HOUSE BILL 188

56th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2023

INTRODUCED BY

Angelica Rubio and Kristina Ortez and Linda Serrato and

Anthony Allison and D. Wonda Johnson

 

 

 

 

AN ACT

RELATING TO STATE GOVERNMENT; CREATING THE ECONOMIC TRANSITION DIVISION WITHIN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT; EXPANDING THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY ADVISORY COUNCIL; ENACTING THE ECONOMIC TRANSITION ACT; MAKING APPROPRIATIONS.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 9-15-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1983, Chapter 297, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:

     "9-15-4. DEPARTMENT ESTABLISHED.--There is created in the executive branch the "economic development department". The department shall be a cabinet department and shall consist of, but not be limited to, [six] seven divisions as follows:

          A. the administrative services division;

          B. the economic development division;

          C. the New Mexico film division;

          D. the technology enterprise division;

          E. the trade and Mexican affairs division; [and]

          F. the New Mexico outdoor recreation division; and

          G. the economic transition division."

     SECTION 2. Section 9-15-58 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2021, Chapter 42, Section 1) is amended to read:

     "9-15-58. SUSTAINABLE ECONOMY TASK FORCE--CREATED--STAFF.--

          A. The "sustainable economy task force" is created and is administratively attached to the economic development department. The task force consists of the following voting members as follows:

                (1) the commissioner of public lands or the commissioner's designee;

                (2) the secretary of economic development or the secretary's designee;

                (3) the secretary of finance and administration or the secretary's designee;

                (4) the secretary of taxation and revenue or the secretary's designee;

                (5) the secretary of energy, minerals and natural resources or the secretary's designee;

                (6) the secretary of Indian affairs or the secretary's designee;

                (7) the secretary of workforce solutions or the secretary's designee;

                (8) the secretary of general services or the secretary's designee;

                (9) the secretary of higher education or the secretary's designee;

                (10) the secretary of public education or the secretary's designee;

                (11) the secretary of environment or the secretary's designee;

                (12) the state investment officer or the state investment officer's designee; and

                (13) the chair of the sustainable economy advisory council.

          B. The chair of the task force shall be the secretary of economic development or the secretary's designee, and the vice chair of the task force shall be the member serving as the chair of the sustainable economy advisory council. The task force shall meet at the call of the chair.

          C. The "sustainable economy advisory council" is created and is administratively attached to the economic development department. The advisory council shall advise the sustainable economy task force and the director of the economic transition division of the department on developing and achieving the goals of the strategic plan provided in Section [2 of this 2021 act] 9-15-59 NMSA 1978. The advisory council shall consist of the following members:

                (1) one representative of local governments, appointed by the chair of the task force;

                (2) [two] three representatives of disproportionately impacted communities or organizations with experience working with disproportionately impacted communities, appointed by the chair of the task force;

                (3) two representatives of organizations with experience in sustainable economic development planning and workforce development, appointed by the chair of the task force;

                (4) one representative from industry and business sectors involved in achieving or that may be affected by the goals of the sustainable economy task force, appointed by the chair of the task force; [and]

                (5) eight representatives of tribal governments or entities, appointed by the Indian affairs department;

                (6) one representative of organizations that operate apprenticeship programs, appointed by the chair of the task force in consultation with the current members of the task force;

                (7) two representatives of worker organizations representing workers in communities in transition as defined in Paragraph (1) of Subsection B of Section 3 of this 2023 act, appointed by the chair of the task force in consultation with the current members of the task force; and

                (8) two representatives of higher education workforce development programs, appointed by the chair of the task force in consultation with the current members of the task force.

          D. The chair of the advisory council shall be elected by the members of the advisory council.

          E. Members of the task force and advisory council may receive per diem and mileage pursuant to the Per Diem and Mileage Act.

          F. The economic development department shall provide the necessary staff and administrative support to the task force.

          G. As used in this section, "disproportionately impacted community" means a community or population of people for which multiple burdens, including environmental and socioeconomic stressors, inequity, poverty, high unemployment, pollution or discrimination, may act to persistently and negatively affect the health, well-being and environment of the community or population and includes tribal communities, communities of color and low-income rural communities and native people, people of color, women, immigrants, youth, formerly incarcerated people, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people and people with disabilities."

