The Governor’s State of New Mexico Address

The Governor this year has a focused set of objectives for the 30 day session in Santa Fe. He has limited his bills down to 60 for 1,600 bills proposed in the last 30 day session. His goals are focused and good for the voters of our state.

The first is Universal Health care for New Mexicans. The plan will be called “Health Solutions New Mexico Plan.” The Governor describes it as a common-sense and pragmatic approach. It is a middle of the road approach which neither group on the far left or the far right should complain about because it gives each side something that they can agree about in general. It also holds HMO’s and Insurance companies responsible for 85% of the premiums that will be spent directly on patient care but it would require all individuals to pay their fair share for healthcare costs.

The Governor also wants to focus on some of our states more serious issues such as energy usage through efficiency, ethics reforms, legal rights to domestic partners, and domestic violence. He also wants more laws to deal with DWI offenders. At the same time he is asking for the basic funding to meet the states responsibilities on education, transportation, and economic development.

I am sure that most voters would agree that these are all issues that are important to voters in our state. With a limited amount of time and some big goals set for this year's legislative session it will take a great deal of skill for the Governor to negotiate through the details for each of the issues. One good point to remember is that the state legislators will be careful to not upset the voters too much since they are running for reelection in 2008. Let’s all hope that this helps the Governor to attain success in his endeavors for the voters in this year's legislative session.

One interesting note is that the legislators have tabled the idea of spending 30 million for an addition to the roundhouse in favor of further research on the issue. I am sure that the issue will come up in a future session.

I hope that the voters will keep a careful eye on developments during the next 30 days and feel free to speak to their state representatives if the need should arise. I also hope that support staffers for Higher Education get their fair share of the 60 million dollars requested for raises. I know that most legislators understand that 2% of less than $25,000 is only $500 or less which is not a great deal of money for people living on the edge when prices are projected to go up during the next year.