Legislature spends cash but rejects policy changes

The New Mexico Legislature adjourned from its special session today having appropriated hundreds of millions of dollars but rejecting major policy changes.

Gov. Bill Richardson, in a news release, characterized the work of the Legislature as a “good, solid, yet modest effort that helps New Mexico families.”

“The winners are kids, working families and our most vulnerable citizens,” Richardson said. “While the Legislature did not go as far as I would have liked to cover all children with health insurance, I believe modest but solid gains were made toward that goal.”

The Legislature approved $32.5 million for health care, including $20 million to expand coverage to children, $10 million to treat developmentally disabled children and $2.5 million for mental-health services.

In the category of tax relief, the Legislature approved a tax rebate that will cost the state $55.8 million, a working-families tax credit that will cost $7.8 million, home-heating assistance that will cost $1.9 million and an increase in child-care assistance eligibility that will cost $7.2 million, according to Richardson’s news release.

The Legislature also appropriated $200 million to complete outstanding road projects, $3.2 million to provide school-bus fuel assistance to schools, $5 million to repair bridges and roads damaged by recent flooding in Ruidoso and Otero County, and $1.6 million in supplemental funding for the November election.

All other proposals failed, including Richardson’s proposals to require reforms to reduce administrative costs in the health-insurance industry, mandate that parents ensure their children have health insurance, and his electronic medical records bill.

After adjourning sine die this afternoon, Senate Democrats put out their own news release stating that they “did the work we needed to do and now we can go home.”

“It was difficult to address the matters we did in the face of our decline in revenues, but it was still a successful session from the standpoint of the state citizens’ interests,” Senate President Tim Jennings, D-Roswell, said in the release. “I think we took care of the most important interim issues to make sure we get to the regular legislative session this coming January in good shape.”

Senate Republicans claimed similar success in their own news release.

“The Senate continued to take the lead and continued to be commanding in its position to not overspend during this special session,” said Minority Whip Leonard Lee Rawson, R-Las Cruces. “As a result of our being careful, we were able to meet many needs without being reckless. New Mexicans will receive a rebate, there is more Medicaid money available for New Mexico children and more money will go into rural roads.”