One of the top priorities for many in New Mexico is educational excellence. In a quiet but meaningful victory this year, Republicans broke partisan barriers to deliver on our promise to increase educational freedom. In a rare bipartisan move, lawmakers aligned for the best interests of New Mexico’s students and families by supporting the NM 529 Education Savings Plan.
529 plans allow working families and extended family members to provide educational opportunities for our most precious asset- our children and future children. We aligned New Mexico’s 529 Education Savings Plans in March with federal law. The changes to 529 Education Plans take effect on June 16, 2023. This move unleashed several new opportunities for many in New Mexico to bypass systemic barriers that limit many working families from pursuing educational options that work for their children.
We are taking a step forward in breaking the broken policies that block so many in New Mexico from opportunity based simply on the zip code in which a child happens to be born. 529 plans may not be the silver bullet. Still, this option provides an opportunity to break free and use your savings, with tax benefits, to pursue options for K-12 private education, apprenticeships, and college expenses. I am incredibly excited to see what impact we can make on New Mexico’s economy by empowering families to save for and make education decisions that fit their family needs.
Conservatives in New Mexico are not done. There remains vast common ground we can pursue with lawmakers across the aisle, and still yet more work to be done to uplift New Mexico‘s educational system from the bottom of so many important metrics. We cannot allow partisan divides to limit this critical work for our students. I am ready and willing to continue fighting for student success, are you?
For more information, visit https://www.theeducationplan.com.
Rep. Ryan Lane (Aztec, NM) is the New Mexico House Republican Leader