We have reported and written an opinion piece and discussed the sorry state of New Mexico’s roads on our podcast, not to mention rest areas and other infrastructure frequently in recent months. But, rather than dealing with the issue in the special legislative session (as with the medical provider shortage) she wants to push that off to the 30 day session which is coming in January. That session is ALSO going to be even more packed than usual.

The latest from Albuquerque Journal is that the State could lose up to 61,000 jobs if the road funding issue is not resolved.  As we have noted, however, the Gov. and Democrat-controlled Legislature have simply not prioritized roads. Simply put, that has caused the crisis. The following is from today’s article:

“NMDOT usually gets anywhere from $200 million to $300 million for new road construction, though only $65 million was allocated this year.” Our roads have been deteriorating and construction costs have been rising for years (while New Mexico has run massive budget surpluses) how can the Legislature and Gov. allocate a tiny fraction of what has been allocated in the past to roads? Remember, MLG is funding abortion clinics, “free” child care, “free” college, “free pre-K,” and is holding a special session to pump money into welfare programs like food stamps and Medicaid for able bodied adults and illegal immigrants, but again, can’t find the time to address roads?

“The funding deficit puts 61,000 construction and maintenance jobs at risk statewide,” said Danny Marquez of Algodones-based construction firm CA2 Testing.

As seen in the post from Gov. Lujan Grisham, she blames President Trump and Congress (naturally) for cuts to Medicaid and rising premiums. Instead, the Gov. should look in the mirror and at a bloated and deeply problematic Medicaid program administered by the State. Don’t believe us? Check out the latest Medicaid Accountability Report from the Legislative Finance Committee and the analysis below:

The following is a list of the Ten findings from the report:

1. Medicaid enrollment is down, but program spending is up

New Mexico serves 31,000 fewer Medicaid enrollees than in 2016, yet total spending has nearly doubled to $11 billion. Outcomes on quality, access, and network adequacy are flat or worse.

2. Billions in provider rate increases haven’t improved appointment availability

The state has invested at least $2.2 billion in provider rate adjustments over the last five years—including more than $1 billion for hospitals. The largest increases are scheduled for FY25, but secret shopper surveys show no improvement in appointment availability.

3. NM Medicaid rates are far above Medicare’s and those of neighboring states

New Mexico’s Medicaid rates are consistently higher than Medicare and border states—sometimes dramatically. For behavioral health, one code is reimbursed at $242/hour for family psychotherapy—50% above Medicare and up to 325% higher than Arizona, Colorado, Oklahoma, or Utah. Physical health codes also run 7% to 186% higher than neighboring states, with outpatient visits reimbursed at nearly double Arizona and Utah rates.

4. Costs are rising, but health outcomes remain stagnant

Since FY21, behavioral health per-member costs jumped 97% and long-term services rose 49%, yet outcomes remain stagnant.

5. Cost of the Developmental Disabilities Waiver’s is headed toward $1B

The DD waiver costs per client ran up to 39% higher than projections in FY24. Total spending hit $773M vs. $733M projected, and growth trends show it is on track to become a billion-dollar program within the next budget cycles. A “super allocation” to clear waiting lists risks accelerating costs even faster.

6. Mixed Health Outcomes Despite Spending

• Only 31% of behavioral health ER patients receive a 7-day follow-up, down 16% since 2022.
• Diabetes management has improved somewhat, with poor control falling from 52% to 44%.

7. The Medicaid IT Project is bloated, delayed — and risky

The Medicaid Management Information System replacement has swelled from $221M to $832M and from 8 years to 14 years in duration, making it the largest single-agency IT project in state history. By completion, it could approach $1 billion—and still may not be compliant with future federal reporting requirements, putting both funding and accountability at risk.

8. The behavioral health workforce is shrinking

Between 2022 and 2024, New Mexico lost 1,082 prescribing and 427 non-prescribing behavioral health providers. Most counties saw declines.

9. Secret Shoppers find care is still hard to access

In 2025, patients needed 6–7 calls for a primary care appointment and 14 calls for behavioral health. Average waits were 21 days for primary care and 11 days for behavioral health—both longer than required standards.

10. NM’s Fraud recoveries are among the nation’s worst

New Mexico’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit recovered just 2 cents per dollar spent, ranking second-to-last nationally. In FY24, 353 investigations yielded only five indictments and two convictions.

