new mexico in focus

Message to New Mexico state lawmakers: Don’t take off next week if New Mexico remains without a state budget for next year.
Gov. Bill Richardson told media Tuesday he’d call state lawmakers back into special session if they don’t have a state budget deal by Thursday at noon, the end of this year’s 30-day legislative session. [...]

Elaine Baumgartel and KNME’s New Mexico in Focus talked last week to legislative leaders and analysts about the state budget crisis.
“This hole is huge,” David Abbey of the Legislative Finance Committee said. “I think everyone is working hard to be responsible with taxpayer dollars and make it work, but there are a lot of tough [...]

“It’s the worst session I’ve ever experienced and this is my 16th one,” Rep. Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque said at The Independent’s panel discussion on Wednesday night. “It’s much more partisan. You know Keith [Gardner, House minority whip] and I usually agree on a lot of things and this session I can’t stand the sight of [...]

Join the staff of The Independent for drinks, snacks and stimulating conversation Wednesday, Jan. 20, from 5 to 8 at Rio Chama Steakhouse. From 5-6 p.m. we’ll mix and mingle. At 6 p.m. we’ll be joined by House Minority Whip Keith Gardner, Rep. Mimi Stewart and Vicki Pozzebon of the Santa Fe Alliance for a [...]

On Wednesday night The New Mexico Independent hosted a panel discussion with Sen. Eric Griego, Rep. Nora Espinoza, and Richard Anklam of New Mexico Tax Research Institute. We talked about how gross receipts tax increases affect the poor, why out of state employers don’t care about the personal income tax rate and why a domestic [...]

Last week I hosted a panel discussion about South Valley incorporation vote on KNME’s public affairs program, New Mexico in Focus. I was joined by Teresa Cordova, a professor at the UNM School of Architecture and Planning, Mike Ciesielski of the South Valley Incorporation Advisory Group, South Valley resident Albert Chavez and Jerome Padilla, president of the [...]

So you’re looking for some information that can only be found the public records of a government agency or office–but when you request those records, you hit a brick wall. What do you do? The New Mexico Independent is teaming up with the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government and KNME-TV to present a free [...]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, New Mexico is 44.4 percent Latino — a higher percentage than any other state. That’s clearly one reason the first Latino to be nominated to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court is big news here.

I posted the interview I conducted with Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce last week. This week, I’m passing along my interview with his Democratic opponent, Tom Udall, an excerpt of which was broadcast on Friday night’s “New Mexico In Focus” on KNME. The unedited version is posted below.
Check it out if you’d like to [...]