This New Mexico edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's (NCTQ's) 2009 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" is the third annual look at state policies impacting the teaching profession. It is hoped that this report will help focus attention on areas where state policymakers can make changes that will have a positive impact on teacher quality and student achievement. The 2009 "Yearbook" presents a comprehensive analysis of state teacher policies. This evaluation is organized in five areas encompassing 33 goals. Broadly, these goals examine the impact of state policy on: (1) delivering well-prepared teachers; (2) expanding the teaching pool; (3) identifying effective teachers; (4) retaining those deemed effective; and (5) exiting those deemed ineffective. New Mexico has an overall "Yearbook" grade of D+ for 2009. New Mexico's major policy strengths include: (1) Ensuring that licensure advancement is based on effectiveness, earning the state a "best practice" designation; (2) Articulating consequences for teachers with unsatisfactory evaluations; and (3) Requiring that all new teachers pass subject-matter licensure tests prior to entering the classroom. New Mexico's major policy weakness include: (1) Failing to make evidence of student learning the preponderant criterion in teacher evaluations; (2) Lacking an efficient termination process for ineffective teachers; and (3) Offering a disingenuous alternate route. Goals for each area are appended. (Contains 124 figures.) [For the national summary, see ED511872.]