Governor sets legislative priorities in the state of the state. New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham outlined an agenda that is focused on reining in violent crime, improving public education, expanding access to affordable housing and addressing concerns about climate change and drought conditions in a State of the State speech Tuesday.
The speech marks the beginning of a legislative session that determines spending priorities for the coming fiscal year amid a multibillion-dollar surplus in general fund income. It was interrupted repeatedly by shouting from dozens of protesters in the state House gallery calling for solutions to climate change and a cease-fire in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war which has become a standard interruption for many political leaders across the nation.
Governor Grisham announced a new proposal to embed experts in low-performing public schools to provide greater support for students, as legislators have expressed frustration with academic proficiency and high school graduation rates that lag below national averages.
“All of us, including our school districts, all of us have to be accountable for the results that we desire,” Lujan Grisham told a joint session of the state House and Senate. “We need to guarantee that the Legislature’s billions in public education are going to the right places and leading to better outcomes.”
Local school leaders in the more conservative districts view this as another attempt by the state to garner local control.
Lujan Grisham announced a proposal to dedicate $170 million from a state financial trust to help develop energy storage projects involving batteries, geothermal electricity production that harnesses underground heat, and hydrogen as a cleaner-burning alternative to fossil fuels. Some environmentalists call hydrogen a false solution because it frequently relies on natural gas as a fuel source.
The state expects to draw in a record-setting $13 billion during the fiscal year that starts July 1 exceeding annual spending obligations by nearly one-third a huge percentage from oul proceeds rhat continue to grow the state budget surplus.
Grisham's New Mexico spending priorities include a $500 million plan to expand housing assistance and spur residential affordable construction; along with an additional $40 million to launch a statewide effort to reduce homelessness which is ever increasing and on the minds of many.
House Democrats on Tuesday emphasized a commitment to improving public safety — including tighter gun restrictions — along with increased spending on early childhood education and legislation designed to attract new investments in clean-energy enterprises that may rein in climate-warming pollution.
Gov. Lujan Grisham has emphasized her support for a broad package of public safety initiates designed to address gun violence, retail crime and hazing. Gun-control proposals would provide a 14-day cooling off period for gun purchases, restrict features on assault-style rifles that make them more deadly and raise the minimum age to 21 for purchases of semiautomatic rifles and shotguns.
On Tuesday, she also called on legislators to approve mandatory treatment for addiction for people who repeatedly enter the judicial system for using illicit substances, and she highlighted a proposal to ban panhandling.
“Something must shift," Lujan Grisham said. "We need responsible, accountable and compassionate action that makes a lasting difference. And that means getting these individuals the treatment that they need and, quite frankly, that they deserve."
More News from Alamogordo
- Village of Cloudcroft Seeks Applications for a Clerk Adminstrator Cloudcroft seeking applicstions for a clerk
- Alamogordo High School Wrestling Team Boys defeated Mayfield Wrestling results verses Mayfield...