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Recent Articles
Author Archives: merilee
A little tax break
Thanks to an obscure provision in the New Mexico tax code, a property tax break is available to a few people who might really need it. An injured worker who receives workers’ compensation permanent total disability benefits (PTD), is low-income, … Continue reading
Posted in Articles, Workers' Comp
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The capital outlay secret
Every year, the Legislature divides up a pot of money known as capital outlay, for one-time expenses such as construction, repair, and purchases of equipment. This year the total has approached a billion dollars. The process of dividing the money … Continue reading
Posted in Articles, Governance
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Health care protections passed for New Mexicans
NOTE: all the bills mentioned as not yet signed have been signed. The dental therapist bill has finally passed New Mexico’s legislature and been signed by the governor, after years of persistent effort. This bill (HB 308) creates a new … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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Early childhood department brings fresh opportunity
New Mexico is about to have an early childhood department, taking a major step forward toward early childhood education for all New Mexico children. Senate Bill 22, which creates the department, has passed and been signed and has been … Continue reading
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School funding has to balance with the rest of the budget
“We have to fund education by starting from what’s needed, rather than how much money is available.” As education dominates this year’s legislative session, that’s the brilliant insight we hear quoted repeatedly. As if nobody ever thought of that before. … Continue reading
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Minimum wage increase may be too much for some businesses
NOTE: after this column was published, the more moderate legislation was passed. When you own a business, you have to pay your employees before you pay yourself, whether or not you have made any money. It’s the law. You also … Continue reading
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Let us all choose to die in peace
Life and death; pain and suffering: sometimes it’s necessary to talk about the most profound questions about the meaning of life itself and how the state might intervene in the most personal decision we may ever make. New Mexico is … Continue reading
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New Mexico is finally noticed on the weather map
On the morning of New Year’s Eve, the national weather map had the words ‘Santa Fe,” “Albuquerque,” “Roswell” and “Silver City” in big print. Most of New Mexico was a glaring shade of pink indicating the predicted snowstorm. This was … Continue reading
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Government shutdowns are too easy on too many of us
In one episode of the original “Star Trek,” two warring nations conducted their wars entirely by computer. Nobody got hurt. At the end of the war, members of the losing side had to report to an extermination chamber and give … Continue reading
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The continuing saga of the Public Regulation Commission
Legislators are tinkering with the Public Regulation Commission yet again this year. If legislation is successful, we voters will be looking at another amendment to the state constitution in the 2020 general election, fiddling with the structure of this agency … Continue reading
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