By Sen. Michael Sanchez
Our life experiences shape who we are and what we believe. As for myself, I was born and raised in the small farming community of Belen. My siblings Raymond, Regina, Gloria and I came from a tight-knit family and, like most kids at a young age, our parents, Gil and Priscilla, seemed larger than life. They worked hard as the owners of a bakery and restaurant and dedicated their lives to our family and our community.
They taught us strong New Mexican values, instilling a deep sense of what was right and wrong, and never taught us to hate anyone.
My generation rocked to the Beatles, marched for civil rights and was motivated by Cesar Chavez and the Kennedys to fight for justice. But my true inspiration for public service came from my parents. They taught me that a man’s word is his bond and to speak the truth no matter the consequence.
I try to live by these simple values every day.
In the New Mexico State Senate, most members share the same values of honesty and dedication to public service. Although we debate difficult issues and express differences of opinion, each one of us is called upon to honorably represent our communities.
The Senate has acted on ethics reform
As majority leader, my priority is to recognize reality and responsibly advance New Mexico’s interests by balancing the needs of our citizens without caving into the demands of special interests. During this legislative session there have been lengthy discussions about ethics reform, with numerous bills being introduced by members from both sides of the aisle — some truly committed to reform, others attempting to capitalize on the popularity of the issue.
The first priority in achieving meaningful ethics reform in our state is to reduce the influence of money on politics and limit the influence of special interests. This session, the Senate has taken the first step in doing just that by voting to cap campaign contributions from individuals to $2,300, from political action committees to $5,000 and from state parties to $10,000. I’m proud to have supported Senate Bill 116, and it passed the Senate by a 40-1 vote.
The Senate also has approved a measure to allow webcasting of the proceedings on the Senate floor, and webcasting is now available to the public. There have been additional ethics-reform bills introduced this session calling for open conference committees and the creation of an ethics commission. (Note: This column was submitted just before the Senate voted to OK open conference committees on Thursday.)
While there is no disputing that additional ethics reform is needed in our state, I have always believed that you can’t simply legislate integrity — you have to also live with integrity as a part of your core values.
The real backroom secret
The support for ethics reform shouldn’t end after our vote has been cast and the headline is grabbed. It should be implicit in every action we take as elected officials. The backroom secret isn’t that legislators are participating in nefarious activities during conference committees or that the absence of a video camera promotes corruption.
The real backroom secret is that some of the very members who champion ethics reform admit to spending campaign funds for personal use, or that some publicly decry the ethics of the Legislature while soliciting lobbyists to pay for their committee lunches, and that some support “nonprofits” that call into question certain legislators’ motives to advance their own political agendas.
In my opinion, there are worse things in life than being misunderstood, but I can’t think of anything worse than being a hypocrite. Systemic ethics reform needs to be addressed not only by supporting laws that reform how New Mexico does business but by also examining our daily actions. It’s our responsibility to raise not only our ethical standards legislatively but to also shine a light on our personal shortcomings when the microphones and cameras are off.
For most New Mexicans, ethics reform can’t happen soon enough, and the Senate has responded by taking a very important step in reforming New Mexico’s political system by passing campaign donation caps. As we continue to grapple with ethics reform, we need to carefully consider how New Mexico transforms itself in the years to come.
I’m confident that collectively we can continue to institute real ethics reform — not only by word but by deed — just as our parents taught us.
Sanchez is a Belen Democrat and the majority leader.