Legislators: Turn failure into success

Aspecial legislative session, barring a crisis, is an admission of failure. During the regular legislative session of 2017, the Legislature and the governor did not complete the necessary business of governing. They did not finish passing a finished budget for the state of New Mexico.

The governor would have it that those free-spending, tax-loving Democrats sent her an unbalanced budget that needed correction, so much so, that she went to the unheard of lengths of canceling all spending for higher education and the legislative branch of government.

Democrats argue — with some merit, we believe — that the budget easily could have been balanced. In addition to the $6.01 billion spending package, a revenue plan with some $350 million in new money from tax and fee increases was delivered to the governor. Both pieces of legislation had some Republican support.

To balance the budget, only about $150 million in different fee increases or taxes needed to be approved; conversely, the government could have line-item vetoed that much in spending, using a scalpel rather than wielding and ax. So simple, yet the governor chose to throw the budgeting process into chaos and cause real damage by eliminating the dollars to fund higher education and the legislative branch.

Remember that colleges and universities are putting together their spending plans for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1. They can’t, however, because there is no funding in place, no numbers from which to work. Families are not sure what the cost of college will be in September because of the uncertainty. Employees at universities and schools wonder about their jobs, and that worry impacts not just the individual or the school, but the towns and cities that host these institutions. Colleges and universities are job creators, among the many roles they play in our state. All of that is stuck right now.

Starting today as the Legislature meets in special session, Democrats and Republican lawmakers must unstick the state. The governor, as is her wont, is clinging stubbornly to the notion that a one- or two-day special session is the perfect time to conduct big business. She wants the entire gross receipts tax system overhauled, despite the reality that lawmakers can’t correctly assess if the new scheme will bring in enough money to fund the work that government does.

As of Tuesday, a bill in completed form was not ready for lawmakers to read. Considering the final piece of legislation could be longer than 400 pages, it’s just foolish to move ahead with sloppy tax reform. Democratic House Speaker Brian Egolf said Tuesday the tax reform bill is dead on arrival — so let’s hope the Republicans, both the governor and in the House, move on. Senate GOP members have been more sensible.

New Mexico cannot afford to gamble with its sources of revenue. We think Sen. Bill Sharer, R-Farmington, has a workable compromise — don’t tackle GRT reform in a rush, but do sanction a 90-day study of New Mexico’s tax base. That would give lawmakers better information to revise the tax code and minimize unforeseen consequences.

For now, approve budgets for colleges and universities; pass legislative funding and fix a shortfall in funding for magistrate courts — these are all necessary and urgent. With a better revenue picture, the cash shortfall has been somewhat eased. The state still needs some new revenue, especially to shore up its emergency reserve funds; to fail in that task would risk New Mexico’s bond rating and make it more expensive to borrow money for capital projects.

Everything else can wait. By moving quickly in a bipartisan fashion, however, legislators and the governor can turn their regular session failure into success. Should that happen, the entire state will breathe a sigh of relief.