◆ Legislative roundup.
Days left in session: 27
Take a rest: Transportation Secretary Michael Sandoval told members of the House Transportation Committee on Thursday it would take about $30 million to get rest stops across the state “up to where they need to be,” maintenance-wise.
A department report rated the state’s 30-plus rest stations on a scale of 1 (the worst) to 10 (the best). It gave one stop, called Blackwater Draw, a zero. The La Bajada rest stop south of Santa Fe got a 7. The report said there was graffiti in the men’s room.
No rifts on education: Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, urged colleagues to find common ground on education funding.
“Every legislative member I’m aware of has education first and foremost. It’s how we get there that’s the challenge,” Smith said on the Senate floor. “Rather than finger-pointing, maybe we should pull together.”
His comments came a day after lawmakers on the House and Senate education committees said their input over the past year has been ignored.
Smith also stressed a point that Republicans made in criticizing what they called an omission in Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s State of the State speech: the huge contribution of oil and gas to the state budget. “Oil and gas has been footing the bill for public education,” Smith said.
Endowment funds for schools: New Mexico schools, universities and other beneficiaries will share more than $1 billion from the state’s permanent endowment funds.
The State Investment Council said Thursday the amount that will be distributed over the next fiscal year will be more than ever before. It also marks an increase of more than $60 million over the last year due to growth of the state’s Land Grant and Severance Tax permanent funds.
State Investment Officer Steve Moise said record revenues from oil and gas production and strong investment returns over the past decade have turned the funds into a billion-dollar revenue generator for New Mexico.
“These funds are not only an engine to fund schools and government today, but also represent our state’s nest egg for the inevitable day when oil and gas revenues are less plentiful,” he said in a statement.
Schooled in the Legislature: Some 40 students from Ladera Del Norte Elementary in Farmington toured the Roundhouse on Thursday to see how government works.
“It’s cool to be here to see what happens,” said fourth grader Jonah Cluff as he prepared to enter the Senate chamber.
Last year, Ladera Del Norte was named one of the 362 federally recognized Blue Ribbon schools for its success in closing the achievement gap. “These students had to work to get that,” said kindergarten teacher Lindsay Garcia. ”And it’s important for them to be here and see how the legislative process works.”
Senate passes feed bill: On Thursday, the Senate unanimously approved House Bill 1, known as the “feed bill,” which appropriates some $5.5 million to fund the Legislature this year.
Looking ahead: The Senate Public Affairs Committee plans to hear a proposal Tuesday to legalize recreational cannabis, Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino said. Ortiz y Pino, D-Albuquerque, is sponsoring the Senate version of the bill, which has the backing of Lujan Grisham.
The New Mexico Department of Veterans Services and the New Mexico National Guard will host the annual Military and Veterans Day at the Roundhouse from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. A number of informational booths will be set up in the Rotunda, and a noon ceremony will honor prisoners of war and soldiers who have been declared missing in action.
Quote of the day: “Is there a body stuffed in there?” Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, to Sen. George Muñoz, D-Gallup, after the latter had a huge cabinet, large enough to hold a corpse, wheeled out of his office Thursday morning.