New Mexicans deserve good policy. Let's get it right.

Far too many New Mexicans, including our own families, have had their lives impacted by crime. Over the past 3 years, the legislature has appropriated more than $800 million to improve community safety, including law enforcement recruitment and retention, and address the root causes of crime. We have also enhanced penalties for second-degree murder and felons in possession of firearms, cracked down on organized retail crime, passed commonsense measures to reduce gun violence and tightened up pre-trial monitoring.

When Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham called for a special session, lawmakers rolled up our sleeves to vet her proposed legislation, both because it’s our constitutional duty as a separate and equal branch of government, and because we share the sense of urgency about community safety.

We held six special meetings of the legislature’s Courts, Corrections, and Justice Committee, where bipartisan lawmakers from both chambers heard from the Governor’s staff about her agenda to address the nexus of crime and behavioral healthcare. We convened law enforcement, judges, behavioral healthcare providers, community advocates, and the public to discuss these issues and the Governor’s proposed policies.

We engaged with the Governor in good faith, providing feedback in public meetings and working sessions on multiple bill drafts. We also brought forward our ideas, including a plan to expand access to much needed behavioral healthcare. Meanwhile, we continued to hear concerns from stakeholders about her proposals.

We heard serious concerns about the constitutionality of the panhandling bill, recently rebranded as a “Median Safety” bill. The bill does not improve pedestrian safety, but effectively criminalizes panhandling and homelessness. It applies a one-size fits all approach that ignores differences in our rural and urban communities and risks inhibiting New Mexicans’ abilities to engage in time honored traditions. It would also tie up valuable law enforcement resources on something that may be unenforceable.

The proposal to expand the state’s ability to commit individuals involuntarily contains alarmingly broad language. Disability rights advocates have warned that it could lead to New Mexicans, especially the most vulnerable among us, wrongly losing their rights. Further, it could make it harder for folks who actually want help to get it, by overwhelming a behavioral healthcare system that is not currently meeting the need.

The bill sold as a way to prevent violent criminals from being prematurely released would actually take discretion away from prosecutors and judges. It would require prosecutors to file involuntary commitment proceedings for individuals found not competent to stand trial but not dangerous, even if the prosecutor determines these proceedings are not needed. Thus, unnecessary lawsuits could jam up our already overburdened courts and delay justice for New Mexicans.

We are committed to continuing the public debate of these critical issues. We must also ensure legislation that we pass does not do more harm than good.

A spokesman for the Governor earlier this week said that she was willing to entertain only “small tweaks.” This is not how good policy is made. The legislature is the lawmaking body in the state. We know that New Mexicans are best served by a careful approach to policy making.

This article was authored by New Mexico House Speaker Javier Martínez (D-Albuquerque), Majority Leader Gail Chasey (D-Albuquerque), Majority Whip Reena Szczepanski (D-Santa Fe), and Majority Caucus Chair Raymundo Lara (D-Chamberino) .

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: New Mexicans deserve good policy. Let's get it right.