Education

Education is a Priority

People in this district recognize the value of good education. I know I owe a lot to good teachers in public schools and universities. Tax revenues spent wisely on education are a good investment in our future. Well-educated people are productive people, who have the tools to give themselves and our state a brighter future.

Teachers should be paid better for the important work they do. They should be evaluated in a fair way, negotiated by the state, local school boards, administrators, and the teachers themselves. More time should be allowed for teaching and not testing and “teaching to the test.” Schools should be evaluated in a rational, fair way.

I support the proposal to bring to the voters a state constitutional amendment to allow 1% of the state’s $16 billion Land Grant Permanent Fund (more than $150 million per year) to be used each year for early childhood education, in addition to the presently allowed 5% for K-12 education. The most recent proposal by Representatives Antonio Maestas, Javier Martinez and Stephanie Garcia Richard (2018 session HJR1) passed the state House but was not voted upon by the Senate. The voters of New Mexico should be allowed to decide: is the benefit to our state of an additional 1% investment in education greater than the long-term risk to the fund? I believe that the long-term social and economic benefits are greater than the cost. In order to obtain support in the state Senate which has concerns about long-term risk, reduction of the allowance to 0.8% or a ten-year sunset might be considered.

New Mexico’s public universities are providing good value to our citizens. The NM lottery scholarship is a good program that helps New Mexicans pay for college, but the lottery income today only provides enough funds to cover 60% of tuition, down from the original 100%. We should find the revenues to keep this level from dropping below 60% if lottery income becomes further inadequate, and increase it back to 100% if we can. Local college branches such as UNM-LA and Northern New Mexico College play an important role in the community, from dual-enrollment courses for high school students, to undergraduate and graduate studies, small business development, and continuing education. Local public colleges should not duplicate what is available at the major state universities, but they can complement what the major universities provide appropriate to local needs.

Economic Development

Government programs, such as Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) grants/loans to businesses with good growth prospects, can play a role in economic development. They are no substitute for the economic fundamentals of a healthy, educated workforce, rational, fair taxation, and well-planned and maintained public infrastructure. That is why I will work to improve education, health care and infrastructure, as well as our tax system and specific economic development programs.

Democratic Governor candidate Jeff Apodaca has proposed investing some of the state’s $22 billion Permanent Funds in low-interest loans to growing New Mexico businesses, instead of sending funds out of the state to Wall Street or other investments. I think this is a good idea. Businesses that grow in New Mexico provide jobs, income and tax revenues here, so the benefits to the state are far greater than whatever earnings we would get from out-of-state investments.

The role of Los Alamos National Laboratory in our national security is not going to disappear, so it should remain a solid economic engine for the region. But Lab budgets go up and down, sometimes severely. There is a lot of scientific and engineering talent there, and some of them do come up with creative new businesses, but they have often taken their growing companies to other locations. We can make it possible for those entrepreneurs to grow their businesses here with well-funded LEDA collaborations. Then the regional economy will become less dependent on the single budget of the national laboratory.

I was part of the successful lobbying effort to get the federal government to establish the Manhattan Project National Historical Park and transfer the Valles Caldera to National Park Service management. This is providing a needed boost to local businesses. I will work to get the last few miles of scenic highway 126 paved from Cuba to Jemez Springs and the Valles Caldera, which will make it easier to get around our District, and help our local tourist economy. State Road 4 between Los Alamos and Jemez Springs, which is important to tourism and LANL commuters, needs a significant amount of maintenance. These are examples of why a modest increase in the gasoline tax, to pay for neglected road building and maintenance, could benefit the state by growing our economy.

High-capacity community broadband throughout the District is a vital step into a 21st century economy, but it’s an expensive technology. We have been taking steps toward more broadband capacity in Los Alamos: every time our utility department opens up a large trench for other utility work, we lay down some conduit so that we'll build up over time the network we need to offer broadband. When private industry is ready to use that conduit, we can negotiate a fair price for their use of our investment. Los Alamos County, as a partner in the REDI Net local government/tribal consortium, is also negotiating to get higher capacity data lines connected. In general, we should aim at the public contribution being "seed money" to get projects started, and avoid as much as possible long-term public subsidies, when private investment should step in.

Public Infrastructure

If we want this state to have a healthy economy, we have to have healthy public infrastructure: roads, public transportation, utilities, communications networks. Entrepreneurs starting new businesses will not stay here if the lack of such things impedes business growth. More people will choose to live here if public services and facilities are good and well-maintained. Tourists will stay longer if it is convenient to visit our attractions.

Maintaining infrastructure, much less building new infrastructure, is a substantial and continuing expense. Well-planned investments in infrastructure and economic development will create new jobs and private investment, broadening the tax base to support a growing economy. It is not government's role to guarantee profits for anyone, but it is appropriate for government to support a stable environment where businesses can expect to earn a fair return on their investment.

