FOUR HILLS VILLAGE LEGISLATIVE UPDATES
State Senator Sue Wilson Beffort - July 2008
Most of you have heard of the Governor's intention to call a Special Session to move forward on his universal healthcare measure, justifying the expense by the $400 million of the new monies we are receiving from the soaring gas and oil severance taxes. As both a member of the Legislative Finance Committee, and the ad hoc Senate Healthcare Taskforce, I thought you might want to learn my perspective on some highly complicated issues.
At the recent meeting of the Legislative Finance Committee our Chairman, Senator John Arhtur Smith, raised the concept of returning a portion of this handsome new revenue to our citizens, who are paying for this with the huge prices of gasoline at the pump. It now appears that the governor has followed suit and will include this issue on the "call" for the Special Session.
However, the major concern to members of the Finance Committee (and I would assume most legislators), is that his healthcare package will have significant financial consequenses in out years........well past when the Governor's term is over; and future legislatures will be charged with trying to pay for this very expensive package. One pertinent issue that we must consider is that the high levels of gas and oil revenues are projected to level off by year 2010. That makes any gross expansions of programs risky, as we need to have a stable income stream to continue to meet the expanded demands. You may know that New Mexico has a "Balanced Budget Amendment" in its Constitution (unlike the Federal government), and that is a good thing !! However, it dictates that the Legislature must make very responsible decisions, so as to not provoke a tax increase or be forced to slash current programs, such as education.
I just want to point out other pressing issues that will be competing for this new money, that are equally urgent or important. The first is our highways. Because the train used up most of the money that the Legislature funded for the GRIP program, in addition to the loss in federal monies and the rising cost of asphalt, we now learn that we will need to come up with hundreds of millions of dollars to not only fund the new highways, but also to just maintain the roads and bridges. Additionally, several public employee retirement and healthcare funds are proving to be dangerously unsolvent. Then there is the educational reform package that is still awaiting passage, which has a price tag of $350 million.
So, things are not just as simple as going into Session and passing a healthcare package. This legislation has details which would dictate the most sweeping reform in the history of the state. This is serious business and one that I know you want your elected officials to proceed with as responsibly as we possibly can. Do contact me at sue.beffort@nmlegis.gov if you have ideas or would like to be more informed as the Special Session nears. It is a pleasure to serve you.
Sue Wilson Beffort