Election 2024

Voting our Values at the Polls in November

By James Jimenez

These days, campaigns and elections have become so much about the cult of personality that it can be difficult to sort out the issues that really impact us. By focusing on policies instead of personalities, we can get a better sense of how to vote our values when we go to the polls. Since most public policies are not placed on the ballot for our direct input, we select representatives who will work to pass those policies on our behalf when they go to Santa Fe or Washington, D.C. At the state level, several public policies that can improve outcomes for families may be decided in the next legislative session, which will begin in January 2025. There are three such issues that New Mexico advocates will be advancing come January.

We’ll start off with the biggest one: Paid family and medical leave (PFML). Parents know the value of having time off of work when welcoming a new child to the family. But it is equally as important to be able to take time off of work to care for a sick child, a family member, or yourself when ill. Unfortunately, the U.S. is the only wealthy country that does not guarantee every worker some sort of paid sick or family leave. That’s why the states are stepping up to ensure that their families have this most basic work support. A few years back, New Mexico enacted a paid sick leave policy for all employees, which was a great first step. But a PFML policy would offer more paid leave to employees for instances and illnesses that take more than just a few days to resolve.

PFML is a win-win for businesses and their employees—especially for small, home-grown businesses that cannot compete against larger employers that offer big benefit packages. With PFML, these smaller businesses can improve employee recruitment and retention. It’s also a huge plus for families, as no one should have to choose between their job and having the time they need to bond with a new baby, to take care of a loved one, or recover from their own serious health problem. Those states that have already implemented PFML programs have found that they reduce infant mortality rates and child abuse injuries while improving the physical and mental well-being of parents.

This past legislative session, the New Mexico Senate passed a PFML Act (SB 3). If you want to dig in more about how it works and how it’s paid for, check out the Southwest Women’s Law Center’s website at swwomenslaw.org. Unfortunately, the same measure failed by just two votes in the House, forcing families to keep waiting for the support they deserve. In November, we need to ensure that we have the votes to pass this legislation in 2025.

The second policy is one many of you have already benefited from: The state Child Tax Credit. If you missed claiming this refundable credit on your 2023 tax form, find out how to file an amended form online at the state Taxation and Revenue Department (bit.ly/3YSNMP1). Refundable tax credits like the Child Tax Credit are one of the most effective anti-poverty programs the government has, but it can do even more for kids and families if our elected officials increase the refund amount for parents with children younger than 5.

The reasoning behind this is simple: Child poverty rates are highest when children are young. The state CTC is already adjusted so that those who earn the lowest incomes receive the highest refunds, and the credit is refundable, meaning that any amount that is left over what you owe in income taxes comes to you in the form of a check. If you owe no income taxes, you receive the whole amount, which is best for families living on very low incomes. New Mexico’s CTC is an already beneficial policy that can be made even better.

The final policy pushed by advocates is one that hasn’t had much traction yet: Baby bonds. They are essentially small, publicly funded trust funds set up by the state for each baby when they are born. The amount at birth varies but is between $500 and $2,000. The idea is to help families build wealth for their children by starting them out with a savings account, and parents can add to the account as their children grow and finances allow. When the child reaches adulthood, they have a small nest egg to help put them through college, start a business, or invest in their futures. Research shows that band bonds help bridge the wealth gap that falls along racial and ethnic lines while giving parents and their children greater hope for the future.

Finding out whether the candidates running for office in your district support one of the above policies can be as easy as going to their website. If the policy isn’t listed among those that the candidate supports, you may need to contact the candidate themselves. To find out who is running for the seats in the legislative districts where you live, go to the New Mexico Secretary of State’s office at bit.ly/3SIIx0b. By entering your name, birth date, and the county where you reside, this site will pull up everything from your voter registration information to your voting locations to a sample ballot, which will tell you who is running in the various districts where you live.

If you’re not yet registered to vote, you can find the House and Senate districts you live in on the New Mexico Legislature’s website at nmlegis.gov/members/find_my_legislator. Simply type in your address, and the site will pull up your district numbers and tell you who the sitting legislator is for that district. If your sitting legislator is running for reelection, you can find out how they voted on the PFML Act by searching for Senate Bill 3 from the 2024 regular session on the website at nmlegis.gov/Legislation/BillFinder/Number. Once the site pulls up SB 3, select ‘Votes’ from the blue buttons on the lower left of the screen.

The sitting legislators representing northern New Mexico districts who are running for reelection, are endorsed by the NMVC Action Fund, and voted for SB 3 are: Representatives Susan Herrera (House District 41), Christine Chandler (House District 43), Matthew McQueen (House District 50), and Derrick Lente (House District 65), and Senators Peter Wirth (Senate District 25) and Liz Stefanics (Senate District 39).

If you still need to register to vote, please do that through your county clerk’s office. Information for who’s eligible to vote, what kinds of identification you need to register, and how you register can all be found on your county clerk’s website.

James Jimenez is the executive director of NMVC Action Fund, the 501c4 arm of New Mexico Voices for Children. After serving for many years in state and local government, including as the cabinet secretary of the state Department of Finance and Administration, he is currently semi-retired and lives in Rio Rancho.