Issues

Democrats believe that everyone deserves to live in a safe, stable, affordably-priced home. We must address the need for real solutions that will increase the supply and access to all levels of housing throughout the state. We must enact policies that support all New Mexicans, protect tenants, landlords, and homeowners, and help those who need additional resources in order to live safely and remain valuable contributors to our communities.

We Affirm

1. Housing is a basic human right. Only when people have safe stable housing and infrastructure with clean air, water, and soil, can they live out their full potential as a New Mexico community member; and

2. Historical policies such as redlining and steering caused a racial wealth gap that perpetuates today and deserves attention and equitable action to correct it; and

3. Zone codes have been used to segregate uses and people, support unsustainable and inefficient land use, and promote discrimination; we should end exclusionary zoning, that is, racially-charged codes such as minimum lot sizes and the prohibition of accessory dwelling units and multifamily housing; and

4. Housing affordability depends on the existence of safe and sustainable building and energy code requirements and the public funding to implement those; and

5. Housing is an intersectional issue that affects and is affected by climate change, state infrastructure, education,  energy, economic development, and more.

   We Will

1. Demand that our elected officials study and work with the Affordable Housing Investment Council’s Strategic Housing Investment Plan ordered by the Governor to ensure affected communities are involved with the development of the plan and make the most of every housing dollar in the state; and

2. Support upgrading the existing zoning codes in all municipalities to encourage the production of accessory dwelling units, duplexes, townhomes, and new, affordable housing units; and

3. Use the guiding principles of environmental justice to engage and protect our residential communities in the processes of upgrading zoning codes with the acknowledgment that exclusionary and other discriminatory zoning practices have caused unsustainable sprawl in predominantly white neighborhoods and, at the same time, polluting commercial facilities in much more densely developed neighborhoods where people of color live; and

4. Support the regulation of for-profit short-term rentals, such as the imposition of lodgers’ taxes and limitations on the number of short-term rentals that property owners and managers may have in any given neighborhood; and

5. Support the creation of a workgroup to study and modernize the Affordable Housing Act which allows for public-private partnership in affordable housing projects; and

6. Create a revolving fund using New Mexico Trust Fund allocations to allow for low-cost, accessible financing for the construction of Accessory Dwelling Units (casitas) on owner-occupied residential properties; and

7. Support policies and projects focused on transit-oriented development and an increase in density and middle-level housing; and

8. Support additional and ongoing allocations to the New Mexico Housing Trust Fund (administered by NM MFA) to offer flexible funding for housing initiatives that will provide affordable housing for persons or households of low and/or moderate income; and

9. Advocate for amending the Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) to include housing effects as a consideration when qualifying entities apply and receive funds; and

10. Continue to support the funding of down payment assistance and establish a public option for lending; and

11. Authorize local jurisdictions (e.g. Albuquerque’s Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency) to offer tax abatement for new and existing multifamily housing projects in exchange for inclusion of units with reduced rent for the full length of the abatement; and

12. Support the funding of community land trusts and cooperative ownership models to allow for stable housing costs and the ability to build equity over time without a mortgage; and

13. Support the creation of a comprehensive, statewide housing office to identify causes of increased housing costs and propose alternative solutions; and

14. Support the creation of a Housing Transition and Stability Fund to offer protections to property owners who are willing to rent to “higher risk” tenants with either less than perfect or no credit scores; and

15. Support the Fair Housing Act and the protection of current and prospective homeowners and tenants, against discriminatory renting, buying and selling, zoning, and lending practices; and

16. Demand funding for a study to perform a cost audit of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) housing to determine efficiency and effectiveness of building LIHTC homes vs. more market-level homes; and

17. Develop and fund a workforce mentorship and training program to lower housing costs and allocate students at state or other universities to work on qualified housing projects; and

18. Support the guarantee of legal representation in eviction proceedings for all stakeholders who cannot afford it; and

19. Advocate for reliable, safe, and affordable public transportation options throughout the state to allow for more housing and less parking requirements; and

20. Lobby for the creation of joint housing authorities throughout the state to encourage collaboration and coordination; and 

21. Support financial subsidies for energy efficiency upgrades throughout the state; and

22. Encourage all real estate and housing associations throughout the state to develop efforts and committees focused on affordable, equitable housing throughout the industry; and

23. Demand adequate government funding for safe and affordable housing for elders, youth, and persons with different abilities; and

24. Demand adequate government funding for the provision of safe and affordable housing to those at risk of being unhoused and the use of "housing first" models by federal, state, and local governments along with their private sector partners to provide immediate housing complete with the associated social services necessary to ensure stable housing for the individuals served and for the communities where they live; and

25. Advocate for fundamental changes in the prevailing economic model of profit-driven housing development that has led to the national housing crisis; for example, by the imposition of excise taxes on the sales of high-value real properties where those revenues are used to fund affordable housing programs including “social housing,” that is, government-owned and/or regulated housing on a significant scale for both low and moderate-income people.