One of the most important bills this legislative session has tiptoed through the House with scant publicity and no controversy. House Bill 232, to create the Infrastructure Planning and Development Division within the Department of Finance and Administration, sounds a dry and bureaucratic, but it could transform the state’s dysfunctional capital outlay system. Communities need […]
Commentary
Plenty of bills would have improved public health
There is no question it is difficult to follow bills and bill action in the Legislature. For frequent users, the Secretary of State website (nmlegis.gov) is very friendly and does a timely job of updating bill status throughout the session. For first-time users it is easy to learn. According to the Legislative Council librarian, there […]
Family leave bills are not quite ready
Trades, especially the construction trades, have been saying for years that they need more workers. Community colleges and unions are doing their best to make that happen, but funding is up and down. A bill that easily passed the House last week would stabilize funding for apprentice and training programs in the state. It lines […]
Salinas Salt Missions
At the edge of the Tularosa Basin, the Salinas Salt Missions are an often criminally overlooked piece of New Mexico history and a gateway …
GOP’s Ethics Problem Won’t Go Away With George Santos
Former Congressman George Santos of New York is not a loveable character. Facing federal charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, false statements, falsification of records, aggravated identity theft, and credit card fraud around misuse of his campaign accounts, he is also a shameless and prolific liar. Santos has claimed: to be the descendant of Holocaust survivors; […]
About the off-year election
New Mexico is having an election in a couple of weeks. Now is a good time to get started figuring out whom and what you will be voting on. More precisely, we are having lots of separate elections, all at the same time and on the same ballot, coordinated by your county clerk. The official […]