Columnists

Possibly my favorite thing about writing this column is interacting with readers. That goes for the critical comments as well as the positive. I try to reply as my day job and bourbon consumption allow. (Here’s a tip: if you want to criticize me, please make it conversational. Screeds that just focus on calling me […]

Drought maps colored in cheerful red, orange and gold are anything but cheerful in their meaning. They confirm what ranchers already know, that it’s painfully dry here. Devastating wildfires in West Texas add an exclamation point. If there’s any good news it’s that Congress and the Legislature are more attuned to the reality of fire. […]

For me, one of the most exciting sports events in New Mexico is about to get underway – the high school basketball tournament! Prep basketball has long been a community event across New Mexico, from Dulce to Eunice to Belen to Taos to neighborhoods in Albuquerque.  I grew up in Hobbs, where boy’s basketball was […]

New Mexico’s strained rural hospitals finally got some love this year. Two bills sitting onthe governor’s desk could go far in relieving financial pressure on the state’s smallest hospitals. But medical malpractice insurance, the subject of two compromises in recent years, isstill a threat. In New Mexico, where 26 of 33 counties meet the definitions […]

One of the most important bills this legislative session has tiptoed through the House with scant publicity and no controversy.  House Bill 232, to create the Infrastructure Planning and Development Division within the Department of Finance and Administration, sounds a dry and bureaucratic, but it could transform the state’s dysfunctional capital outlay system.  Communities need […]

There is no question it is difficult to follow bills and bill action in the Legislature. For frequent users, the Secretary of State website (nmlegis.gov) is very friendly and does a timely job of updating bill status throughout the session. For first-time users it is easy to learn. According to the Legislative Council librarian, there […]

Trades, especially the construction trades, have been saying for years that they need more workers. Community colleges and unions are doing their best to make that happen, but funding is up and down. A bill that easily passed the House last week would stabilize funding for apprentice and training programs in the state. It lines […]