NHCSL and Partners Convene in New York City for 2026 Spring Meeting to Address Pressing Policy Issues

Check out the photos of the event here.

Washington, D.C. – The National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL), in partnership with public and private sector leaders, convened for its 2026 Spring Meeting in New York City from April 8–10. The three-day gathering brought together Hispanic state legislators, members of Congress, industry experts and policy stakeholders for high-level discussions on the most pressing issues facing Latino communities and the Nation. The Executive Committee also approved the first resolutions of the year.

The convening provided a critical forum for dialogue on healthcare access and innovation, energy affordability and reliability, immigration policy and fiscal impacts, trade and consumer costs, and the challenges and opportunities surrounding Latino civic and political engagement.

The first day featured remarks from New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who underscored the importance of state-federal collaboration in addressing public policy challenges affecting working families.

Programming included a discussion on access to GLP-1 medications, Medicaid coverage, and health equity for Latino communities, featuring Rachel Dolan of Eli Lilly, as well as a policy update led by Myron Terry of Pfizer. Additional sessions explored the evolving energy landscape with José Antonio Miranda of Avangrid and Rep. Eva Dina Delgado (IL).

A fireside chat on the realities and opportunities of the Latino vote featured Frankie Miranda, President and CEO of Hispanic Federation, and NHCSL Executive Director, Kenneth Romero, and was introduced by Asm. Jessica González-Rojas (NY). The meeting also included a keynote conversation between NHCSL President Rep. Juan Candelaria (CT) and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Further discussions examined immigration’s fiscal and policy implications in a session featuring David Bier of the CATO Institute and Rep. Erin Gamez (TX), as well as the broader economic effects of trade policy with Joyce Chang of JPMorgan Chase and Rep. Priscilla Prado (WI).

Keynote remarks were also delivered by former NHCSL members U.S. Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY) and U.S. Senator Ruben Gallego, as well as New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie.

On the final day, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani offered video remarks congratulating NHCSL on a successful convening and thanking NHCSL Sen. Gustavo Rivera (NY) for his partnership.

The gathering concluded with an NHCSL Executive Committee meeting, during which legislators approved six resolutions, four emergency resolutions. These emergency measures immediately became official positions of the organization without requiring consideration by the full Caucus at this year’s Annual Meeting. These are:

Emergency Resolution 2026-01 - Ending the Abusive Lawlessness of ICE, sponsored by Rep. Louis Ruiz (KS), Rep. Terry Meza (TX) and Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self (WA)
Emergency Resolution 2026-02 - Reinforcing Plyler v. Doe and Safeguarding Equal Access to Public Education and Community Stability, sponsored by Sen. Cindy Nava (NM), Sen. Cristina Castro (IL), Rep. Eva-Dina Delgado (IL), Rep. Ricky Ruiz (OR), Sen. Teresa Ruiz (NJ) and Sen. Margo Juarez (NE)
Emergency Resolution 2026-03 - In Defense of Academic Freedom and the Rights to Free Speech and Peaceful Assembly and Protest, sponsored by: Sen. Teresa Ruiz (NJ) and Sen. Margo Juarez (NE)
Emergency Resolution 2026-06 - IgA Nephropathy Awareness, sponsored by Rep. Eva-Dina Delgado (IL)

The Executive Committee also advanced the following resolutions to the Annual Meeting:

Resolution 2026-04 - Addressing Inaccuracy and Bias in Medical Technologies, sponsored by Del. Ashanti Martinez (MD)
Resolution 2026-05 - Recognizing Alopecia Areata and Vitiligo as Autoimmune Diseases and Encouraging State Coverage Research, sponsored by Rep. Consuelo Hernández (AZ).

NHCSL’s Executive Committee will reconvene later this year for its Summer Meeting in Chicago, held concurrently with the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit.

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The National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL) is the premier national association of Hispanic state legislators working to design and implement policies and procedures that will improve the quality of life for Hispanics throughout the country. NHCSL was founded in 1989 as a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with the mission to be the most effective voice for the more than 470 Hispanic legislators. For more information visit www.nhcsl.org.