March 4, 2025
New Mexico lawmakers have advanced a bill seeking to eliminate most employment-related testing for cannabis. According to the measure, it would protect medical marijuana patients from penalties concerning their lawful off-duty usage of marijuana.
The legislation is House Bill 230 (HB 230), which House Majority Floor Leader Reena Szczepanski and Representative Elizabeth Thomson introduced. Recently, the House Health & Human Services Committee approved the measure. This approval is another significant step toward HB 230 passing into law.
The legislation aims to protect medical marijuana patients from potential employment discrimination. These protections have received significant support from private employers and others. For example, HB 230 has received positive attention from advocates for first responders and veterans who use medical cannabis products to help manage health conditions.
HB 230 defines a qualified employee as “an employee who is also a qualified patient pursuant to the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act.” The bill also prohibits random drug testing from including tests for cannabis. However, HB 230 does not entirely remove testing for marijuana use. Employers may continue banning cannabis use and impairment due to use on their premises or during working hours. As such, HB 230 allows employers to test for marijuana if they have reasonable suspicion of an employee working while impaired.
Another example of when employers may test for marijuana concerns workplace accidents. HB 230 reassured employers that they may test employees for the following reasons: If they have reasonable suspicion of impairment causing the accident, the accident involved an employee suspected of impairment and at least one other person, or if the accident resulted in significant damage to employer property.
However, HB 230 also included stipulations for what counted as proof of impairment. This bill does not allow employers to determine impairment based solely on the results of a drug test. As such, tests that detect metabolites from cannabis cannot be the employer’s only proof.
Instead, the responsibility for defining impairment would be the employer’s responsibility. New Mexico’s Department of Health will assist employers in determining impairment. As such, the Department will help the Workforce Solutions Department create cannabis impairment guidelines. These will include evidence-based impairment indicators for private employers to refer to when determining impairment.
HB 230 is still under consideration by state legislators, so its future remains uncertain. If passed, employers must ensure that their testing policies comply with these regulations. Compliance could mean removing cannabis testing from randomized testing batteries, adopting guidelines for determining impairment, and updating procedures for post-accident testing.