New Mexico environment officials propose another delay on heat safety protections for workers

The New Mexico Environment Department has proposed delaying the process to create and adopt rules aimed at protecting workers from heat-related illness and injuries to early 2027.

In a recent filing with the state’s Environmental Improvement Board, NMED lawyers wrote that it hasn’t been able to reach consensus on the proposed heat protection standards with the many stakeholders on this issue — including labor organizations, employers and public health advocates — ahead of the current rulemaking hearing, which had been scheduled to begin Sept. 21.

State environment officials first proposed the rulemaking in early 2025 and floated the possibility of requiring employers to provide rest periods, shaded areas and drinking water in hot conditions. Within months, however, the rulemaking was postponed.

Groups representing a number of industries — including livestock, oil and gas and utilities — have pushed back on some of the proposed rule’s requirements.

The latest delay is the fourth since the rulemaking was announced.

Environmental advocates lamented NMED’s latest filing and pointed to the region’s recent bout of triple-digit temperatures as evidence that workers need heat-related protections as soon as possible.

“Regardless of whether a job is in the field or the classroom, heat has the same impacts on the human body. All workers need protections,” Healthy Climate New Mexico Senior Program Consultant Shelley Mann-Lev said in a statement.

The state Environmental Improvement Board is made up of seven members who are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate. If the rulemaking advances in March, as NMED requested, New Mexico’s next governor will have a chance to install the board overseeing the proceedings.

“As the state moves forward under a new administration, we hope we will see new standards forworker protections adopted,” Conservation Voters New Mexico Chief Operating Officer Molly Taylor wrote in a statement. “Federal worker heat safety standards stalled under Trump. We believe this is an opportunity for New Mexico to lead the nation and show that we can protect our people in the wake of climate change.”