A theme could be emerging during the 2024 session of the New Mexico Legislature. It’s not about gun safety legislation, anti-crime bills, education reform or even doling out the billions in surplus dollars into various funds for use long after the oil and gas industry goes bust.
No, the theme — depending on which bills or proposed constitutional amendments become law — seems to be about reducing the power of the executive.
Take the $10.1 billion state budget approved Wednesday in the House of Representatives. It contains a healthy 6.5% spending increase over the current fiscal year, $1.3 billion in one-time allocations and an amendment designed to curtail how the Public Education Department can disburse money.
The amendment prohibits PED from using appropriated funds to put in place a rule establishing a minimum requirement of 180 instructional days per school year. Proposed by Rep. Gail Armstrong, R-Magdalena, the measure passed 42-26 — much to the surprise of many.
Whether the amendment survives the committee process, full Senate vote or the governor’s veto pen, it’s a clear indication that both Democrats and Republicans are standing up for the power of the Legislature.
The PED proposal would supersede legislation passed in 2023 setting a required number of hours per year, depending on the grade, and leaving local districts more in control of how the school year unfolds. Backed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Education Secretary Arsenio Romero, the PED rule is an administrative end run enacting a policy the Legislature did not. It is widely unpopular and likely to face a lawsuit if enacted.
Attempting a pushback against the executive branch on education isn’t the only sign of legislative independence this session.
Five Democratic senators stopped Senate Bill 122, which would have made it easier to keep felony defendants behind bars. The legislation was strongly promoted by Gov. Lujan Grisham, but Democratic senators believe its provisions violate the state constitution. So they voted conscience over party, defying the governor and potential consequences at the ballot box.
Other examples of the drive to winnow executive power:
Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino, D-Albuquerque, is proposing a constitutional amendment that would remove the Children, Youth and Families Department from the governor’s Cabinet. Instead, a three-person commission would select a professional to run the department, with the idea to take politics out of the appointment and professionalize the agency from top to bottom. Senate Joint Resolution 6 also is sponsored by State Rep. Eleanor Chávez, D-Albuquerque, and state Sens. Siah Correa Hemphill, D-Silver City, and Bill Tallman, D-Albuquerque.
Then there’s this whopper. In a 36-1 vote, the Senate approved Senate Joint Resolution 9, another proposed amendment to the state constitution to reduce executive power. It would restore a statewide school board, more like what New Mexico had before 2003 and the placement of the Public Education Department in the governor’s Cabinet.
Introduced by Sens. Steven Neville, R-Aztec, and Bill Soules, D-Las Cruces, the bill would replace a Cabinet secretary with a 15-person board of elected and appointed officials to manage traditional public and charter schools.
Or look at House Joint Resolution 2, a bipartisan proposed constitutional amendment to eliminate pocket vetoes. Sponsors are Rep. Matthew McQueen, D-Galisteo; state Rep. Jason Harper, R-Rio Rancho; Sen. Mark Moores, R-Albuquerque; Sen. Ortiz y Pino; and Sen. Brenda McKenna, D-Corrales. The pocket veto allows a governor to kill legislation — no reason required — simply by not signing it within a certain period.
Voters ultimately would decide the fate of these proposed amendments — if, of course, both the House and Senate approve them and they make it to the November ballot. Eventually, the state could see a more powerful Legislature and a slimmed-down executive branch. That would make this a session to remember.
The Santa Fe New Mexican observes its 175th anniversary with a series highlighting some of the major stories and figures that have appeared in the paper's pages through its history. The collection also includes archival photo galleries.