Thanks to former New Mexico Health Secretary Duke Rodriguez for his analysis.

On this week’s interview Paul sits down with Professor Chris Erickson. Chris is an economics professor at New Mexico State University. Paul and Chris discuss (and debate) two big issues:
1) Chris’ economic impact study of Spaceport America which found that the Spaceport generated an impact of $240 million in 2024.

2) We discuss recent statements made by Erickson that Gov. Lujan Grisham’s “free” universal child care will have positive impacts on New Mexico’s economy.

We do conclude the conversation with a brief discussion of the Project Jupiter project which was recently approved for Southern New Mexico. You don’t want to miss this important conversation!

The following is a guest column from Charles Sullivan. Sullivan is an Albuquerque resident and writes frequently about New Mexico politics and policy issues.

There are two taboo facts that New Mexico’s television stations and major newspapers almost never discuss. The first is that no state in the United States has had single- party Democratic rule at the state level longer than New Mexico. The second is that there is any connection between decades of single-party Democratic rule and the current state of affairs in New Mexico.

Here are a few examples of Democrat dominance since 1931.

State legislature: The last time Republicans held a majority in both houses of the N.M. Legislature at the same time was 1930.
N.M. Supreme Court. The last time Republicans held a majority on the N.M. Supreme Court was in the 1920s. Currently, all five justices on the Court are Democrats.
N.M. Court of Appeals: The N.M. Court of Appeals was created in 1966 and
has never had a Republican majority. Currently nine of the ten judges on the Court are Democrats.
Secretary of State: Republicans have held the position for 4 years since 1931. Attorney General. Republicans have held the post for 4 years since 1931.

And what has nearly 100 years of single-party Democratic rule brought New Mexico? Here are a few examples.

The nation’s worst ranked K-12 public school system, even worse than the deplorable public schools of Washington, D.C.

A state where 46% of its residents over 16 years of age are functional illiterates.
The state with both the highest violent crime per capita and the highest property crime per capita in the nation.
A state with the highest percentage of welfare recipients of any state.
A state with the second highest poverty rate of any state.
A state with anemic population growth compared to its neighbors. In the 1930 census, neighboring AZ had 12,000 more residents than NM. Today, AZ’s population is 5,552,000 larger.
A state with the nation’s 4th highest per capita suicide rate despite having great weather.
A state with one of the highest Covid death rates per 100,000 in the country despite a nearly totalitarian lockdown by the ruling party.

What are we to make of these stunning facts about New Mexico? Would it not be logical for the Republican Party of New Mexico to be screaming at the top of its lungs, “Good God, look at what the Democrats have done to the state. They’ve had complete control for nearly 100 years and the state is a shambles. Why do you keep voting for these people and what hope is there for fundamental change if they keep running the state?”

And yet, the response from the Republican Party has been crickets. I understand, for them it is embarrassing to lose to a group (Democrats) who have driven this state into a ditch. I’ve lived in the state for nearly 50 years and have never heard the Republican Party or a state-wide Republican Party candidate discuss Democrat Party single party rule for most of the last 100 years. Is it stupidity? Lack of cojones? A combination of both? So, yes, the Republican Party of New Mexico is the nation’s most incompetent.

Thousands of New Mexicans are simply unaware of the historical fact that the state has had single party Democrat rule for most of the last 100 years. That’s because of the nearly total news blackout on the subject by most of New Mexico’s news media, and the Republican Party’s silence on the subject. If more people knew this fact, it could make a big difference.

The Republican Party of New Mexico needs a fighter like Lee Atwater to turn it around. Until it gets one, it will probably remain the junior varsity team.

In New Mexico governors come and go but the Legislature remains a problem. Even Gov. Lujan Grisham agrees that medical provider compacts are a necessary step (one of several) to addressing New Mexico’s medical provider shortage. But trial attorneys who represent one of the largest and most powerful interest groups within her party oppose them. So, they won’t be on the agenda for the special session and (barring a miraculous deal or change of heart), they aren’t going to get much traction in the 30-day session.

