Committee backs bill to authorize confidential peer support for firefighters and EMS

The House Judiciary Committee voted to advance House Bill 74, legislation that would allow public fire agencies to create confidential peer‑support programs for employees and volunteers and limit civil liability for the provision of peer support.

Representative Thompson introduced the bill, saying it grew from firefighter accounts of untreated post‑traumatic stress and poor coping, including alcohol use. Miguel Tippman, president of Local 244 and vice president of the state professional firefighters association, described the empirical need: “We are 6 times more likely to get PTSD,” Tippman said, and noted that since 2019 the department has recorded more suicides among firefighters than line‑of‑duty deaths.

Tippman told the committee peer supporters — often other firefighters with lived experience — are effective first contacts who can normalize responses to trauma, help colleagues access clinical care or inpatient treatment, and bridge gaps in rural mental‑health services. The bill would make peer‑support communications confidential and allow the state to provide training and a coordinated framework through the fire marshal’s office.

The measure drew broad support from state fire chiefs, the State Fire Marshal’s office, the Department of Public Safety affiliates, the New Mexico Federation of Labor and legal counsel who helped draft the liability language. Randy Bridal of the State Fire Marshal’s Office and Eric Masterson, fire chief for Sandoval County, both told the committee they supported the bill.

Speaker Martinez moved a do‑pass recommendation and the committee approved the measure to advance. Lawmakers said the bill is intended as a foundational step to expand access to mental‑health resources for first responders statewide, particularly in rural departments that lack such programs.