Committee nominates 9 for PRC
Commissioners will serve terms of two, four, six years; spokeswoman for governor says Lujan Grisham to make appointments this month
The Public Regulation Commission’s nominating committee voted Friday to send the names of nine people with backgrounds in regulation, law and energy to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who will appoint three of them to serve on the revamped PRC beginning Jan. 1.
The governor’s three appointees will make decisions with long-ranging consequences in the state as New Mexico moves forward with changes to energy policies and programs brought on by the state’s Energy Transition Act.
The nominating committee received 62 applications and determined the finalists through a process that included public questionnaires and interviews from August to November.
The committee nominated:
Gabriel Aguilera, a Democrat from Washington, D.C., and a senior policy adviser for the Federal Energy Regulation Commission.
James Ellison, an independent from Cedar Crest and a grid analyst at Sandia National Laboratories.
Carolyn Glick, an independent from Santa Fe and a retired hearing examiner at the PRC.
Brian Moore, a Republican former legislator from Clayton and CEO of Ranch Markets.
Patrick O’Connell, a Democrat from Albuquerque and a program director at Western Resource Advocates.
Arthur O’Donnell, an independent from Albuquerque and a recent Solar Energy Innovator fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy.
Joseph Little, a Democrat from Albuquerque and attorney for the Pueblo of Zia.
Amy Stein, a Democrat from Albuquerque and a law professor at University of Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law.
Cholla Khoury, a Democrat from Albuquerque and New Mexico chief deputy attorney.
Commissioners will serve terms of two, four and six years — as selected by Lujan Grisham — with the PRC ultimately transitioning to staggered six-year terms. Lujan Grisham will make appointments this month, her spokeswoman, Nora Meyers Sackett, wrote in an email Friday. “The governor is seeking qualified and impartial appointees who will act in the best
The Empty Stocking Fund is a 41-year-old project of
The New Mexican. Each year, hundreds of people receive aid from the fund during the holiday season to help cover rent payments, medical bills, utility costs, car repairs, home improvements and other needs.
Who it helps: Applicants, who must live within 50 miles of Santa Fe and must provide documents that provide proof of their identity, are considered without regard to race, age, ethnicity, gender identity or sexual orientation. Applications for help are open through Dec. 7.
How it works: Applications for funding are carefully vetted. Members of the Empty Stocking Committee review requests, meet with each qualifying applicant to examine records of outstanding bills or other needs and verify the applicant’s income. If a request is approved, the committee sends a check directly to the service supplier. Requests can be as much as $2,500 per household depending on the need.
2022 goal: $375,000 This holiday charity project, which began in 1981, is jointly administered by the Santa Fe Community Foundation, Enterprise Bank and Trust, the Salvation Army, Presbyterian Medical Services, The Life Link, Habitat for Humanity, Esperanza Shelter, Youth Shelters and Family Services, Gerard’s House and a private individual.
To donate: Make your tax-deductible donation online by visiting santafenewmexican. com/empty_stocking or mail a check to The New Mexican’s Empty Stocking Fund c/o The Santa Fe Community Foundation, P.O. Box 1827, Santa Fe, N.M., 87504-1827. Cash and coin donations are always welcome. Those can be dropped off at the offices of the newspaper at 150 Washington Ave. Donors can request to remain anonymous.
If you can provide a service such as roofing or home repairs, contact Habitat for Humanity at repairs@ santafehabitat.org. If you can contribute food, clothing, toys, housewares, furniture, firewood or other items or services, call the Salvation Army at 505-988-8054.
To apply: Applications for help are open through Dec. 7. People can apply online at san tafenewmexican.com/empty_ stocking. Applicants who do not have access to a computer can complete an application online at the following locations, free of charge:
Santa Fe Main Library, 145 Washington Ave.
La Farge Branch Library, 1730 Llano St.
Southside Branch Library, 6599 Jaguar Drive.
New Mexico Workforce Connection, 525 Camino de los Marquez.
Applicants can also call 505577-4220.
