Showing posts with label NM Legislature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NM Legislature. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Senate Minority Whip Bill Payne
For Immediate Release Thursday, March 04, 2010 Contact: 986-4702
Different Day- Same Story
Today, Most Republican Senators Vote NO! To Raise Taxes- This time on Cigarettes
Santa Fe- Today, all but one New Mexico Republican Senators voted “no” to raise taxes on cigarettes, Wednesday, all Republican Senators voted “no” on a state budget that has no real spending cuts to address revenue shortfalls, on Tuesday, all Senate Republicans voted against the bill to increase taxes by $200 million in fiscal year 2011.
Today, as well as during the past two days of the special session, all Republican efforts to amend the tax increase in order to protect taxpayers were shot down.
Despite the Republican Senator efforts, the tax increases passed. Even the
Republican efforts to make the taxes temporary were killed on the Senate floor despite the taxes being paraded out to be “temporary” taxes.
The cigarette tax that is estimated to raise taxes by $33 million in fiscal year 2011 passed the Senate 25 to 15.
The original cigarette tax bill was proposed to shore up the state’s dwindling reserves, but changes were made to the bill and now part of it will be going to education. Some Senators say that is bad tax policy to use a questionable and possibly unreliable source of revenue to pay for a recurring expense.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Senator Sue Wilson Beffort- Stop Richardson's Abusive Hiring Practices
New Mexico Senate Minority Office
For Immediate Release Wednesday, March 3, 2010 Contact: 505-986-4702
End Richardson’s Abusive Hiring Practices
Santa Fe—An effective way to stop Governor Bill Richardson’s abusive hiring practices will be presented to the New Mexico State Senate tonight.
State Senator Sue Wilson Beffort is introducing an amendment to the budget that would require political appointees hand-placed in classified positions be the first to be laid off in case an agency’s budget is overspent.
Senator Wilson Beffort calls Governor Richardson’s hiring practices abusive and states the public is sick and tired of him going against his own hiring freeze to hand place his political appointees in classified positions where they will be protected under the classified state employee system.
“The public has had enough. My amendment will root out these political appointees and say they are the first to go in cases where agencies need to balance their budgets,” Senator Wilson Beffort said. “In various cases these exempt employees were hand placed in the classified positions without having to go through the classified personnel system to qualify for the jobs. That is an abuse of the system and everyone knows it.”
Wilson Beffort’s amendment states that if an agency’s budget needs to be balanced by a reduction-in-force plan, those newly classified employees who used to be political employments at any time in the past four years would be the first to be terminated.
“Fair is fair. These pseudo classified appointees who did not play by the rules and who did not qualify for their positions like true classified employees did, should be the first to go. Those hired during the freeze should never have been placed in classified positions in the first place. They have cost taypayers more money than they should have,” Senator Wilson Beffort said.
For Immediate Release Wednesday, March 3, 2010 Contact: 505-986-4702
End Richardson’s Abusive Hiring Practices
Santa Fe—An effective way to stop Governor Bill Richardson’s abusive hiring practices will be presented to the New Mexico State Senate tonight.
State Senator Sue Wilson Beffort is introducing an amendment to the budget that would require political appointees hand-placed in classified positions be the first to be laid off in case an agency’s budget is overspent.
Senator Wilson Beffort calls Governor Richardson’s hiring practices abusive and states the public is sick and tired of him going against his own hiring freeze to hand place his political appointees in classified positions where they will be protected under the classified state employee system.
“The public has had enough. My amendment will root out these political appointees and say they are the first to go in cases where agencies need to balance their budgets,” Senator Wilson Beffort said. “In various cases these exempt employees were hand placed in the classified positions without having to go through the classified personnel system to qualify for the jobs. That is an abuse of the system and everyone knows it.”
Wilson Beffort’s amendment states that if an agency’s budget needs to be balanced by a reduction-in-force plan, those newly classified employees who used to be political employments at any time in the past four years would be the first to be terminated.
“Fair is fair. These pseudo classified appointees who did not play by the rules and who did not qualify for their positions like true classified employees did, should be the first to go. Those hired during the freeze should never have been placed in classified positions in the first place. They have cost taypayers more money than they should have,” Senator Wilson Beffort said.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
NM Senate Republican Caucus Chair Dianna J. Duran- Special Session Scary Picture
New Mexico Senate Minority Office
NM Senate Caucus Chair Reacts to Democrat Leadership Proposals to Raise Taxes more than to Cut Spending to Balance State Budget Facing $600 Million Shortfall
Santa Fe--New Mexico Senate Minority Chair Dianna J. Duran will appear on KCHF TV tonight, Tuesday, March 2 at 11:30 p.m. as she discusses the special session of the legislature and the democrat leadership’s proposals to increase taxes more than cut state government to balance the state’s budget which is facing an estimated $600 million dollar shortfall.
