By Searchlight NM and Las Cruces Sun-News
Jan. 16, 2019
Lawmakers introduce hundreds of bills each session that propose to fund programs for children and families. They aim to improve the education system, prevent and punish child abuse, alter the tax code and extend medical benefits to impoverished families.
New Mexico is now officially ranked as the worst state in the country to be a child, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Some see opportunity in being 50th. Like an addict who has reached rock bottom, there is no place to go but up.
So what can the Legislature actually do to make a difference? What is the most critical action the new governor can take to move the dial? What is the one thing that could come out of the 2019 session that would signal the promise of real change for the children of New Mexico?
Searchlight asked these questions of a variety of childhood advocates across the state. Their suggestions range from investing in better health care to fixing the troubled Children, Youth & Families Department. The one constant is education.
Read more in the Las Cruces Sun-News