The Senate Rules Committee voted to report House Bill 120, which would create an Office of Accessibility within the Governor’s Commission on Disability to centralize reporting of accessibility problems and provide technical assistance to state agencies.

Rep. Kathleen Cates, the bill sponsor, said the measure addresses confusion about where members of the public should report accessibility concerns — the attorney general’s office, a facilities manager or other agency — by providing a single point of contact. The sponsor said the office would be a small unit (initially about one FTE) that collects reports, provides technical assistance and advises agencies on compliance steps; it would not itself have enforcement authority, she said.

Eli Fresquez, a civil‑rights attorney working with disability groups, and Jim Jackson of Disability Rights New Mexico testified in support, stressing the increasing importance of digital access and the federal ADA obligations for websites and apps. Committee members asked whether existing agencies could absorb the function; the sponsor and witnesses said housing the office in the Governor’s Commission on Disability creates a centralized, visible contact and that the Department of Information Technology will continue technical work to bring state websites into compliance before the federal deadline.

Committee discussion touched on the scope of ‘‘accessibility,’’ including both physical access to state facilities and digital accessibility for websites and applications. Witnesses cited the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2024 guidance (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) requiring accessibility of government websites and apps.

A motion to report HB 120 as do pass was adopted; the committee chair announced the measure would forward with a do‑pass recommendation.