SANTA FE, N.M. — New Mexico lawmakers are not wasting the limited time they have left. The legislative session ends Thursday at noon.

Last night, the House gave its final stamp of approval on a historic $10.2 billion budget and the omnibus tax package. Those are the two bills that usually come down to the wire, so getting them to the governor early means there was plenty of time Wednesday to tackle some other key proposals.

SENATE

The Senate sent a second gun control bill to the governor’s desk Wednesday morning. It bans guns at all polling places across the state on Election Day and during early voting. However, there are exceptions for law enforcement and concealed carry holders.

Republican senators actually criticized Democrats for supporting the bill Wednesday, after rejecting that concealed carry exception when it first came through the Senate.

The bill is supported by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and she is expected to sign it. After it becomes law, those found in violation will be charged with a misdemeanor.

The other gun control bill that’s heading to the governor’s desk would create a seven-day waiting period for gun sales. Lawmakers argued Wednesday these bills aren’t the gun violence solutions that New Mexicans have been asking for.

“We really didn’t do very much this session on guns,” Sen. Joseph Cervantes said. “I appreciate the good debate on Saturday, the seven-day waiting period is an important of legislation. I know there’s disagreement about that, but at least it begins to talk about the seriousness, but let’s not, let’s not get too excited about what we’ve accomplished.”

The Senate also sent a sweeping set of changes to New Mexico’s cannabis laws and the Clean Transportation Fuels bill to the governor’s desk for a signature.

HOUSE

As for the House, Wednesday was the final showdown for paid family and medical leave. House lawmakers spent hours debating the controversial proposal, which faced significant opposition from the business community.

The bill would give all New Mexico workers the ability to take up to 12 weeks of paid time off when they need it most, even if their employers don’t already offer it. That includes bonding with a newborn child, dealing with serious medical conditions, or even domestic violence incidents.

Employees and employers with more than five workers would pay into a state fund to maintain the program. There would also be certain requirements employees have to meet before taking leave.

Lawmakers spent most of Wednesday’s debate discussing slight tweaks to the bill before Republicans got a chance to challenge the whole thing. They argued it’s too much, too fast, and that thousands of New Mexicans have said they don’t want this.

The House rejected the proposal on a 34-36 vote. This is the second year in a row that the initiative has died in the Roundhouse.