Wednesday, December 14, 2022Mother Of All Surpluses Not Expected To Launch New Programs; MLG "Will Build On" First Term, Plus: A New Hawk Heads State Finance Dept. And Thousand Dollar Inaugural Ball Tickets (MLG's) second inauguration is themed “Launching New Mexico into the Future.” The slogan emphasizes how in her second term, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham will build on the historic investments she delivered in her first four years in office to achieve new opportunities for each New Mexico family to thrive. The investments cited include tutition-free college, accessible child care and more affordable health care. The sore spots in state government remain the troubled Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) and the Public Education Department. At PED Secretary Kurt Steinhaus is finally talking more openly and positively about adequately addressing the court order from the Yazzie-Martinez lawsuit that found the state failing to provide adequate education for at risk students who are a majority in the public schools. It has been quieter on the CYFD front even as the horrific headlines involving that agency continue. A question for the '23 legislative session is whether CYFD will be subjected to even more aggressive oversight as public pressure grows on lawmakers and the Governor to show results. And will oversight of the NMSU and UNM athletic programs be more meaningful in the wake of the murder of a student at UNM by a NMSU basketball player? The response of NMSU to the crisis is going down as one of the lamest on record. Back to MLG's January 1 inauguration: The Gubernatorial Oath of Office ceremony will be held at the Lensic Theater in Santa Fe, with doors opening at 10:00 AM on New Year’s Day. Following the Inauguration Ceremony, there will be an Inaugural Reception hosted at the New Mexico State Capitol. The reception doors will open at 2:00 PM. Members of the public who are interested in attending either event can RSVP at mlginagural.com. The site and time of the Jan. 1 traditional Inaugural Ball has not been announced but tickets are on sale for $1,000 a pop. (The band better swing). HAWKS AND DOVES
(MLG) announced the appointment of Wayne Propst as secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration (DFA). Propst will assume leadership of the department at the start of January following Secretary Deborah Romero’s retirement from state government at the end of the year.
“Wayne is an effective leader whose strong financial background and years of experience in government will be instrumental in continuing our work to deliver for New Mexicans,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham. “He understands the purpose and importance of managing resources to best execute policies that lift up all New Mexico families. . . Propst may have been legislative director for liberal Dem US Sen. Jeff Bingaman but like most DFA secretaries before him, he is a budget hawk. He showed that when as executive director of PERA he tangled with state employee retirees who resisted his plans to reform their retirement plan. He had it wrong (our view) but won the battle, revealing his talent for bureaucratic warfare. His most recent gig was chief of staff at the Public Regulation Commission. He also flew with the hawks when he served as an analyst at the conservative Legislative Finance Committee. Propst, a UNM law grad, is a bureaucratic survivor but his hawkish views will be watched closely (or should be) as the state experiences unprecedented times with multi-year mammoth budget surpluses and expectations rising to meet that largesse. More than a good bond rating from Moody's should be expected from a second term Democratic administration with almost unlimited resources. His maiden quote: I look forward to working with the Legislature, agency colleagues and others to make smart, fiscally responsible investments in New Mexico's future. Does that future include more tolerance at DFA (and the LFC) for investment in people not only bricks and mortar? Propst's marriage to Sarah Propst, cabinet secretary for Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources, doesn't appear problematic but it does put Santa Fe on notice that a new power corner has formed in the cabinet. This is the home of New Mexico Politics. E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com) Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.   (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2022 |
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