{"id":521760,"date":"2018-02-12T08:43:24","date_gmt":"2018-02-12T15:43:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=521760"},"modified":"2018-02-12T08:43:24","modified_gmt":"2018-02-12T15:43:24","slug":"governor-takes-credit-for-surplus-brought-by-oil-and-gas-rebound","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2018\/02\/governor-takes-credit-for-surplus-brought-by-oil-and-gas-rebound\/","title":{"rendered":"Governor takes credit for surplus brought by oil and gas rebound"},"content":{"rendered":"

A flyer<\/a> that reads like an election-campaign ad for Gov. Susana Martinez hit Albuquerque mailboxes last week, praising her no-new-taxes stance throughout eight years, especially during 2017\u2019s state budget crisis.<\/p>\n

\"Susana

Heath Haussamen \/ NMPolitics.net<\/p>

Gov. Susana Martinez<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cInstead of punishing taxpayers with higher taxes,\u00a0Governor Martinez has cut taxes 37 times, vetoed more than a billion dollars in tax hikes, and cut wasteful government spending.\u00a0She has put our fiscal house in order the right way. Now the state has a budget surplus of $300 million,\u201d the flyer intones.<\/p>\n

It goes on to suggest the governor\u2019s hard anti-tax stance led to thousands of new jobs.<\/p>\n

The flyer<\/a> then hammers home the message in case recipients miss the point: Martinez is leading New Mexico in the right direction.<\/p>\n

Not to split hairs, but a \u00a0spike in oil prices and a rebound in the state\u2019s oil and gas industry is the reason for this year\u2019s budget surplus and the thousands of new jobs. And Martinez\u2019s legacy is a much-debated issue around the Roundhouse and among New Mexico\u2019s politicos.<\/p>\n

Paid for by New Mexico Legacy,\u00a0a nonprofit organization in Albuquerque, the purpose of the flyer<\/a>\u00a0is unknown. Martinez isn\u2019t running for re-election and she\u2019s out of office once her successor is chosen by voters in the November election.<\/p>\n

However, the timing is curious. With days to go in the 30-day legislative session, state lawmakers are considering amendments from her office to a proposed $6.3 billion state budget.<\/p>\n