As MLG said, “I worry there are so many leaders in the Senate that it gets caught there,” (referring to the compacts). While there is $117 million in annual federal funding at stake (the state might miss out on without the compacts) and the compacts have been a topic of discussion in Santa Fe since 2019, Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth remains opposed (along with other trial attorneys in his own party). Wirth even claimed that advocates for the compacts and federal pro-compact policies are “holding health care hostage” when it is he and his fellow legislative Democrats who are holding the health and well being of New Mexicans hostage.

Notably, check out this awful opinion piece from the new head of the trial-attorney (anti compact) New Mexico Safety Over Profits Johana Bencomo. She is a sitting Democrat city councilor in Las Cruces. While we obviously disagree with her and the organization she represents her op-ed is full of platitudes and attacks on corporations, insurance companies, and private equity firms. She doesn’t actually explain why they are problematic or what solutions might improve things. Considering her group NMSOP is funded by and only cares for the interests of trial attorneys it is not surprising she has no solutions for the medical provider shortage, but it is telling that the organization doesn’t feel the need to offer compromises or alternatives, just implacable opposition.

Finally, in New Mexico governors are term limited. Legislators are not. Term limits should absolutely be implemented in New Mexico, but won’t be as long as Democrats maintain control. It is up to the voters to stand up to Peter Wirth and the trial attorneys who control the Democratic Party.

Last week we looked at Sam Bregman’s policy agenda if elected governor of New Mexico. We noted Deb Haaland’s lack of a plan. Here is Ken Miyagishima’s. Ken was the Mayor of Las Cruces most recently where he was a voice of moderation (relative to MLG) on COVID. 

1. Miyagishima’s first item of interest is the medical provider shortage. Unlike Bregman he offers full-throated support for reforming New Mexico’s medical malpractice laws. He also calls for GRT reform and expanded residencies and incentives for doctors (like loan forgiveness).  He addresses Medicaid in a separate policy area and has some interesting ideas for improving efficiency in Medicaid
2. Of serious concern is his plans related to housing which involve the state of New Mexico getting involved in some kind of housing scheme. While details are limited we have serious concerns about this part of Miyagishima’s plans.
3. His education plans leave a great deal to be desired as well. There is no choice or even Mississippi Model here, just pay hikes for teachers and “free” tuition for masters degrees in the education field. He DOES offer an olive branch to rural districts on the 4-day vs 5-day school week issue.
4. In terms of the economy he has a few nice ideas including seemingly addressing the Energy Transition Act and bringing traditional sources of energy back into New Mexico’s electricity generating portfolio. That’s good news. Also, he explicitly calls out regulations and looking at reducing regulatory burdens.
5. One area of serious concern is on economic security for seniors. He proposes an ambitious plan of setting aside $1 billion each year to establish a guaranteed annuity for residents aged 65 and older who face reductions in their Social Security benefits. Sadly, no mention of eliminating the tax on Social Security is discussed.
6. Interestingly, Miyagishima offers a fairly robust defense of the 2nd amendment and gun rights including increased school security.

Overall there are several things to like and a lot that we’d like to see changed in Miyagishima’s platform.  We have major concerns about his government housing scheme and would like to see more reform/accountability in his education plan as well as on taxes.

The Rio Grande Foundation has done tremendous work on New Mexico’s medical provider shortage. It is severe and there are numerous simple solutions that the Legislature and Gov. could and should embrace. Now, the Albuquerque Journal reported this weekend, the medical provider shortage is impacting the State’s ability to attract even members of the military.

A few data points from the piece: At New Mexico’s three Air Force bases — Kirtland in Albuquerque, Cannon near Clovis and Holloman outside of Alamogordo — the lack of specialty medical care is a major deterrent to service members who are assigned there, U.S. Air Force officials said.

One in five airmen assigned to a base in New Mexico must turn down the post because the medical care is not sufficient for a member of their family

Cannon, Kirtland and Holloman rank among the top 17 Air Force bases for medical rejection. The rest of the list is made up mostly of remote locations in less-populous states like North Dakota and Montana.

In other words, a bunch of relatively young, by definition healthy, and active people are unwilling to come to New Mexico due to the medical provider shortage. When will this be a big enough issue for MLG and the Legislature to address?

Rio Grande Foundation president Paul Gessing had a chance to sit down with KOAT to discuss the fact that the Trump Administration has eliminated $11.5 million in federal funds for the wildly overpriced Albuquerque rail trail being built in Albuquerque at the behest of the Tim Keller Administration. The canceled $11.5 million was allocated under the USDOT Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grant of the Biden Administration.

