Governor signs four special session bills, still weighing options on vaccine measure

SANTA FE — Wasting little time, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Friday signed four of the five bills passed by lawmakers during a two-day special session that wrapped up this week.

But the governor held off on signing a vaccine-related bill after Republican objections thwarted Democratic plans to have it take effect immediately.

The four signed bills include a measure aimed at blunting the impact of looming health insurance hikes for some New Mexicans, legislation expanding the allowable uses of a state rural health care fund and a technical fix to a criminal competency bill enacted this year.

The governor also signed a funding bill that authorizes $161 million in total spending for food assistance programs, food banks and public radio and television stations.

All four of the bills signed Friday took effect immediately upon being signed by Lujan Grisham.

The Democratic governor did not hold a public bill signing ceremony, with her office instead announcing the Friday bill action in a news release.

“When federal support falls short, New Mexico steps up — that’s our commitment to families who depend on these services,” the governor said in a statement. “This funding protects the basics: food security, affordable health care, and access to care.”

While taking quick action on most of the approved special session bills, Lujan Grisham did not act Friday on a bill giving state health officials greater authority to set vaccine requirements without guidance from a federal panel.

That bill, Senate Bill 3, was opposed by all Republicans in the Legislature and ultimately fell short of a two-thirds vote threshold needed for it to take effect immediately upon the governor’s signature.

As a result, the bill would not take effect until Dec. 31 and the Governor’s Office indicated Friday that Lujan Grisham is still deliberating on whether to sign it. The governor has until Oct. 22 to act on the legislation.

After the special session ended Thursday, Lujan Grisham criticized GOP legislators for voting against the bill, saying the delay in implementation could lead to limited access to the COVID-19 vaccine for New Mexico children for the rest of this year.

The governor called lawmakers back to Santa Fe for this week’s special session in response to looming federal budget changes that could have an outsized impact on New Mexico.

The state has one of the nation’s highest Medicaid enrollment rates — roughly 38% of state residents are enrolled in the joint federal-state health care program — and state health officials have predicted more than 90,000 residents could lose their coverage under the federal bill signed by President Donald Trump.

The Democratic-controlled Legislature moved quickly to pass the bills crafted with input from Governor’s Office staffers, over the objections of Republicans who said they had been excluded from the process.

Republicans also pushed unsuccessfully for bills dealing with crime, child welfare and the state’s medical malpractice laws to be added to the special session agenda.

Lujan Grisham previously said she decided not to include those issues on her special session proclamation after meeting with top-ranking Democratic lawmakers. But she said Democratic leaders promised to fast-track some of those measures during the 30-day legislative session that starts in January.