     SECTION 3. A new section of the Economic Development Department Act is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] ECONOMIC TRANSITION DIVISION--DUTIES.--

          A. The economic transition division of the department shall:

                (1) provide programmatic support to fulfill recommendations of the sustainable economy task force for communities in transition and workers in transition and implement the recommendations of the New Mexico clean energy workforce development study commissioned by the workforce solutions department and published in June 2020;

                (2) support the economic transition of disproportionately impacted communities, communities in transition and workers in transition from natural resource extraction industries;

                (3) identify public and private funding sources to support disproportionately impacted communities, communities in transition and workers in transition;

                (4) coordinate state agencies and coordinate with the federal government in the economic transition of disproportionately impacted communities, communities in transition and workers in transition;

                (5) provide administrative, logistical, research and policy support to the sustainable economy task force and the sustainable economy advisory council;

                (6) administer the economic transition fund and provide grants, loans and other financial assistance for economic transition projects and eligible entities to support disproportionately impacted communities, communities in transition and workers in transition;

                (7) provide technical assistance to disproportionately impacted communities and communities in transition to identify funding streams; and

                (8) receive and report on state, federal and other funding.

          B. As used in this section:

                (1) "community in transition" means a municipality, county, region or Indian nation, tribe or pueblo that faces historic, current or future significant economic disruption due to the transition from dependency on or market fluctuations in natural resource extractive industries;

                (2) "disproportionately impacted community" means a community or population of people for which multiple burdens, including environmental and socioeconomic stressors, inequity, poverty, high unemployment, pollution or discrimination, may act to persistently and negatively affect the health, well-being and environment of the community or population and includes tribal communities, communities of color and low-income rural communities and native people, people of color, women, immigrants, youth, formerly incarcerated people, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people and people with disabilities;

                (3) "economic transition" means the economic, social, health and environmental conditions of workers and communities that are impacted by significant job loss or the loss of one or more industries on which a community depends;

                (4) "economic transition project" means a project that improves the physical and social infrastructure of communities in transition, provides support to workers in transition, ensures health and safety standards in fossil fuel and emerging industries or promotes economic and workforce development opportunities in non-extractive industries;

                (5) "eligible entity" means a county, municipality or other political subdivision of the state; an Indian nation, tribe or pueblo or tribal entity; a state agency; an apprenticeship program registered with the state of New Mexico or the United States department of labor; a public post-secondary educational institution; or a public or private nonprofit organization or association; and

                (6) "worker in transition" means an individual who has lost or is likely to lose work, employment or income due to changes in market fluctuations, industry downsizing or the phaseout of an extractive industry."

     SECTION 4. [NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--Sections 4 through 7 of this act may be cited as the "Economic Transition Act".

     SECTION 5. [NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Economic Transition Act:

          A. "community in transition" means a municipality, county, region or Indian nation, tribe or pueblo that faces historic, current or future significant economic disruption due to the transition from dependency on natural resource extractive industries;

          B. "department" means the economic development department;

          C. "disproportionately impacted community" means a community or population of people for which multiple burdens, including environmental and socioeconomic stressors, inequity, poverty, high unemployment, pollution or discrimination, may act to persistently and negatively affect the health, well-being and environment of the community or population and includes tribal communities, communities of color and low-income rural communities and native people, people of color, women, immigrants, youth, formerly incarcerated people, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people and people with disabilities;

          D. "division" means the economic transition division of the department;

          E. "economic transition" means the economic, social, health and environmental conditions of workers and communities that are impacted by significant job loss or the loss of one or more industries on which a community depends;

          F. "eligible entity" means a county, municipality or other political subdivision of the state; a state agency; an Indian nation, tribe or pueblo or tribal entity; an apprenticeship program registered with the state of New Mexico or the United States department of labor; a public post-secondary educational institution; or a public or private nonprofit organization or association;