The 7 mile trail is expected to cost up to $90 million which is more than 10X the cost of similar trails which cost closer to $1 million/mile.

It is the belief of RGF that the federal government should NOT be involved in funding projects of purely local interest like bike trails. We’d argue that even the State of New Mexico should not be funding a bike trail that is of purely local interest. The State claims to not have enough money for roads.

Check out the story by clicking the image below:

Bernalillo County DA and Democrat gubernatorial candidate Sam Bregman has outlined a 190 page policy agenda on his campaign website. Bregman is running against Deb Haaland who ran Interior under Joe Biden and Ken Miyagishima, former Mayor of Las Cruces. Currently Gregg Hull, Mayor of Rio Rancho, is the only announced Republican. We took a close look at the 190 page document published by Bregman. Here are a few thoughts:

1. This is lengthy and dense by any campaign’s standards. Kudos to the Bregman campaign for putting so much time and effort into a detailed policy agenda. We checked Deb Haaland’s campaign website and saw basically no policy agenda.  We are pleased that he and Ken Miyagishima (we’ll take a look at his platform soon) have outlined numerous real world policy items.
2.  It is crime heavy as Bregman undoubtedly plans to run against soft-on-crime policies of the Democrat-controlled Legislature, but there are numerous economic agenda items of interest to RGF.
3. On taxes, no broad-based tax cuts are outlined, unfortunately, just some narrowly-focused tax reductions. He does say to “continue GRT reform” and wants to end the tax on health care.
4. On education he doesn’t advocate for private school choice (anathema to the unions) but does support “public school choice” meaning eliminating district boundaries. This is a step in the right direction. His agenda also has some elements of the successful Mississippi Model and other accountability and goal-setting reforms. It’s not where we’d want to go, but it seems like a step in the right direction.
5. On health care Bregman is not inclined towards medical malpractice reform. In fact, he’d further subsidize it by offering doctors tax credits for malpractice insurance. Bregman also follows Democrat orthodoxy on Medicaid and using tax dollars to make up for reductions in the Big Beautiful Bill. On the plus side Bregman says he wants New Mexico to join the interstate compacts that have been opposed by the trial bar. This appears to be in conflict with is pro-trial-attorney approach, but it is worth further analysis and exploration.
6. On energy Bregman does not oppose the oil and gas industry. In fact he recognizes its importance to New Mexico and its state economy and budget but of course makes a nod toward “transitioning” away from it in the future.

Overall there are several things to like and a lot that we’d like to see changed in Bregman’s platform.  That’s in sharp contrast to Deb Haaland at this point and even Michelle Lujan Grisham during her 2022 campaign in which she avoided talking about most policy issues with the exception of abortion.

On this week’s “interview” Paul sits down with co-host Wally Drangmeister to wade into a Facebook post shared by Democrat House Speaker Javier Martinez. The post is essentially a defense of New Mexico’s poor rankings on a variety of issues that RGF works on. Martinez and the post’s author (former news reporter Jeremy Jojola) wish to ignore comparisons between our state and others due to our culture which we believe is a cop-out and an attempt to justify New Mexico’s poor education, crime, economic, health care, and numerous other conditions.

You can find screenshots and full post here:

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CpfuPAYow/

On this week’s Tipping Point conversation Paul and Wally discuss the events of last week and what they mean. Specifically, the murder of a young Ukrainian girl and Charlie Kirk shooting (and what it means for the future of political discourse).

Paul believes that MLG’s “Free” Child Care scheme is a diversionary tactic. Also, fewer New Mexicans are taking advantage of the existing subsidy.

RGF is fighting for your freedom in court!

RGF had an opinion piece relating to what ails Albuquerque.

Federal $$ shouldn’t be used for bike trails in the first place. Trump cut $11.5 million from the project.

MLG pledges to use NM tax dollars to make up for Planned Parenthood funding elimination?

The Santa Fe New Mexican and some RGF research highlights the massive generosity of recent MLG pay hikes for close staff.

Despite not being directly engaged in the abortion issue, the Rio Grande Foundation remains in litigation in defense of the State’s anti-donation clause over whether Albuquerque City Council can take 250,000 of your tax dollars and donate it to Planned Parenthood.

