it a misdemeanor.

However, it would also make both acts a felony in certain instances, including in public school settings. That proposal is awaiting a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Pope said his and Maestas’ bills could eventually be added to legislation on public safety. It is also possible one bill could pass the Legislature and the other could fail, he said.

Pope said his anti-hazing bill reflects his values, protects students and “sends the message that hazing shouldn’t be tolerated.”

The other legislative proposal approved Friday is also similar to the Stop Campus Hazing Act, which former President Joe Biden signed into law last month. When lawmakers noted the federal law during Friday’s hearing, Pope said the difference with his legislation is the penalties imposed on hazing.

The anti-hazing bill was not the only major higher education bill to pass committee on Friday. Senate Bill 19, sponsored by Sens. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, and Gabriel Ramos, R-Silver City — which mandates training for all higher education governing boards — was unanimously approved. The legislation goes next to the Senate Rules Committee.