Public Regulation Commissioner E. Shirley Baca says she has missed only 21 percent of meetings in 2005, most because she was traveling on PRC business.<\/p>\n
Her challenger in the Democratic primary, Sandy Jones, sent out a mailer three weeks ago accusing Baca of not being physically present at 38 percent of PRC meetings in 2005. Jones said Baca was present by telephone \u201cfor a few minutes\u201d at 10 percent of meetings he counted as absences.<\/p>\n
I asked Baca to respond. She had a PRC paralegal create an official attendance record based on minutes of meetings.<\/p>\n
(That a PRC staffer paid by taxpayers spent time pouring over minutes of 160 meetings and creating a document so Baca could respond to a campaign attack is questionable, but that\u2019s a topic for another time.)<\/p>\n
The paralegal found that, out of 160 meetings in 2005, Baca was physically present for 110, or 69 percent. She attended another 16 by telephone, raising her attendance record to 79 percent, the document states.<\/p>\n
Baca was absent from 34 meetings last year, the document states \u2013 28 to attend conferences and conduct other official business, two because of a death in her family, and four for \u201cpersonal\u201d reasons.<\/p>\n
Baca said she missed two meetings because she took a week off to \u201ckind of get my breath back\u201d after the drug possession charges against her were dropped last year. In case anyone doesn\u2019t know, she was arrested at the Albuquerque airport for allegedly possessing marijuana.<\/p>\n
Baca claimed she was framed. There was never a trial.<\/p>\n
Jones\u2019 analysis, he said, is based on records provided by the PRC. It includes 125 meetings from 2005. He found that Baca missed 35 meetings and attended by telephone another 13.<\/p>\n
Baca defended her attendance record.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I\u2019m not here, I\u2019ll do it on the phone. If I\u2019m not on the phone, it\u2019s because I\u2019m at a national conference representing us,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Jones doesn\u2019t like that, either. He sent out a second mailer last week attacking Baca for spending $7,000 in taxpayer money to travel to national conferences last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s pretty well traveled,\u201d Jones told me. \u201cI don\u2019t see any sense in all that travel. We\u2019ve got too much to do at home.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Kent Evans, one of three Republicans seeking the Public Regulation Commission seat held by E. Shirley Baca, announced Wednesday that he will step down from the Do\u00f1a Ana County commission if elected to the PRC.<\/p>\n
Evans had said previously he didn\u2019t know what he would do about his county commission seat if elected to the PRC. The county attorney advised him that nothing in state law would prevent him from holding both positions, and Evans said he would make a decision if and when doing so became necessary.<\/p>\n
That cost him the endorsement of the Las Cruces Sun-News<\/a>, his hometown newspaper, which gave its nod to C. Earl Greer of Truth or Consequences.<\/p>\n Then Greer went on the attack, Evans said, by claiming in a recorded phone solicitation that Evans said he would not resign his county commission seat if elected to the PRC.<\/p>\n Evans said in the news release that he delayed an announcement because he takes seriously his obligation to the residents of his county commission district.<\/p>\n \u201cI had hoped the campaigning would remain positive and clean,\u201d Evans said. \u201cI overestimated my opponent.\u201d<\/p>\n Evans said he will resign his county commission seat the day he is inaugurated as a PRC member, should he win the race.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the meantime \u2013 and despite the pressure and challenges of campaigning \u2013 I will continue to devote my energy to my constituents in Do\u00f1a Ana County,\u201d Evans said. \u201cFurther, I reiterate my promise to campaign on the issues relevant to the Public Regulation Commission. I am hopeful that my opponents will join me in this pledge.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n After months of allegations that administrators were attempting to silence organizers, New Mexico State University employees have voted to unionize.<\/p>\n Of 1,300 non-exempt employees who were eligible, 559 voted to organize and 302 voted against unionization, according to unofficial results released by the university Wednesday night. They will be represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.<\/p>\n The Labor Management Relations Board will officially certify results on June 8.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not going to say that NMSU President Michael Martin and other administrators tried to shut down union organizers, but I am going to say that many NMSU employees believe that\u2019s what happened. The university denied the allegations.<\/p>\n Following a public outcry, some Democratic state legislators from Las Cruces publicly announced their support for the union.<\/p>\n Whatever the case, Martin did the only thing left for him to do after the votes were counted Wednesday: He offered an olive branch.<\/p>\n \u201cAs we have said throughout this process, we respect our employees, and we worked to keep them fully informed as they made this very important decision,\u201d he said in a news release. \u201cNow, in the same spirit of respect and cooperation, we will work with them through their representatives to ensure a smooth transition to unionization.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Wednesday\u2019s announcement that prosecutors won\u2019t file criminal charges related to the 2004 special audit of Do\u00f1a Ana County government is certain to inflame many Republicans.<\/p>\n With less than a week before the primary election, there is a Democratic primary in one county commission race and a Republican primary in another, so there could be some fallout.<\/p>\n The audit found widespread problems in county government as recently as 2004, but the state auditor says it appears the problems have largely been fixed. An audit next year will check that.<\/p>\n Three findings were referred to prosecutors, but the statute of limitations had already expired on any potential misdemeanor violations that were found, even before the audit began.<\/p>\n One Republican source called that an outrage, and vowed to continue pressing the issue. Many Republicans blame the county manager for the violations and want him fired.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The Albuquerque Journal, Albuquerque Tribune and Santa Fe New Mexican have put out guides to next week\u2019s primary election. You can check out the Journal\u2019s by clicking here<\/a>, the Tribune\u2019s by clicking here<\/a>, and the New Mexican\u2019s by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n