Rep. Andy Nuñez, D-Hatch
House Speaker Ben Luján has stripped Rep. Andy Nuñez of his committee assignments, including removing him from the position of chairman of the Agriculture and Water Resources Committee.
Nuñez, D-Hatch, confirmed that Luján informed him of the changes earlier today. He said the speaker gave him no reason for the changes, but Nuñez views it as retaliation. Nuñez was the most vocal Democrat who backed the unsuccessful, bipartisan effort to replace Luján with Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces.
“What other reason would he have to do it?” Nuñez asked.
Luján could not immediately be reached for comment.
Rep. James Roger Madalena, D-Jemez Pueblo, will replace Nuñez as chair of the agriculture committee.
The speaker didn’t strip Cervantes of his positions as vice chair of the Judiciary and Rules Committees. And he made Rep. Mary Helen Garcia – D-Las Cruces and one of Cervantes’ supporters in the failed speaker attempt – chair of the Voters and Elections Committee. Garcia had been vice chair.
Rep. Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe, will replace Madalena as chair of the Energy Committee.
Nuñez, who had been the agriculture committee chairman and a member of the Energy Committee, was removed from both positions and instead assigned to the Education and Transportation committees.
“I was expecting something,” Nuñez said. “But I did not expect it that bad. I thought maybe he’d remove me as chair and just leave me on the (agriculture) committee.”
Luján made Nuñez chair of the agriculture committee in 2007 in exchange for Nuñez’s support for his bid to remain speaker. Luján was challenged in late 2006 for the speaker position by Majority Leader Ken Martinez, who was backed in that unsuccessful effort by Cervantes.
Nuñez said he has been frustrated ever since because Luján meddled in his committee, sending agriculture-related bills to other committees to bypass Nuñez and killing his bills. That’s why Nuñez decided to support Cervantes’ challenge this year.
After the challenge fizzled out Tuesday, Nuñez was the only member of the Legislature who refused to cast a vote in the speaker race between Luján and Minority Leader Tom Taylor. He later said he would have voted for Taylor if he believed it would have helped Taylor defeat Luján.