Shall-issue. No AWB (proposed 2025 failed), no mag cap. Stand-your-ground via case law. Suppressors legal. Red-flag law (2020), 7-day waiting period (2024), universal background checks. Preemption strong.

Recreational cannabis legal 2021 (Cannabis Regulation Act). Automatic expungement of past cannabis convictions. Therapeutic psilocybin program signed into law April 2025. Strong harm reduction tradition.

State minimum wage $12.00/hr. MIT living wage for 1 adult: $14.83/hr. Ratio 0.81 — minimum-wage workers earn 81% of what's needed to live there alone.

Lowest 8th-grade math NAEP proficiency in nation (14%), USNews #47, infrastructure D range, weak healthcare outcomes despite high Medicaid coverage. Modest tax burden but services delivered are bottom tier.

IJ grades NM A- (HB 560, 2015 - among the strongest forfeiture reforms in nation, conviction required, equitable-sharing prohibited, proceeds to general fund). HB 4 (2021) NM Civil Rights Act ABOLISHED qualified immunity for state law claims - one of only three states. Body cam mandate. No-knock restrictions. ICE cooperation limited.

No-excuse mail voting expanded by HB 4 (2023) New Mexico Voting Rights Act. Early voting 21 days. Same-day registration. Non-strict ID. Felons vote after release. Bipartisan citizen advisory commission. NM Voting Rights Act 2023 major expansion. Permanent absentee list for seniors/disabled.

Medicaid expansion adopted 2014. Abortion legal with no gestational limit; HB 7 (2023) blocked local bans. Gender-affirming care protected (HB 7). Uninsured rate elevated despite expansion. Severe rural and tribal healthcare access gaps. Maternal mortality elevated.

New Mexico Civil Rights Act (2021) eliminated qualified immunity for state constitutional claims. Statewide BWC mandate (HB 5, 2020) with retention requirements. Officer disciplinary records limited disclosure. LEA decertification with public visibility. No statewide no-knock ban but restricted in state police policy. Use-of-force standard moved toward necessity (HB 5). Chokeholds banned by AG policy and local statutes. Local DAs prosecute - per-capita killings highest in nation.

Abortion legal and statutorily protected; repealed pre-Roe ban (2021). LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination. Conversion therapy banned. Shield law. Gender-affirming care protected. Reproductive Health Provider Protection Act. No religious mandates. Strong protections.

Not a right-to-work state. Paid family and medical leave (Welcome Child Act 2024, benefits 2025). Paid sick leave (Healthy Workplaces Act 2022). Federal OSHA but state-administered (NM OHSB). Prevailing wage. Moderate wage theft enforcement. Above-median fatal injury rate (extraction).