Now, Gov. MLG is planning to her own Planned Parenthood bailout with another $3 million with the goal of keeping the organization’s abortion clinics open throughout New Mexico. Federal funds for the organization were recently eliminated by the “Big Beautiful Bill” that was signed into law by President Trump earlier this year.

Is this legal? Can she do this without legislative approval? These are open questions. We are talking to our attorneys and will be watching how the Gov. (and perhaps the Legislature) handle the situation. Again, the issue at least for us, is not specifically Planned Parenthood, but the use of our tax dollars to support private organizations, especially politically active ones. It is a real problem and should be stopped.

The Santa Fe New Mexican had a VERY illuminating story about the woman who had the single biggest pay bump from the Gov. (thanks to our taxes). We covered the initial story here, but you’ll want to check this out…let’s just say that the private sector isn’t NEARLY as generous as government.

Leah Mountain is an Administrative Assistant for MLG. She received the top (26%) salary bump from the Gov. as was recently reported.

According to the article, “before joining the Governor’s Office, Mountain worked for seven months as an assistant manager at Whole Hog Café.” According to our research on Indeed and other websites an assistant manager at Whole Hog Cafe earns about $41,600 annually. 

Mountain started out with an annual salary of $60,000 when she joined the Lujan Grisham administration in April 2024. That’s a 44% increase not including the MUCH better benefits offered to government employees.

Furthermore according to the story, “A few months later, she got a small pay increase, bringing her salary to $61,800. By May, her salary ballooned to $75,000, which then grew to $78,000 as a result of the across-the-board pay increase that went into effect for most state government employees at the start of the fiscal year in July.”

So, in less than 1.5 years since taking a 44% pay increase to join MLG’s administration Mountain saw AN ADDITIONAL 30% bump in pay! This is for a high school graduate who happens to be the daughter of Mountain, who is the daughter of James Mountain, the chairman of the All Pueblo Council of Governors. She also was a volunteer for Democrat Andrea Romero’s legislative campaign.

In the original article about the Gov.’s massive pay raises Lujan Grisham spokesman Michael Coleman. “These seasoned professionals could command higher compensation in the private sector but choose public service.” What young high school grads are getting similar pay increases in the private sector?

As the media is reporting the Trump Administration has “clawed back” $11.5 million from the controversial 7-mile long bike trail near downtown Albuquerque. The trail has been a top priority of the Keller Administration and the Mayor has already pledged to sue for restoration of the funding. According to the City the trail was expected to cost between $60 and $90 million once complete.

The City has numerous serious problems including a lack of police and surfeit of homeless.

Also according to the City the Rail Trail has secured $39.5M in funding, some of which is set aside for certain sections of the trail:

• $14.4M must be used on Downtown section between Rail Yards (Hazeldine) and Lomas
  • $11.5M (80%) in USDOT Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grant (this is the canceled money)
  • $2.9M (20%) in local match from the City
• $12.1M in City Council funds for any segment
• $10M grant awarded by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham
• $3M must be used on Wells Park section between Lomas and Constitution
  • Federal Earmark from Senator Ben Ray Lujan and Senator Martin Heinrich

We are not fans of the rail trail, but if it is to be completed it should come from state and local money. Really, it SHOULD be local $$. One of the biggest problems in government these days is that nobody “stays in their lane.” This project is explicitly of local benefit and should be funded locally. Projects with statewide benefit should be funded through the capital outlay process. The feds should ideally get out of road maintenance (as opposed to construction and coordination of roads between states), transit, and bike trail funding as a rule.

Perhaps the Mayor will find a judge that is willing to force restoration of these funds, but maybe not. On the merits Trump has every right to reallocate the money to other projects that actually have a connection to interstate commerce.

The Rio Grande Foundation is always busy fighting for freedom in New Mexico, but recently we have been extra busy doing battle in various courts of law. Here are three very timely legal fights that we are involved in.