A preview of the program can also be seen on You Tube at this address:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U7GorK1Kdg
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Monday, February 1, 2010
Ethics Bill on to Senate Floor
On to Senate Floor- Previously Vetoed Whistle Blower Ethics Bill
Passed Senate Judiciary Unanimously Tonight
SB 96---Whistleblower Protection Act
Sponsored by Senator Sue Wilson-Beffort
Santa Fe—The New Mexico State Senate Judiciary Committee passed an ethics bill that had been previously vetoed by Governor Bill Richardson. SB 96- Whistleblower Protection Act now heads to the Senate Floor. According to its sponsor, Senator Sue Wilson Beffort, the governor vetoed a similar bill that would have protected public employees who uncover and reveal illegal activity. Since that time, the state continued to be rocked by scandals of alleged illegal activity. Senator Wilson Beffort said she hopes the public has had enough of the scandals and tells the governor not to veto her whistle blower ethics bill if it passes the legislature.
Senator Wilson Beffort said SB 96 is to protect public employees who report illegal and unethical conduct is critical for ethics reform. She said those who retaliate would face money damages, in addition to any criminal charges they would face based on the illegal conduct that was reported.
Passed Senate Judiciary Unanimously Tonight
SB 96---Whistleblower Protection Act
Sponsored by Senator Sue Wilson-Beffort
Santa Fe—The New Mexico State Senate Judiciary Committee passed an ethics bill that had been previously vetoed by Governor Bill Richardson. SB 96- Whistleblower Protection Act now heads to the Senate Floor. According to its sponsor, Senator Sue Wilson Beffort, the governor vetoed a similar bill that would have protected public employees who uncover and reveal illegal activity. Since that time, the state continued to be rocked by scandals of alleged illegal activity. Senator Wilson Beffort said she hopes the public has had enough of the scandals and tells the governor not to veto her whistle blower ethics bill if it passes the legislature.
Senator Wilson Beffort said SB 96 is to protect public employees who report illegal and unethical conduct is critical for ethics reform. She said those who retaliate would face money damages, in addition to any criminal charges they would face based on the illegal conduct that was reported.
Domestic Partnership to Lead to Same Sex Marriage
Sponsor of bill to Define Marriage Between One Man and One Woman Does not want it Redefined as Same Sex in Domestic Partnership Bill
Senate Joint Resolution 1- PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE 20- OF THE CONSTITUTION OF NEW MEXICO TO DEFINE A RECOGNIZED, VALID MARRIAGE AS BETWEEN ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN- Senator Bill Sharer- 505-486-5272
Vs.
SB 183- Domestic Partnership bill
Santa Fe-State Senator Bill Sharer who is sponsoring a bill to preserve marriage as between a man and a women said the Domestic Partnership bill that will have a hearing Tuesday afternoon in the Senate Chambers will ultimately refine marriage and sets the state up for a court challenge. “Once you have this in law, the court challenges would be filed and I believe the courts would not have a choice and would define domestic partnerships as marriage.”
The Senate Judiciary and Senate Public Affairs Committees will hold a joint session on Tuesday afternoon to debate SB 183- Domestic Partnerships.
Senator Sharer’s Senate Joint Resolution 1 still has not had a hearing.
It was the first Resolution to be pre-filed in the State Senate and it defines a recognized, valid marriage as between one man and one woman. Senator Sharer said it will guarantee a continuation of society; government also has a compelling interest to ensure that children will be raised in stable households and not in poverty. Plus, it is what nature has designed, government recognizes it because society benefits from it.
Sponsor Senator Bill Sharer said society has a compelling interest in marriage between one man and one woman to procreate children to become the next generation in society so it will survive.
New Mexico Senators Win!
Senate Wins! Senate Wins!
Upset for Senators
Link to six minute video (entire highlights could not run on Youtube. Too long.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0z0PKXqOtA
Santa Fe- It is a headline that has not been seen for the past nine years. “Senate Wins! Senate Wins!”
In this year’s annual New Mexico State Legislature basketball match up between the Senate and House, the State Senators won by one point.
43 to 42. With that win Friday night at the St. Michael’s High School gym, the Senate broke a 9-game losing streak that had begun in 2001.
State Senator Rod Adair, who has played in 14 straight Legislative Basketball games said, “We were always quite a bit older than the House, and the gap kept growing. Then we suddenly get 30-and 40-somethings like Senators Howie Morales, John Sapien, Tim Keller and John Ryan- who made about 14 straight free throws- and suddenly we’re competitive again.”
The Senators were coach by UNM Head Football Coach Mike Locksely. He, too was congratulated for the upset. Senator Adair noted that Senator Michael Sanchez deserved a lot of credit for the win. “He was making key decisions on what we were supposed to be doing on defense and offense- and sometimes we even were able to do it,” Senator Adair said.
The game called Hoops 4 Hope was a fund-raiser for the University of New Mexico Cancer Center. ###
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