About Us

Children’s Charter: Our vision for the next generation

• All children and their families are economically secure.
• All children and their families have a high-quality cradle-to-career system of care and education.
• All children and their families have quality health care and supportive health programs.
• All children and their families are free from discrimination based on race, ethnicity, religion, disability, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or country of origin.
• All children and their families live in safe and supportive communities.
• All children and their families’ interests and needs are adequately represented in all levels of government through effective civic participation and protection of voters’ rights.
• All children and their families’ needs are a high priority in local, state, and federal budgets and benefit from a tax system that is fair, transparent, and that generates sufficient revenues.

Our work to improve child well-being rests on three primary pillars: family economic security, access to high-quality, cradle-to-career education, and health care and healthy communities. (Read more about our three pillars here.) We work with state and national lawmakers and officials to shape and implement public policies that are supportive of children and working families. Because we believe in evidence-based advocacy, we conduct rigorous research and data analysis. NM Voices is the only nonprofit child advocacy organization in the state examining tax and budget policy issues specific to the needs of the poor.

We use four main strategies in our work to move public policies that are beneficial to low-income children and their families and to block policies that would harm them:

• Legislative Advocacy We educate lawmakers about the depth of the problem while introducing possible solutions (or in the case of policies we oppose, educating them about the negative impacts).
• Public Advocacy We raise awareness among the public, opinion leaders, and other key stakeholders around the issue in order to apply political pressure.
• Administrative Advocacy We directly influence agency administrators by advocating for needed changes in procedures and policies.
• Judicial Advocacy We petition the court system for readdress of inequities caused by state laws, policies or procedures.

These strategies are supported by three main tactics:

• Research
• Analysis
• Advocacy

These tactics rely on several activities:

• We research and analyze data on the well-being and unmet needs of the state’s children, racial and ethnic communities, and low-income families;
• We research and analyze policies on taxation, budgeting, and other issues that would help meet those needs and improve child well-being, increase racial and ethnic equity, and help hard-working families get ahead;
• We prepare and disseminate reports and other informational materials illustrating the barriers faced by these populations, the impact of current and proposed state policies on them, and evidence-based solutions;
• We create messages for effectively communicating about these issues;
• We educate policymakers through one-on-one meetings or as expert witnesses in committee hearings;
• We work with agency administrators on improving the state’s policies and practices in how programs and services are designed and implemented;
• We disseminate our information to the public via traditional and social media; and
• We work in coalition with allies who have complementary skills.

Our research, analysis, and advocacy work is conducted through several programs, coalitions, and nationwide networks. Among them are:

New Mexico Environmental Public Health Network The NMEPHN became a program of NM Voices at the start of 2021. As our work both on public health and environmental health and justice had been ramping up over several years, it made sense to bring this project into the NM Voices family. As our previous environmental health work focused on protecting federal lands and mitigating the harm done by oil and gas exploration and extraction, the NMEPHN work is more broadly based on protecting the state’s natural resources of air, water, and land, thereby safeguarding public health.

KIDS COUNT A program of the Annie E. Casey Foundation with anchor organizations in each of the 50 states, D.C., and several territories, KIDS COUNT is predicated on the idea that policymakers cannot improve child well-being without data on their unmet needs. The Casey Foundation releases a national KIDS COUNT Data Book every summer that looks are 16 indicators of child well-being organized under four domains: economic well-being, education, health, and family and community, and then ranks the 50 states against each other. NM Voices releases a New Mexico KIDS COUNT Data Book at the start of the year just as the Legislature begins to meet.  The Casey Foundation also sponsors the KIDS COUNT Data Center, which includes thousands of data sets on child well-being that can be downloaded in several formats.

State Priorities Partnership The SPP is a network of more than 40 independent, nonprofit research and policy organizations. A program of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, SPP helps its partner organizations work to reduce inequality and fight poverty by making sure states have the resources they need through accountable taxation and budget systems (click here for a short, informative video about the SPP).

Economic Analysis and Research Network EARN is a program of the Economic Policy Institute for research, policy, and advocacy organizations fighting for an economy that works for everyone. EARN advances an inclusive, worker-centered economy through state and local policy change, rigorous research, and collaboration between researchers, advocates, and community groups across the country.

State Revenue Alliance A network of state-based community, labor, and policy advocates from across the country, SRA works with on-the-ground advocates, giving them the strategic resources they need to build intersectional, people-powered campaigns that transform revenue policy – ensuring our states fully fund communities and that corporations and the ultra rich pay what they owe.

 
Economic Relief Working Group A coalition of several grassroots and advocacy organizations – many of them focused on immigrant rights – ERWG was formed in 2020 initially to secure pandemic relief for those New Mexicans who did not qualify for federal relief due to their immigration status. ERWG worked on getting an accurate 2020 Census count for the state, and has also worked on wages, voting rights, tax credits and child care assistance, and currently runs a guarantied basic income (GBI) pilot project for families with mixed immigration status.

New Mexico Fairness Project A coalition of more than 30 organizations, NMFP works to ensure that New Mexico collects tax revenue in a way that is equitable and sustainable, and that is adequate to fund the programs, services, and infrastructure that New Mexico’s children, families, communities, and businesses rely upon. Run by NM Voices, NMFP also fights for fair wages and working conditions, and other issues central to family economic security.

NMVC Action Fund To preserve our 501c3 tax-exempt status, NM Voices for Children does not participate in partisan electoral activities. Our 501c4 partner, NMVC Action Fund, endorses candidates and can make campaign contributions. The Action Fund has a separate staff, budget, and board and works completely independently. Together we share values around the need for a fair tax structure and public investments in New Mexico’s children. Watch this short video for more information.

Transform Education NM Formed in response to the hallmark Yazzie/Martinez v State of New Mexico lawsuit, TENM works to center student equity in our K-12 system and to ensure that our communities are leading the way to fundamentally reimagining and transforming our schools. Its platform advocates for a public education system that: embraces and incorporates the cultural and linguistic heritage of our diverse communities as a foundation for all learning; provides extended learning opportunities; values our teachers and educators; allows all children to access early learning programs; offers services such as counseling and health clinics to promote learning; and ensures our schools receive the financial resources required to meet the needs of all children.

Invest in Kids NOW! is the coalition behind the decade-long push to allow New Mexico voters to decide whether to distribute a tiny share of the state’s multi-billion dollar Land Grant Permanent School Fund in order to expand education and care programs for the state’s youngest children. With the passage of that initiative in 2022, with 70% of New Mexico voters in favor, the coalition continues to work to ensure that programs and services for children from birth to age five are high quality and fully funded, and that early educators are paid family-sustaining wages.

Most of our funding comes from private foundations and generous individuals like you (find out how you can support our work here). We currently have no state or federal funding. Some of our long-term foundation funders include: