New Mexico legislators don't need reminding about their hefty workload when the special session opens Tuesday in Santa Fe. But in case they've forgotten, more than 75 immigrant-rights activists will be on hand at the Roundhouse to jog their memory.

The activists' presence is a reminder that Gov. Susana Martinez's special session agenda ventures far from the arcane, decennial redrawing of legislative and congressional boundaries, straying into hot-button subjects smoldering with passion and strong opinions.

In addition to the required redistricting work, Martinez has demanded that lawmakers overturn a 2003 law that allows New Mexico to issue driver's licenses to noncitizens, which has provoked the show of force Tuesday from immigrant-rights activists.

The governor also wants the Legislature to end social promotion of third-graders who lack sufficient reading proficiency and to give local authorities the power to ban fireworks.

Another potentially explosive item might join the already-packed agenda: Consolidation of state government agencies in an effort to save money, including the merger of the Cultural Affairs and Tourism departments, a governor's spokesman said Friday.

Like her predecessor, former Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson, the first-year Republican governor wants things done, and done right now. Also like Richardson, Martinez isn't sympathetic to lawmakers who say her ambitious agenda will distract from the primary task at hand — redistricting.

"A handful of legislators will begin to work on redistricting. I will tell you from stories I've heard from past redistricting, people are not in their offices working while that handful are doing the job," Martinez said last week, appearing determined to make the part-time citizen lawmakers earn every penny of the $171 each gets daily to cover expenses while in Santa Fe.

Not everyone is impressed.

"To sit there and say, 'You're not going to be doing anything, here's nine more things.' It's a little much," said Senate President Pro Tem Tim Jennings, D-Roswell. "I've been through redistricting four times. To tell the public that nobody's doing anything is a little bit absurd. She's never been through one. What does she know?"

Defending her packed agenda, the governor expresses impatience with New Mexico's low student test scores and her desire to scrub New Mexico's name from what she considers a dubious list. Only Washington and Utah continue to issue driver's licenses to noncitizens, although in Utah the permits can't be used as government identification.

"If it is truly our priority, then we'll start getting committee meetings together," Martinez said last week. "We'll start voting, and we'll put it to the floor, and we'll vote — and we'll let everybody know where we stand on the issues."

But Jennings warned that so many agenda items during the special session could worsen the horse-trading that inevitably occurs when laws are being made.

"In a session like this, you have to be careful. There are too many things on the table to trade with," Jennings said. "If you vote for this, I'll trade you for this."

At a cost of $50,000 a day, it's unclear how long state lawmakers will stay in Santa Fe before wrapping up business. Ten years ago, the last time legislators took up redistricting, they worked for 17 days. Critics say Martinez's ambitious agenda could cost New Mexico taxpayers more than if they had only a bite-sized list to work on now and saved other issues for the regular session that convenes in January.

Of course, not all of Martinez's agenda is controversial. A spending bill with more than $200 million in projects died during this year's regular session and likely will be taken up in some form. The legislation would have funded everything from replacement vehicles for high-mileage school buses to $2 million in renovations at the Runnels Building in the South Capitol Complex. Known as the capital-outlay bill, the legislation also has dollars for New Mexico senior centers, including some in Santa Fe County.

Lawmakers also will hear legislation that seeks to close a loophole in a state tax credit and another that will add state dollars to help low-income seniors and the disabled who rely on food stamps. Legislators and Martinez also will try to reach a deal that will prop up the state's unemployment benefits fund, which otherwise could become insolvent.

"We'll fix the unemployment. There'll be some capital outlay passed," Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle, R-Portales, predicted. "The driver's license will be a pretty strong debate. I think we'll get that passed."

But the secret to shepherding legislation, especially controversial legislation, through a special session, is to forge agreements with legislative leaders before the session starts, and that hasn't occurred on driver's licenses or social promotion, several lawmakers said.

That obstacle hasn't deterred Martinez. The former prosecutor won last year's race for governor by positioning herself as a populist reformer running against a scandal-plagued Santa Fe under then-Gov. Bill Richardson.

In the days leading up to the special session, Martinez sounded as if she were back in campaign mode, using populist language and espousing populist tactics.

"We are ... making sure that folks all over New Mexico know what we're doing in the Roundhouse, and they start to call and make their positions known," Martinez said. "I want our legislators throughout the Senate and House floor to receive phone calls from the people."

But that didn't appear to have any effect on Jennings.

The Roswell Democrat questioned Martinez's motives in putting the driver's-license legislation on the agenda. The outcome likely will be a repeat of what happened in the regular session. It passed the House but failed in the Senate.

"It's a Republican issue," Jennings said. "It polls well. It's out of the national playbook."

Martinez's sometimes ally, Democratic Sen. John Arthur Smith of Deming, agreed.

"It's on there for political purposes," Smith said.

Smith supported overturning the law during the regular session and will support it again, he said. "But we shouldn't take it up during the special session," Smith said.

Contact Trip Jennings at 986-3050 or at tjennings@sfnewmexican.com.