Cutbacks weighed amid shutdown threat
Democrats slam what they call governor’s political posturing, irresponsible ‘brinkmanship’
of Officialscuts to say governmentwith they Gov.are consideringSusana services, Martinez’s includinga wide administrationrange motor vehicle offices, museums and even the number of days students attend public schools. The administration insists the potential cuts are necessary because the state has so little cash it will run out of money if revenue continues to decline or if the state is struck by an emergency, such as a burst of wildfires.
But Democratic lawmakers say service reductions are unnecessary and the governor’s talk of cuts is political posturing at its most reckless.
“It’s brinkmanship and it’s completely irresponsible,” said House Speaker Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe.
The speculation about possible cutbacks comes five days after Martinez threatened to begin shutting down nonessential government services and furloughing staff because lawmakers approved a budget for the fiscal year starting in July that she called irresponsible. Officials in the governor’s administration have been vague when asked to detail when they might implement the sort of cutbacks Martinez is considering.
For his part, Egolf said that the $6.1 billion budget Martinez has said she would reject does not take effect until July 1. He maintains there is no reason to begin shutting down government because the state is solvent for the final months of this fiscal year. “Her argument makes no sense,” Egolf said. Martinez signed several measures in the first weeks of the legislative session that began in January to balance the budget for the remainder of the 2017 fiscal year, which ends June 30. Martinez vetoed some pieces of the solvency plan, but the state has $90 million in reserves for the next three months, said Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. Like Egolf, Smith said there’s no need to reduce services.
But for the 2018 budget year, Martinez
said, she wanted lawmakers to approve a spending plan that does not include any tax increases. The Legislature’s budget is accompanied by a bill for $350 million in increased taxes and fees. And Martinez has vowed to call lawmakers back to Santa Fe for a special legislative session to draft another budget. Egolf says this is more posturing because Martinez and her staff were in regular discussions with legislators about the budget during the 60-day session that ended last week.
Officials at various state agencies said in recent days that the governor’s office had informed them that it is considering shutting down some services.
“That could mean closing down [driver’s license] offices, which would force folks to drive miles and miles to overcrowded offices,” said Benjamin Cloutier, a spokesman for the Taxation and Revenue Department. “Worse-case scenario: Tax services could be cut during the very height of tax season.”
A spokeswoman for the Department of Cultural Affairs said a government shutdown could close state museums. The department operates four museums in Santa Fe and eight around the state, including the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque.
Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department suggested that state parks might also close.
“As far as the details of a potential shutdown, the administration is still gathering information and weighing various options,” said Mike Lonergan, a spokesman for the governor.
A spokesman for one of the unions representing state employees likened the governor’s threat of shutting down parts of New Mexico government to “cutting off the nose to spite the face.”
“New Mexico tourism is one great boon to our economy,” Miles Conway, of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said in a text message. “How is she even discussing shutting down museums, state parks and essential state services at this time?”
Conway said he had not heard of any plans to cut hours or furlough employees. The Martinez administration would likely have to notify the union if it intends to shut down certain parts of government because the union’s contracts give it the right to negotiate furloughs and other changes in staffing.
Though past governors have rejected budgets from the Legislature, a government shutdown would be an unusual move and reminiscent of the Washington, D.C.-style politics that Republicans in the state House of Representatives have scorned. Egolf suggested that a special session or government shutdown could frustrate Republicans as well as Democrats.
“The patience of any member of the House, regardless of their party, has an end,” he said.