I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
There were 13 bills introduced in the Senate on Saturday; you can see them here. Some will be shot down in the Committee on Committees, which was meeting Sunday morning. Expect a flurry of introductions in the House on Sunday afternoon.
Gov. Richardson appears to have changed his mind about education cuts, as his budget proposal, presented to legislators yesterday, included a 1.5 percent cut to education. Richardson said he didn’t want the cuts to affect classroom teaching—but didn’t say exactly how that would happen, writes Dan Boyd in today’s Albuquerque Journal.
And as of Saturday, it looked as though state employees will be spared layoffs or furloughs, reports Kate Nash in the Santa Fe New Mexican. State agency spending would be cut by 3.5 percent in the Governor’s proposal.
So far, there has been no discussion of revenue increasing measures (aside from debate over whether they’re even allowed to discuss them), but as NMI has reported, Rep. Brian Egolf plans to introduce three bills Sunday, raising taxes on alcohol, cigarettes and registering a vehicle; Sen. Peter Wirth is expected to introduce legislation that would force big out-of-state corporations to pay taxes here.
On his blog, NMSU professor Jose Z. Garcia says Richardson is partly to blame for the budget crisis, saying:
Governor Richardson was simply not minding the store responsibly as evidence mounted month after month for at least the past 15 months that a full-fledged fiscal crisis was brewing. Last year when Sen. John A. Smith tried to warn him and the public that the state’s revenues were in sharp decline, the governor mocked his warnings, calling him “Dr. No,” and insisting on a tax rebate that the best budget people in the state warned was untenable. This summer, as evidence continued to mount the shortfalls were still mounting, the governor continued to ignore the warning signs, while still playing politics with the budget.
And Steve Terrell of the Santa Fe New Mexican caught an interesting little tidbit this morning: Sen. Tim Eichenberg told Terrell that he will not run for Lt. Governor, as had been rumored.
Don’t forget to check the blogs for information about the special session. Our favorites include our own Matthew Reichbach’s nmfbihop and Heath Haussamen’s NMPolitics.net, along with Nash’s Green Chile Chatter, Terrell’s Roundhouse Roundup, What’s the Word with Peter St. Cyr of KKOB 770, What’s Wrong with This Picture by photographer and videographer Mark Bralley, and Ched MacQuigg’s Diogenes Six.