DONATIONS
Anonymous: $200 Anonymous: $50 Anonymous: $100 Anonymous: $51.43
Rick and Kathy Abeles: $300 Dr. Loretta Armer: $100
John and Sarah Bienvenu Fund: $1,000
Convington Family Fund: $25,000
George and Christy Croshaw: $100
Stephen and Karen Durkovich: $500
Robert and Barbara Gallatin: $250
Betsy Garside and Stephen Warren: $500
Thomas Hall and George Xillas: $50
Brett Kokinadis: $100 Kimberly MacLoud: $100 Audrey Miller: $100
Janet Russek and David Scheinbaum: $100
J. Russell and Elizabeth A. Tyldesley: $100
W.S. Varnum and Maureen Cashmon: $100
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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Below the vaulted dome and dark wood beams of a church in Colorado Springs, a gay men’s choir rehearsed for a concert that’s taken on new meaning after an LGBTQ night club became the site of a shooting that killed five and wounded 17.
“There is no peace on earth, I said,” the chorus sang. “For hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth.”
The old lyrics that rang through the halls of the First Congregational Church were haunted by new memories of the Nov. 21 violence at Club Q — the sound of screams over club music, the sight of bullet wounds plugged by interest of New Mexicans as part of the PRC,” she wrote.
The committee approved all nine without dissent at Friday’s meeting.
“We’ve gotten comments from people on the outside about resumes, and who’s qualified and who’s not qualified ... I think they all meet the base qualifications,” said member Will Brancard. napkins and people pleading with their friends to keep breathing.
In the 13 days since the shooting, Colorado Springs’ LGBTQ community has worked to collect itself and forge ahead. Patrons of Club Q — those who survived the rampage as well as regulars who weren’t there last Saturday — have organized donation drives for victims’ families, leaned on queer-affirming clergy and renewed their commitments to LGBTQ spaces and organizations, including Out Loud Colorado Springs Men’s Chorus.
Members of Out Loud prepared for three sold-out concerts, their first performances since the coronavirus pandemic forced them to cancel shows. The rehearsals brought laughter, and at times
Brancard may have been responding to an anonymous email sent to committee members on Nov. 16, alleging seven of the committee’s finalists — five of whom were announced as nominees Friday — did not meet qualifications for appointed commissioners in the Public Utility Act, particularly the requirement for “10 years of professional experience.”
The transition to a three-member, governor-appointed PRC from the current five-member elected body was the result of damp eyes, chins raised and heads defiantly held forward. They’re sending a clear message: “We are saying we are still here,” said Marius Nielsen, a transgender man who sang from the front row at a Wednesday night rehearsal.
The concert’s solemn notes punctuated a largely joyful event where talented singers belted out Christmas carol medleys, some more campy than others. Members of the chorus dressed as the robed three kings and struck go-go dancer poses. Another performer wearing Claus-style short shorts swooned over Santa.
“We will grieve; we will feel anger and sadness, and in the midst of that, we will feel joy and hope,” said Bill Loper, the concert’s artistic director.
a constitutional amendment approved by New Mexico voters in 2020. On Monday, the state Supreme Court ruled against a suit seeking to challenge the amendment brought by three petitioners, including the Native advocacy group Indigenous Lifeways.
Crystal Curley, Indigenous Lifeways’ executive director, spoke ahead of the nominating committee’s vote on Friday, calling the transition to an appointed PRC “unjust” and an end to “any means of representation” for
Native peoples in the state.
Curley’s remarks prompted responses from committee members Cydney Beadles, a former PRC staff member, and House Speaker Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe, who each support the move to an appointed PRC.
“Looking back over the last 20 years — and when I started at the commission it was appointed — the public interest was better served by an appointed commission,” Beadles said.
Egolf referenced the results of the 2020 vote for the constitutional amendment — particularly in McKinley County and parts of San Juan County, both of which have large American Indian populations — and said “the overwhelming voice of the people of New Mexico supported” the return to an appointed PRC.
The new PRC will consist of entirely new commissioners. The sole current member to apply for a position was District One Commissioner Cynthia Hall, who was interviewed by the committee as a finalist but ultimately not advanced as a nominee.