NMPolitics.net (https://nmpolitics.net/index/author/heath-haussamen/page/147/)
For a 30-day session — one during which shifting economic forecasts necessitated a rewrite of the fiscal year 2017 budget — the session of the New Mexico Legislature that ended Thursday was arguably productive. From driver’s licenses to the state’s finances, Democrats and Republicans worked together to find compromise. Continue Reading
Many Democrats have said tough-on-crime bills sought by Republican Gov. Susana Martinez are politically motivated and meant to distract voters from New Mexico’s economic woes, as all 112 seats in the Legislature are up for re-election this year. Continue Reading
Members of Attorney General Hector Balderas’ staff walked out in protest Tuesday when a committee voted to exempt teens from prosecution in cases of “sexting.” That was on the minds of senators when they ejected Balderas’ staffers from the Senate floor Wednesday. Continue Reading
The $855,000, if the bill is signed by the governor, would build a new gate at the Santa Fe’s airport. Continue Reading
A larger unknown is what will happen when lawmakers convene in January 2017 to craft a budget for fiscal year 2018. “There is no fat left, there’s no lard left, there is nothing but bone left. So, if the economy doesn’t turn around, we have more unpleasant work left,” said Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino. Continue Reading
Pope Francis delivered a stirring message on Wednesday in Ciudad Juárez — a city recovering from years of its own death and destruction at the hands of warring rival drug gangs and law enforcement. The pope’s message held audiences captive on both sides of the river. Continue Reading
Preventing criminal prosecution of teenagers who consensually exchange explicit images does not condone the conduct; it just prevents stupid, adolescent behavior from having life-changing criminal consequences. Continue Reading
Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto, D-Albuquerque, said Wednesday he is getting a bum rap over this week’s sudden death of a proposed amendment to the N.M. Constitution to create a state ethics commission. Continue Reading
The measure would allow 17-year-olds to vote in the primary if they will turn 18 before the general election. Continue Reading
A prior version of this article incorrectly stated that Sanchez’s bill would funnel $6 million to $9 million into the scholarship fund. Continue Reading
Their action effectively leaves the struggling scholarship program without any means to shore it up until next year’s legislative session. Continue Reading
The Center for Public Integrity looked at the financial holdings of judges who might replace Scalia. Continue Reading
The 2016 race for the White House is the most expensive money and media circus ever. Continue Reading
While a bill to toughen child-pornography penalties makes its way through the Legislature, some disagree with the attorney general’s opposition to an exemption that would protect some teens in consensual relationships from prosecution if they send photos to each other. Continue Reading
Many New Mexicans are upset that a proposal to create a state ethics commission has met its death once again in the Senate Rules Committee. Continue Reading