New Mexico State Treasurer Laura M. Montoya
STATE News:
SANTA FE — New Mexico State Treasurer Laura M. Montoya joined New Mexico House Speaker Javier Martínez, Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors (AP-OD), Money Byrd, Partnership for Community Action (PCA), and Prosperity Works on Thursday to announce New Mexico’s first ever Baby Bonds pilot initiative.
The Baby Bonds pilot initiative will be launched to serve as a model for how Baby Bonds will be proposed during the 2025 legislative session.
Baby Bonds legislation will be drafted to create a government-funded trust account, which will incur interest and provide startup capital to every baby born in New Mexico after July 1, 2025. After the age of 18, Baby Bond recipients will have indirect access to the accumulated funds, which will allow them to pursue wealth-building opportunities, such as investing in higher education, owning a home, starting a business or saving for retirement.
Baby Bonds is an initiative that will bridge the gap of inequity and ensure that all children born in New Mexico have an opportunity to achieve financial independence.
“One of the biggest obstacles preventing young adults from building wealth is access to capital,” Montoya said. “We have an incredible amount of talent, ingenuity, and creativity in our state. Investing in our youth is an investment into our economy, our families and our future.”
Speakers at Thursday’s announcement event also included Dr. Darrick Hamilton, the Henry Cohen Professor of Economics and Urban Policy and the founding director of the Institute on Race, Power, and Political Economy at The New School in New York City, and Leslie Moreno-Roacho, mother of the first Baby Bond pilot program recipient, 1-year-old Zaiden.
For more information about the development of Baby Bonds legislation, contact Christina Perea at christina.perea@sto.nm.gov.