Judge revives 10 vetoed bills; appeal looms
Measures, including hemp legislation, could become law within three weeks
A state district judge on Friday ruled against Gov. Susana Martinez in a lawsuit filed by Democratic legislative leaders, finding that 10 bills the governor vetoed before the end of this year’s regular session of the New Mexico Legislature should become law because she did not explain why she rejected the measures.
The ruling by Judge Sarah Singleton of Santa Fe means that the bills, including two that would legalize research on industrial hemp, could become law within weeks. She directed the secretary of state to chapter the bills into law once the paperwork is submitted. That’s expected to take no more than three weeks, lawyers for the Legislature said.
Martinez’s lawyer, Paul Kennedy, said he will ask for a stay that would prevent the bills from becoming law while he appeals Singleton’s ruling. If Singleton doesn’t grant the stay, however, the bills will become law before any appeals court hears the case.
Even with the expected appeal, Singleton’s decision was a big victory for legislators, who had butted heads with Martinez continuously during the bruising regular session that ended in March. Leading Democrats in the House and Senate said from the beginning that the governor did not follow the required procedure in vetoing the bills.
“The court’s decision today is a clear victory for our state constitution, and for the principle that no branch of government is above the law,” Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, said in a statement. “By requiring the governor to follow the process spelled out in the constitution for vetoing legislation, the Legislature has a chance to correct the stated objection before the end of the session.”
House Speaker Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe, who attended Friday’s hearing, said Singleton’s ruling represents “a great day for New Mexico schoolchildren,” referring to one of the vetoed bills that would allow high school students to count computer science courses toward the math or science credits needed to graduate.
And Senate President Pro Tem Mary Kay Papen, D-Las Cruces, said, “We urge Gov. Martinez to accept the court’s decision and allow the people of New Mexico to move on.”
Martinez spokesman Joseph Cueto said in an email after
the hearing, “We’re disappointed in this decision because there is no question the governor vetoed these bills. It’s telling how some in the legislature love running to the courts when they know they don’t have the support to override a veto.”
The lawsuit filed by state lawmakers points to a section of the state constitution that speaks to bills that are presented to the governor and vetoed with at least three days remaining in the Legislative session. “If he approves, he shall sign it, and deposit it with the secretary of state; otherwise, he shall return it to the house in which it originated, with his objections.”
By contrast, bills presented to the governor with less than three days remaining the session can be vetoed without explanation, such as a pocket veto.
Jane Yohalem, one of the lawyers representing the legislators, argued that it’s important for a governor to deliver her reasons for vetoing with the actual veto message. Not doing so, she said “makes an already chaotic process even more chaotic.”
Singleton agreed. “Given the short time in which the Legislature sits and given … the chaotic nature of the process, it is important that this provision [of the state constitution] be strictly construed so that the orderly business of both chambers of the Legislature can take place and they know the reasons for the governor’s decision not to sign the bill and they can act on those reasons upon the return of the bill.”
Yohalem said Martinez’s 10 vetoes were the first time in state history that a governor didn’t include reasons for vetoes done while the Legislature was still in session.
Jerry Fuentes, a farmer from Truchas who lobbied in favor of hemp research, attended Friday’s hearing. Afterward, he told The New Mexican, “We’re all so happy. We finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. It’s all about the farmers and creating a new economy in New Mexico.”
During the hearing, Kennedy argued that the two hemp bills — House Bill 144 and Senate Bill 6 — were in conflict. Singleton countered that it’s not unusual for the Legislature to pass conflicting legislation. In such cases, the last bill to be entered in the law books becomes law, she said.
In this case, that would be the Senate bill, sponsored by Sen. Cisco McSorley, D-Albuquerque. It cleared the Legislature on March 8, several days after the House bill. The bill would require the state Agriculture Department to issue licenses to grow industrial hemp for research and development purposes — including agricultural, agronomic, ecological, processing, sales and marketing research.
McSorley in March said this bill addresses concerns of Martinez when she vetoed a similar bill two years before. It eliminated any mention of possible commercial hemp activity, which was in the 2015 measure, and includes a provision for training police officers to be able to tell the difference between hemp and marijuana.
Also praising Singleton’s decision was the head of a major teachers union in New Mexico.
“By vetoing the two education bills … the governor had prioritized her adult politics over the need of New Mexico’s students,” said Charles Bowyer, executive director of NEA-New Mexico in an email statement. “Now, with the judge overturning those vetoes, two important new opportunities for student success just opened up in New Mexico.”
The first six of the 10 unexplained vetoes came the day after the Senate voted to override Martinez’s veto of a bill to allow more sick leave for teachers. Some senators on both sides of the aisle publicly speculated whether those vetoes might have been in retaliation for the override.
All in all, Martinez vetoed more than 140 bills, which is more than half the number of bills signed. She also line-item vetoed the entire budgets for colleges and universities in the state and the entire legislative branch, forcing a short special session in May to pass a new budget.