NM HM7

Requests a study on employment classifications in New Mexico state government that result in long-term work without benefits or employee protections, including patterns of repeated separations and rehires with breaks as short as one day

Legislative Council Service, in coordination with the State Personnel Office, Department of Finance and Administration, and General Services Department, would contract for the study

Report must include statewide count of workers in temporary, term, seasonal, casual, on-call, or other nonregular categories by agency and job family, along with tenure data and frequency of service breaks

Study must estimate fiscal impact of extending benefit eligibility (health insurance, leave, retirement) to workers meeting objective work thresholds, including administrative costs and expected savings from reduced turnover

Report due to the Legislative Finance Committee and appropriate interim committees by November 1, 2026, and must include an equity impact section on affected workers by category, geography, and impacts on rural and high-need communities