Senate Bill Addressing Systemic Racism Passes Its First Committee Hearing
For Immediate Release:
Contact:
Chris Nordstrum
(415) 601-1992
Chris.Nordstrum@nmlegis.gov
February 19, 2021
SANTA FE — Today Senate Bill 230, a measure aimed at reducing and eliminating institutional racism in state departments, received a do-pass in the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee.
SB230 is sponsored by Senator Linda Lopez (D-Albuquerque), a member of the New Mexico Council on Racial Justice, Senator Harold Pope Jr. (D-Albuquerque), and Representative Patricia Roybal Caballero (D-Albuquerque).
The bill, if passed, would mandate that state departments and state funded entities submit reports and plans by the end of every year outlining their actions to implement surveys, assessments, procedures, and trainings to promote the values of diversity, equity and inclusion within their workplace. These strategies would impact operational areas such as hiring, promotion, retention, evaluation, and pay.
“The past five years have shown that the undercurrent of racism running beneath the veneer of a civilized society is alive and well,” said Senator Lopez. “and those charged with protecting our unalienable rights – Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness – must work to ensure equality at a time when suppression of that equality is threatening the very underpinnings of our government. As such, I have introduced Senate Bill 230 in an effort to addresses the inequities of institutional racism, which is often a subtler form of racism neither observed nor noted.”
“We must be willing to assess racism within all of our institutions, only then can we begin to tackle these issues and make change,” said Senator Harold Pope Jr. (D- Albuquerque), the bill’s Senate co-sponsor.
Institutional racism is the collective failure of an organization to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their color, culture, or ethnic origin. This results in a differential access to the goods, services and opportunities of society due to the existence of institutional programs, policies and practices that intentionally or unintentionally place certain racial and ethnic groups at a disadvantage in relation to other groups. SB 230 will require state agencies to track the data necessary to monitor and identify incidences of institutional racism, and to provide employee training aimed at ensuring state government activities are free of discriminatory behavior.
“We must also recognize that institutional racism is not about single acts of hatred or discrimination,” added Senator Lopez. It is a deep-rooted bias built in to policies, laws and systems. By bringing it to light with a bill like this we can finally begin to take the necessary steps to really assess and address it.”
A similar bill was passed in 2017 before being vetoed by then-Governor Susana Martinez. Governor Lujan Grisham did include a message during the regular 2020 session for the legislation (SB90, “Policies to Decrease Institutional Racism”), but the session ended before the bill could be brought to a vote. A bill was again brought forth during the June 2020 special session. That bill passed the Senate but did not receive a hearing before the full House.
SB230 next goes to the Senate Judiciary Committee for debate.
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