Legislative roundup, Jan. 19
Cindy Martinez, left, and, Gilbert Pino, both of St. Anne Parish, lead the annual anti-abortion march Wednesday to the State Capitol.
Days remaining in session: 58
Video on demand: The New Mexico House of Representatives and Senate for years have webcast their proceedings live online. But the lawmaking bodies have not archived the videos, meaning viewers have not been able to rewind and watch a meeting or research what their legislators said about a particular issue.
That has changed. New Mexicans can now watch archived video recordings from both chambers of the Legislature.
Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, said the Senate will begin archiving its webcasts. House webcasts also are being archived this year for the first time. House members voted last year to begin storing the videos online.
To watch, visit nmlegis.gov.
Senate chairmanships: The Senate on Wednesday chose two Las Cruces Democrats to chair committees.
Sen. Joseph Cervantes, a possible candidate for governor who gave Tuesday's Democratic response to the governor's State of the State address, will chair the Senate Conservation Committee. It formerly was headed by Sen. Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, who now is majority leader.
Sen. Bill Soules, a retired teacher and school administrator, will lead the Senate Education Committee. He replaces Sen. John Sapien, D-Corrales, who is moving to the Senate Finance Committee. That committee's membership will increase from 10 members to 12. Sen. Sander Rue, R-Albuquerque, also is joining the Finance Committee.
Freshman Sen. Liz Stefanics, D-Santa Fe, will serve on two committees, Public Affairs and Conservation.
Discouraging words: Rep. Candy Spence Ezzell says she likes her new office in the Capitol's North Annex, but she still publicly calls it "The Outhouse."
Ezzell, R-Roswell, said this is only to differentiate it from "The Big House," or the main section of the Capitol where majority Democrats have offices closer to the chamber of the House of Representatives. Ezzell asked House Speaker Brian Egolf for a bit of notice on floor sessions so she can hoof it to the chamber on time.
It ought to be a pleasant walk. Artworks line the halls between the annex and the Capitol, making it one of the more inviting sections in any state building.
Looking ahead:
-- State Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Daniels is scheduled to present his State of the Judiciary address to a joint session of the Legislature about 11 a.m. Thursday. The chief justice plans to speak about funding problems for the state court system. The speech will be streamed live on the Legislature's website.
-- The Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce plans its annual legislative reception for Monday, Jan. 23, at La Fonda on the Plaza. The event, scheduled from 5-7:30 p.m., brings together business professionals, chambers from around New Mexico, and state policymakers for networking and hors d'oeuvres. Tickets are available online at www.santafechamber.com, or call 505-988-3279.
Quotes of the day:
"None of us likes what we're going to have to do." -- Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, as he outlined spending cutbacks to close a $69 million projected deficit in this year's state budget.
"Do not plot evil against each other." -- The Very Rev. Richard A. Catanach, vicar general of the Diocese of Las Cruces, mentioned this line from Zechariah 7:10 as advice to legislators attending the archbishop's annual prayer breakfast in Santa Fe.
The Santa Fe New Mexican is the sister paper of The Taos News. We'll be sharing their coverage of the legislature throughout the duration of the 60-day session.