1. We just defended New Mexico’s anti-donation clause (and taxpayers) against an outright donation by Albuquerque City Council to Planned Parenthood. We were in court recently and our now awaiting the judge’s decision.
2. We have been in litigation against Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver over free speech campaign restrictions. The 10^th Circuit issued its decision recently and the bad news is we lost—the Court affirmed the district court. The good news is that not only was there a dissent from Judge Eid, but there was a concurring opinion by Judge Hartz that said he was bound by precedent which is why he joined the majority, but that he thought the precedent was wrong. That sets us up for either a motion for en banc review by the entire 10^th Circuit or a cert petition to the US Supreme Court. We will update you on next steps.
3. Finally, RGF has been an amicus (friend of the court) in the case over whether President Trump can unilaterally impose tariffs. We believe that whether the president is a Republican or a Democrat, whether it is Donald Trump, Joe Biden, or Kamala Harris, the Constitution requires Congress to impose taxes, not the president acting alone. This is a very high profile case that will be reported extensively in the media and that will have profound impacts on future overreach by the executive branch.

On this week’s Tipping Point interview Paul talks to Reilly Stephens. Reilly is Senior Counsel at the Liberty Justice Center which is representing Paul and the Rio Grande Foundation in court against the City of Albuquerque in a case (that was recently heard in Court) related to what RGF believes is a clear violation of the State’s anti-donation clause. Between the “leak” of the Dobbs decision of the US Supreme Court (on abortion) and its actual issuance the Albuquerque City Council saw fit to donate $250,000 to Planned Parenthood, a pro-abortion group.

We believe this is a clear violation of the anti-donation clause. Finally, Reilly’s organization is ALSO leading legal opposition to President Trump’s unilateral tariffs and will soon be arguing against those unilateral tariffs at the Supreme Court. Paul and Reilly discuss that as well. Rio Grande Foundation is an amicus in that case.

The week of 9/11 is always a time of thoughtful prayer and reflection. This year was extra special as the Gessing family traveled to New York City for a family vacation which included the 9/11 Museum and Freedom Tower. Both are highly recommended for those who remember the events in real time and those (like Paul’s children) who were too young or not born yet. It is a moving museum and Freedom Tower is a fitting replacement and homage to the original World Trade Center towers.

Here are a few  pics:

Then there was the brutal murder of Iryna Zarutska, a young woman from Ukraine who was killed by a maniac who should never been on the streets while numerous people just watched.

And, making an already difficult week even more tragic is the assassination of conservative political commentator Charlie Kirk. The murder of Kirk is the most impactful of all of these because the Rio Grande Foundation while non-partisan and not nearly as politically-engaged as Kirk’s Turning Point USA group does engage in similar public debates and events that get heated at times.

What is the future of free speech and discourse in America? After a spate of politically-motivated attacks on people from Donald Trump to Catholic schoolchildren in Minnesota, will people (especially conservatives) feel safe gathering in public and expressing their opinions? Is this going to make people even less willing to engage with people across the political spectrum?

This is a sad week both due to current and past events. We praying for the arrest of Charlie Kirk’s murderer and for the restoration of civility and respect across partisan lines.

The following letter to the editor was published on Joe Monahan’s blog and we wholeheartedly agree with the viewpoint:

The Gov. is in dire need of some positive headlines as pertains to New Mexico’s children. CYFD has been an utter disaster under her administration, but reforming that department requires work and changing the Gov.’s approach to issues at the Department. So, rather than making tough moves, MLG would prefer to just change the subject. So, hooray “free universal childcare.”

Far from being unusual, this is a typical approach of the current governor across a wide array of policy issues. Her big-government left-wing policies fail so she creates a new government program or announces a big new development (remember Maxeon Solar?) and then

She seems to hope the compliant media and voters forget about the failure of her ENTIRE agenda: economy, education, crime, and issues relating to children (to name just a few). Why else would a failing governor decide in their waning time in office to make “free” health care for wealthier than average New Mexicans a top priority?

There is a lot to discuss on this week’s conversation and both Wally and Paul are perplexed by the approach Gov. Lujan Grisham (and others) are taking to myriad policy issues in New Mexico.

NM politicians plead poverty on roads.

Why can’t Albuquerque be nice, clean, and safe all year round?

What’s new with Maxeon solar? Not a whole lot.

MLG awards her friends in government (again).

MLG calls a special session of the Legislature for October 1. She has added and removed several items from the agenda. Here’s what we know.

MLG announced a new “free” childcare program (funded by taxpayers). Here’s what we know so far.

