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When the New Mexico Legislature convenes next month, LGBTQ+ advocates will ask lawmakers to consider data privacy legislation.

Layla Garcia, voice and narrative strategist for the group Equality New Mexico, said they are backing the "New Mexico Community and Health Information Safety and Privacy Act," which aims to stop unchecked data from being collected, processed, sold and stored by online entities, and instead require explicit consent for its use.

She stressed it is not just those in the LGBTQ+ community they are trying to protect but all New Mexicans whose data collection could affect their jobs, safety and personal lives.

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"We're seeing constant federal attacks and many of those are aided by online surveillance," Garcia pointed out. "Right now, New Mexico has the opportunity to lead in data privacy legislation to explicitly protect our vulnerable and marginalized communities."

Like other states, New Mexico has privacy laws to protect health data and public records but Garcia argued control of all personal information belongs in the hands of the user and should not be part of the unregulated data market. She noted there are many what she calls "bad actors," who can track not only what internet users write online, but what subject matter they engage with, including content critical of the current administration or its agencies.

The privacy campaign began when a handful of bills, none of which passed, were introduced during the 2025 legislative session. Garcia contended closing loopholes used by Big Tech and other entities to profit from people's personal information is increasingly important.

"What this does is make it to where New Mexicans can decide what information is collected from them online and what's done with it," Garcia emphasized. "So that it's not used to harm them."

New Mexico has repeatedly passed laws to "affirm and expand protections for residents to live their lives freely and authentically," which the state's branch of the ACLU has said could make it a target for "out-of-state authorities, the federal government and hostile actors."