ANTA FE — At the conclusion of the 60-day legislative session today, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham acknowledged the passage of some public safety measures while emphasizing the urgent need for more action in light of Friday night’s mass shooting in Las Cruces that left three dead and at least 15 injured.

The governor has mobilized state resources to support local law enforcement in their investigation of this tragedy, which comes amid a disturbing 46 percent increase in violent crime in Las Cruces compared to last year. She said a special session is needed to address ongoing public safety issues in the wake of the Las Cruces tragedy.

“While we made progress on universal free school lunch, literacy, water planning, and firefighting resources, I cannot ignore that we failed to adequately address the public safety crisis facing our state.” said Lujan Grisham. “With 270 public safety bills introduced this session and only a handful passed, we have not met our responsibility to New Mexicans.”

The legislature passed 194 bills out of 1,182 introduced, addressing issues from economic development and healthcare to education and water security. The $10.8 billion recurring budget includes funding for state employee pay raises and sets aside 30% in reserves. Other legislative accomplishments include the passage of bills supporting child welfare, healthcare access, economic development, and water security.

The legislature did pass some important public safety bills, including HB 8, which addressed criminal competency, penalties for gun auto conversion devices like Glock switches, increasing the penalties for making shooting threats, trafficking fentanyl, repeated auto theft convictions, and expanding DWI blood testing for better evidence collection. Lawmakers also passed HB 12, the Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order, and SB 70, which adds crimes to the Racketeering Act, strengthening New Mexico’s response when investigating the leaders of organized criminal enterprises victimizing communities in our state.

But the legislature failed to pass bills to address juvenile crime, possession of stolen firearms, and shootings from motor vehicles, making juvenile gun crime adjudications disqualifying events for future firearms purchases as adults. Lawmakers also refused to pass a bill backed by the governor to increase penalties on felons in possession of firearms or the pretrial confinement of violent criminals. Some of these bills were not even afforded a single hearing to debate these important issues.

“The reluctance to have even one productive debate on reducing juvenile crime is shameful,” said Lujan Grisham. “When New Mexicans are demanding action, and we’re seeing tragedies like what happened in Las Cruces, policy makers must respond with urgency and resolve.”

The legislature’s failure to pass comprehensive juvenile crime legislation or a ban on assault weapons is particularly concerning given recent events, including both the Las Cruces mass shooting on Friday and last year’s killing of Officer Jonah Hernandez in Las Cruces.

“As we conclude this legislative session, my heart goes out to the victims of the Las Cruces shooting, their families, and the entire community,” the governor said. “This senseless act of violence tears at the fabric of our state and must strengthen our resolve to protect all New Mexicans. I am committed to working across all levels of government and with community partners to implement comprehensive solutions that address the root causes of gun violence.”