Author Archives: merilee

If your children attend New Mexico schools, starting next school year you can decide whether to give them three meals a day or let the schools provide two of them. The choice is yours, if you can afford it. It’s … Continue reading →

Years ago, as a young reporter in Taos, I was assigned to interview candidates for the local school board. This was considered a booby prize for the new kid in the newsroom. Most candidates had no major policy positions and … Continue reading →

In 2021, Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives left the state en masse to prevent a vote on a bill they opposed. After a couple of weeks, some told national media they had to get home. Not to … Continue reading →

Years ago, as a young reporter in Taos, I was assigned to interview candidates for the local school board. This was considered a booby prize for the new kid in the newsroom. Most candidates had no major policy positions and … Continue reading →

New Mexico needs more teachers. And we want them to stay around so our schools can benefit as their experience increases. This year we’re finding at least one new way to pay them more. One bill has school districts paying … Continue reading →

If we’re going to solve the problem of crime, somebody has to offer alternatives so felons have a chance to do something better with their lives. While the legislature is debating issues like pretrial detention and sentencing, promising developments are … Continue reading →

New Mexico’s medical malpractice crisis has, deservedly, caught the public’s attention. We’re seeing the numbers on our increasing shortage of physicians as doctors leave for places where it’s easier to make a good living. Why does malpractice insurance cost doctors … Continue reading →

The first time I was lobbied, it was by a doctor, while I was in his office as a patient. It was about medical malpractice. He said New Mexico was having a crisis because the cost was unacceptable. He knew … Continue reading →