Bill that could shut immigration detention facilities in New Mexico advances in the House

A woman shot in the head by a federal agent, widespread protests, families separated and American citizens unlawfully detained.

State Rep. Eleanor Chavez, D-Albuquerque, described these scenes before introducing House Bill 9, which could shutter immigration detention centers in New Mexico.

“Now is the time more than ever to pass the Immigrant Rights Act,” Chavez said before the House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee on Thursday.

Located in rural Cibola, Torrance and Otero counties, New Mexico's detention facilities have a combined detainee population of more than 1,500 people, according to recent estimates.

Though the bill would not directly close all three detention centers, it would forbid local governments from contracting with private prison companies, effectively forcing the largest of the three facilities to shut down.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham voiced support for the bill in an executive message Tuesday, adding momentum to legislation that is expected to move quickly through both chambers.

These predictions were reaffirmed in a party-line vote that swiftly passed the bill through its first committee Thursday.

If the bill crosses the finish line, New Mexico will join six other states that have passed similar legislation — Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington.

An earlier attempt to pass such a bill died in a Senate committee last year, after leaving the House of Representatives on a 35-25 vote.

However, with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ramping up operations across the country, Democratic legislators believe they have the numbers and the momentum to pass the bill this session.

The Cibola and Torrance facilities, owned by CoreCivic, could stay open despite the bill by contracting directly with ICE.

Neither ICE nor the Department of Homeland Security responded to questions from the Journal on Wednesday about whether the agency would pursue a direct contract with CoreCivic.

Despite ICE’s ability to bypass the bill, Chavez said that the legislation would send a strong message that New Mexico is “not in the business” of profiting from immigrant detention.

However, the largest facility is owned by the county and would be closed if the bill passes. If the Otero Processing Center in Chaparral closed, Rep. John Block, R-Alamogordo, said it would be economically devastating to his district and result in the loss of 300 jobs.

Rep. Stefani Lord, R-Sandia Park, also said she would vote no on the bill, citing economic impacts to Torrance County. Lord said the detention center amounted to $30 million, or 40% of the county’s budget.

“Would you support an amendment so we don’t go broke?” Lord asked Chavez.

Chavez said she would not support such an amendment.

Another bill sponsor, Rep. Angelica Rubio, D-Las Cruces, refuted economic arguments, saying that New Mexico must prioritize morality over an economy “built on cages.”

Ultimately, the committee voted 4-2 to advance the legislation, which now heads to the House Judicial Committee. If approved in that panel, it would then go to the House floor for a vote.

Before Thursday's vote, a local immigration attorney described the decision before New Mexico’s legislators as historic.

“When we look back at our time in history, I want to say we did everything we could to keep our people safe,” said staff attorney for the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center, Jessica Inez.

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Gillian Barkhurst is the local government reporter for the Journal. She can be reached at gbarkhurst@abqjournal.com or on Twitter @G_Barkhurst.