MLG fires her CYFD secretary.

In what seems to be nothing more than a thinly-veiled attempt to garner positive headlines nationally and simultaneously divert attention from her abject failures at CYFD and across nearly all aspects of New Mexico government, the Gov. outlined her latest costly expansion of her “cradle to career” government programs.

The twist this time is that her new plan for universal “free” child care is a handout for high income New Mexicans. How is this possible for a supposedly “progressive” Democrat? Simply put, New Mexico already provides child care at taxpayer expense for families making up to 400% of the federal poverty level. We looked up the federal poverty guidelines and found that 400% of the poverty level (this is the current income cap) allows a family of three to earn up to $106,600 annually. According to the Census Bureau the median household income in New Mexico is $62,268.

MLG’s plan is to make “free” child care universal which means that this cap (high as it is) will no longer apply and people making even higher salaries will be able to receive this government benefit at taxpayer expense. The existing program costs $463 million each year. Making the program universal will cost $120 million with an additional one-time capital expenditure of $20 million.

Far from being “progressive,” universal “free” child care is a massive giveaway to high earning New Mexicans. Will this program result in more children being born and raised in New Mexico (NM is seeing a big decline in its youth population)? Will this program have a positive impact on the economy? Will it help New Mexico create new jobs and diversify its economy? Will the workers be available to massively expand this system and will they be vetted to make sure they are competent and don’t have criminal records?

None of this is discussed by the Gov. At the very least there must be answers before this is passed.

As we have discussed frequently at the Rio Grande Foundation recently New Mexico’s roads have deteriorated significantly in recent years despite the State being in the midst of an oil and gas boom that has generated massive revenues.

The Albuquerque Journal this morning contains an article in which legislators and others involved in road maintenance and construction throughout New Mexico complain about an “impending revenue crunch” thanks to more efficient vehicles and the fact that gas taxes haven’t been raised in several years. In the article Democrat Sen. Moe Maestas even advocated for raising the gas tax.

There is no need to raise gas taxes to improve our roads. In fact, there are numerous ways to improve our roads with the money available.

1. Levy a fee on EV’s. Yes, this is technically a tax, but EV drivers don’t pay road taxes even though EV’s do more damage to roads than traditional gas powered vehicles do (due to their weight). Bills have been introduced in the Legislature by Democrats but haven’t become law. 
2. Direct a portion of capital outlay dollars to roads. This should be done on a one-time basis with New Mexico’s $7 billion in unspent capital outlay, but also on an outgoing basis as anywhere from 25% to 50% of capital outlay should be earmarked to roads. Check out the following AI discussion of why New Mexico doesn’t direct capital outlay dollars to roads.
3. Eliminate the State’s “prevailing wage” law which artificially inflates the cost of road projects.
4. Dedicate $$ from the general fund or even the State’s permanent funds which total $64 billion. New Mexico politicians have set up dedicated funds for all manner of spending projects (most recently $2 billion for Medicaid in 2025). It may be time to set up a permanent fund for a core function of government.

Fall is undoubtedly the best time of year in Albuquerque. The State Fair, cooler temperatures, chiles roasting, Balloon Fiesta, and the streets suddenly become cleaner and safer. With a city election coming this fall as well, that last point is worth further discussion. In fact, the article below had the following gem:

ABQ Ride says the officers will check bus platforms and go on the buses to make sure things are running smoothly. They say they currently have 21 Transit Officers for the city, the largest ever in their history. In addition, the City is also moving some of its private security guards to the Louisiana and Central bus platform for the duration of the fair. Last month, Mayor Tim Keller shared the National Guard would also be helping during the fair.

The article also refers to “cleaning up the streets” around the Fairgrounds. Locals are familiar with the pattern as suddenly the “homeless” population is no longer as noticeable during Balloon Fiesta. That being said, downtown is perhaps so bad or so far away from the Fairgrounds and Balloon Fiesta that we haven’t seen a difference there. The point being: Like California Gov. Gavin Newsom Mayor Keller knows how to clean up our city but he just doesn’t want to do it year-round (or for just the people who live here).

Of course, we have an election this fall. If you feel that Albuquerque should only be cleaned up and made safe for State Fair and Balloon Fiesta by all means give him a 3rd term in office.