A sweeping and highly controversial piece of legislation that critics warn could devastate rural New Mexico communities is now headed to the New Mexico House floor, where it will be debated today beginning at noon, with a live webcast available on the Legislature’s website under the “Webcast” tab.
House Bill 9 (HB 9), misleadingly titled the “Immigrant Safety Act,” has already cleared the New Mexico House Consumer & Public Affairs Committee and the New Mexico House Judiciary Committee, despite mounting concerns from counties, bond experts, law enforcement, and constitutional scholars.
At stake is nothing less than the economic survival of entire rural counties, particularly Otero County, Torrance County, and Cibola County—communities that rely heavily on intergovernmental service agreements (IGSAs) with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to operate detention facilities that process individuals already in the federal immigration system.
A Bill With Massive Consequences
HB 9 would force counties to terminate existing ICE agreements, prohibit any future cooperation, and even bar the use or lease of public property for immigration detention purposes. While supporters frame the bill as a moral stand, critics argue it is an ideological weapon with catastrophic real-world consequences.
County-level analyses warn the bill could wipe out hundreds of jobs per facility, eliminate tens of millions of dollars in annual local revenue, and trigger defaults on outstanding revenue bonds tied directly to detention center operations. In Otero County alone, officials estimate the loss of approximately 284 jobs and the potential default on more than $16 million in outstanding bonds—a scenario that could plunge the county into fiscal crisis or bankruptcy.
“These aren’t abstract numbers,” one county official warned. “These are real families, real paychecks, and real public services that will disappear if this bill becomes law.”
No Backfill, No Plan, No Accountability
Notably, HB 9 contains no appropriation to offset lost revenue, no transition assistance for affected counties, and no economic development plan to replace the jobs it would destroy. Rural communities are simply expected to absorb the shock—despite already facing higher unemployment, limited tax bases, and fewer economic alternatives.
Even more troubling, analysts warn the bill could violate both federal constitutional principles and state law protections for bondholders, exposing New Mexico to costly litigation while further destabilizing local governments.
Public Safety and Due Process at Risk
HB 9 also raises serious public safety and due process concerns. By eliminating in-state detention capacity, individuals currently processed in New Mexico would likely be shipped out of state—farther from courts, attorneys, and families. District attorneys have warned this could undermine pending criminal prosecutions, delay justice for victims, and complicate coordination between state and federal authorities.
The bill would deport illegal aliens out-of-state to places like Texas, Florida, and others, where the detainees will be even farther away from family and legal connections, not to mention, the places they will be sent like Camp East Montana on Fort Bliss in El Paso are ad-hoc tent cities where modern conveniences are inaccessible to those being held.
Rather than ending detention, critics argue the bill would simply export the problem, sending detainees to facilities in other states with less oversight while stripping New Mexico of any practical role or visibility.
A Defining Vote
With HB 9 now on the House floor, lawmakers face a defining decision: stand with rural New Mexico communities and working families—or sacrifice them on the altar of political ideology.
The debate is expected to be contentious, with far-reaching implications not just for immigration policy, but for jobs, public safety, constitutional governance, and the economic future of entire regions of the state.
New Mexicans can watch the proceedings live today beginning at noon via the NMLegis.gov webcast, as the Legislature considers a bill that critics say New Mexico simply cannot afford.
This is why businesses are leaving New Mexico. Dems do not like it and they prove it. I pray they have common sense today. Lord help us.
If I owned property I would rent it to ICE for a dollar a month! Loserjan and her regime need arrested and dragged out of the roundhouse- by their feet would be ok too!!
This is another fine example that the far left radicle Dems choosing unlawful immigrant criminals over real law biding New Mexicans. I hate calling them Democrats because I come from a family with a long Democrat history and what we have now has NO resemblance of the Democrats of the past. God save New Mexico, Please.
I ❤️ ICE
Democrats have a choice. illegals or working new mexicans. law and order or lawlessness. they made their choice. the illegals and lawlessness comes first. screw the people that work. all hail the illegal. Viva Le Revolution. Now a protest / riot today planned in ABQ at civic plaza. SHUT IT ALL DOWN the democrats scream . THE CONFEDERACY IS REBORN. DOWN WITH USA.
Trump syndrome strikes again!! Dems as usual cut off their nose to spite the face. ICE is just enforcing the law. As far as I am concerned get out of the way and let those men & women do their Job. Don’t like the imagration laws change them. Until the enforce the law!!
These idiots and the evil queens comrades are just a bunch of fools. The people of NM will pay the price. But seems like so many are blinded and still vote for these fools. But the Democrats and the evil queen are underestimating our President, Donald Trump. This corrupt administration (with the exception of conservatives and supporters of President Trump) will pay for all their corruption. I pray the midterms are successful in getting rid of some of MLG’s comrades. Praying for God’s mercy.