Fiscal impact reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) for standing finance
committees of the Legislature. LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports if they
are used for other purposes.
F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Rep. Parajón
/Sens. Hamblen and Charley
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 2/28/25
SHORT TITLE
Voting Age for Local & Municipal
Elections
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 526
ANALYST Hilla
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
SOS No fiscal impact No fiscal impact $120.0 $120.0 Nonrecurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Conflicts with Senate Bill 218
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Secretary of State (SOS) Agency Analysis was Solicited but Not Received From
Taxation and Revenue Department (TRD) New Mexico Municipal League (NMML) New Mexico County Clerks Affiliate
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 526
House Bill 526 (HB526) amends Section 1-4-2 NMSA 1978 regarding election registration.
HB526 allows qualified state residents age 16 and older to register to vote and participate in the
regular local election, municipal election, and special election.
The effective date of this bill is July 1, 2026.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The Secretary of State (SOS) states that it would need $120 thousand in one-time funding to
modify three of its systems to accommodate the bill’s passage.
House Bill 526 – Page 2
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The New Mexico Constitution does not explicitly identify a voting age in Article VII, Section 1,
where other qualifications for voters are identified. This section states “every person who is a
qualified elector pursuant to the constitution and laws of the United States and a citizen thereof
shall be qualified to vote in all elections in New Mexico, subject to residency and registration
requirements provided by aw, except as restricted by statute either by reason of a criminal
conviction for a felony or by reason of mental incapacity.”
The 26th Amendment to the United States Constitution explicitly states that citizens of the
United States who are 18 years of age or older shall not be denied or abridged by the United
States or by any state on account of age for voting. However, this does not prohibit states from
allowing younger individuals to vote in state or local elections, though the state’s elections
processes have upheld voting standards for individuals of eighteen years of age and older.
The bill may warrant a constitutional amendment, granted that a “qualified resident” may be an
individual under the age of 18 and, except for the age requirement, otherwise satisfies the state’s
voter eligibility requirements as a qualified elector or a federal qualified elector, pursuant to 1-1-
5.10 NMSA 1978. “Qualified electors,” as defined in 1-1-1 NMSA 1978, means any resident of
the state who is qualified to vote and includes any qualified resident. As Article VII, Section 1,
of the state’s constitution states, qualified electors shall be qualified to vote in all elections. This
could be interpreted that HB526’s age requirements for becoming a qualified resident could
conflict with the uniformity of “all elections” language in Article VII, Section 1.
SOS notes that current statute allows qualified residents to vote in the primary election if they are
to turn 18 on or before the general election immediately succeeding that primary election. SOS
adds that 16- and 17-year-olds are able to participate as election board members, which oversee
and administer the electoral process at local levels.
CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP
SOS states the bill conflicts with Senate Bill 218 (SB218), which seeks to consolidate all
municipal elections to occur with the regular local election. Should SB218 pass, the municipal
officer election referred to in HB526 would no longer exist.
EH/hj/hg