The bill to mandate affirmative consent policies and procedures in institutions of higher education awaits the governor’s signature. If signed, advocates hope it will make college campuses safer.

HB 151, sponsored by state Rep. Liz Thomson, D-Albuquerque, was a bill brought forward in response to the sexual assault allegations made last year on New Mexico State University’s basketball team. The bill was amended in the Senate Judiciary Committee in the final days of the session. That amendment removed specific language about trauma-informed investigation policies and a requirement for college campuses to have official linkages to sexual assault providers in the communities where the the campuses reside. 

Alexandria Taylor, executive director of New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs, said the organization would look for other ways to ensure institutions of higher education have linkages to providers so that when an incident happens, officials can make referrals. 

“We want people to be supported,” Taylor said.

She said the bill passed still intact with language that requires that institutions of higher education maintain affirmative consent standards. She said that was a priority.

The bill also contains an amnesty clause for both victims and bystanders who might have broken the code of student conduct. This protects students who might be drinking underage or engaged in substance abuse to still come forward. Advocates for the bill have said that fear or repercussions around their own behavior can lead to victims, in particular, to not report an incident of sexual violence.

Taylor said keeping that clause in the bill was of particular importance to student leaders at college campuses who advocated for the bill. 

Taylor said the sections of the bill that contain language about policies as well as students being informed of those policies and receiving information, as well as training for staff at college campuses and people involved in an investigation process, all remain in the bill. 

Taylor said advocates of affirmative consent first began to advocate for policy change in 2019. She said another bill was reintroduced in 2021 and again in 2023. The primary difference in HB 151 and previous bills was the removal of educating K-12 of affirmative consent through health or sexual education classes.

The bill pertains to all institutions of higher learning that receive state funding.

“We are optimistic about it crossing the finish line and being signed by the governor,” Taylor said.