Bridging the gaps

Readers advise the Legislature and governor to work together on the economy, budget and education

Get past partisanship

I THINK WE can all agree that New Mexico is in deep financial trouble. The fact that the governor and the Legislature have not been able to agree on a balanced budget has impacted our economy, our schools and any opportunity to attract jobs and businesses we desperately need in this state.

I urge our legislators and governor to read the editorial in the April 16 Sunday Albuquerque Journal. It is time for both sides to put aside the partisan politics and work together to find a fair solution to the state’s budget problems, without doing so on the backs of the working people who have seen job losses, stagnant wages and reduced benefits while at the same time absorbing increases in property taxes and gross receipts taxes.

The future is bleak as it is and will only get worse the longer it takes to reach an agreement. Elected officials, accept the task and responsibilities to which you were elected and do your job! The future depends on it! TOM BESSON Albuquerque

Time for new leadership

IS THERE ANY New Mexican anywhere who can say our state is better off than it was 8 years ago when Gov. Martinez was first elected?

... Our state remains at the very bottom of every quality-of-life list you can think of: child welfare, poverty levels, education, economic recovery, crime — you name it.

Martinez has not even been able to move the needle on the one thing you would think a two-fisted Republican true believer would be good at — economic development. We remain the last state in the union to show evidence of recovery from the Great Recession.

Martinez’s recent epiphany that “our state has been too reliant on revenue from oil and gas” was maybe six years overdue. But would she consider a small tax on gas to recapture some of the lost revenue from the days when gas was $4 a gallon and her pal, George W. Bush, was dozing in the White House? Not on your life! That would fly in the face of her Republican “no tax increases” bona fides.

Meanwhile, our state continues to spiral down the drain. Perhaps there is no greater evidence of this decline than the recent decision by our state’s largest school district, APS, to cut middle-school sports from its budget. In order to deal with its annual budget crisis, the 30th largest school district in the country decided it can’t afford middle-school sports. This pathetic decision will save a whopping $500,000 to $750,000 — lunch money for our elected officials and politicians.

I’ve lived in New Mexico my entire adult life and I’ve never had cause to be ashamed — until now. Our state desperately needs new leadership in Santa Fe. BRAD JAFFE Albuquerque

Austerity plan’s a failure

MY FAMILY CAME to New Mexico almost 150 years ago. My great-grandfather, Asa Fitch, was co-founder of the New Mexico School of Mines — now New Mexico Tech — and my family has owned or managed numerous industrial businesses in the state that employed thousands of New Mexicans. My wife is a scientist and I am a nuclear engineer. We own a consulting business in the Albuquerque area.

New Mexico is flat on its back with high crime and the nation’s worst economy. Understanding that there will always be political wrangling, nonetheless the best course of action would be for Gov. Susana Martinez and Sen. John Arthur Smith to bite the bullet and loosen the purse strings so the state can leverage itself out of the hole. New Mexico will not have a knight in shining armor or Prince Charming to come save us from ourselves.

Funding for improvements to infrastructure and public works, increased funds for schools and colleges and hiring more police to appropriate staffing levels would be a start. Yes, increasing taxes and using the state permanent fund will have to be a part of the mix. It will take a few years but New Mexico can eventually improve its status and come to look more appealing to external investors. Let’s get New Mexico off of this stalled political austerity train and start moving forward again. STAN FITCH Sandia Park

Can gov. be replaced?

REALIZING THAT our governor is in charge until the beginning of 2019 is reason for great concern. For one thing, what will the budget process be like in 2018? ... Realizing that this governor is in charge until 2019 is cause for great concern . ... There must be some way we can get rid of this official who continues to drag down New Mexico. HARRY MCKEE Rowe

Stop attacking districts

IT SEEMS UTTERLY inappropriate to me that the governor and the New Mexico Public Education Department are attacking the leaders of school districts around the state, who are trying desperately to balance budgets by making very difficult decisions. The NMPED should be a support to these districts and their leaders, not an undermining force stirring up trouble within their communities.

Every day I read articles in various papers from around the state quoting our governor and her spokespeople, accusing our district leaders of “choosing to create fear,” being “reckless” and having “distorted” priorities.

I am disgusted by the lack of support our state leadership is giving its school district leaders, who are in the trenches, day after day, trying to educate our state’s students with so little. They should be ashamed. AMY SPENCER SUMMA Santa Fe

Report on GOP response

RE: FRONT-PAGE article by Dan McKay “Legislators prepare to sue governor over vetoes” in which the author wrote that New Mexico’s legislative leaders authorized a lawsuit against the governor. That was fine, but when I read through the story, there was not one single quote I could find from a Republican other than Gov. Martinez.

Are elected Republicans no longer called upon to comment on what is going on at the Legislature? Are they not speaking to the media? Are you just plain mad at them? Are you just trying to make it seem like this is a nonpartisan movement instead of a quite partisan Democrat one? What gives?

I always thought journalism was about getting both sides of an issue, sometimes even more than that. This is poor, lazy writing, if not more propaganda for the Democrat Party. GILBERT ARAGON Albuquerque