The gasoline tax to pay for maintaining our roads has not been increased in many years, so inflation has considerably reduced our ability to maintain roads. The gasoline tax is specifically tied to clear public needs such as this. An increase of ten or fifteen cents per gallon would still allow gasoline to be sold at a price much lower than ten years ago, when oil was over $100 a barrel. Putting some gasoline tax money into paving the last few miles of scenic highway 126, from Cuba to Jemez Springs and the Valles Caldera, would make it easier to get around our District and boost our local tourist economy.

I am proud of the support Los Alamos has put into our local bus system, Atomic City Transit, and into the regional transit system, NCRTD (the Blue Buses). Local and state money invested in public transit is matched by federal tax dollars, bringing back federal taxes we’ve paid into the local economy. Roads should be planned to accommodate peak automobile traffic loads, but make room for all the alternate forms of transportation including public transit, walking and bicycling.

High-capacity community broadband throughout the District is a must for a 21st century economy, but we need to keep watching for technological developments that will make it less expensive. In Los Alamos we are making sure that every time our utility department opens up a large trench for utility work, we lay down some conduit so that we'll build up over time the network we need to offer broadband. When private industry is ready to use that conduit, we can negotiate a fair price for their use of our investment. Los Alamos County, as a partner in the REDI Net local government/tribal consortium, is also negotiating to get higher capacity data lines connected. In general, we should aim at the public contribution being "seed money" to get projects started, and avoid as much as possible long-term public subsidies, when private investment should step in.

Health Care

Truly Affordable Health Care for New Mexicans

The state of New Mexico spent $1.17 billion on Medicaid in FY17, to which $4.45 billion in matching federal funds were added. Medicaid now covers 854,000 New Mexicans, and another 45,000 are covered by Affordable Care Act (federally subsidized) health care insurance. Fewer than 9% of New Mexicans now have no health insurance, compared to more than 20% six years ago. This is a good investment for New Mexico, not just for people’s well-being and productivity, but because health care is much more efficient when insured people get routine and preventive care at a doctor’s office or health clinic and not in hospital emergency rooms.

Affordable health care is a national problem that will not fix itself. The United States spends 18% of its gross domestic product (GDP) for health care (over $9,000 per person), and still has 28 million people without insurance. Many European countries spend 9 to 12% of their GDP ($4000 to $6000 per person) and cover nearly everyone with equal or better care than in the US. We need to do what we can in New Mexico to make basic health care available and affordable to all.

There are two proposals in the State Legislature that I support. Representatives Debbie Armstrong and Nathan Small’s HM9 and Senator Ortiz y Pino’s SM3, both passed in 2018, have proposed to study allowing New Mexicans to "buy in" to the Medicaid managed care programs by paying what Medicaid costs (in FY17, averaging $301 to $468 per month). This would provide them the option of good care at a competitive or lower cost than available on the Affordable Care Act exchanges, near to that $4000-$6000 per year that European countries spend per person. Second, the Health Security Act (2017 session HB575/HB101/SB172) is an effort to investigate the possibility of a statewide health insurance plan for all New Mexicans.

Providing health care in a truly affordable way is a complex subject I am researching with advisors in health care. The Medicaid "buy-in" proposals may be a significant step forward, but we will have to assure that provider reimbursements are high enough to keep doctors and hospitals in business. European countries cover people at a significantly lower cost than we do, with a variety of public and private regulated systems. We should be able to look at these systems and implement their best practices. My skills as an applied physicist, where we often analyze large amounts of data but have a healthy skepticism for models which may not correspond to reality, should prove useful in this work.

Energy and Environment

Renewable Energy/Environmental Preservation

Global climate change is the result of anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases mostly by developed countries, and there are predictable consequences (drought, extreme weather, sea level rise, often devastating poor populations of developing countries) that will require major mitigating and adjusting actions in response to this change. We can transition away from dependence on fossil fuels in ways that will not only reduce environmental damage, but are economically superior to use of fossil fuels. I strongly support the state doing all of its business in a way that encourages energy and environmental conservation, renewable energy, and efficient mass transit. This will save us money in the long run, and preserve the health and beauty of New Mexico. Every time I use Atomic City Transit or the NCRTD “Blue Bus” instead of driving, that is one less gallon of gasoline that we burn and contribute to global warming.

Environmental Preservation

New Mexico has millions of acres of forest that need thinning in order to return to a healthy, sustainable state. If we don’t do that, most of them will end up in forest fires like Cerro Grande or Las Conchas, costing us much more than thinning. I convinced Los Alamos County to join the Rio Grande Water Fund, an innovative coalition of public and private groups from all over northern New Mexico, that is working to increase the rate of restoration of our beautiful forest watersheds.

I strongly support the Water Fund’s increasingly successful efforts, in 2017 getting 18,000 acres thinned and tens of thousands more acres treated with controlled burns and other means. These efforts also create desperately needed jobs in the rural parts of our state. New Mexico should support small businesses that are taking on this work with low-interest loans or LEDA programs. I have encouraged the Los Alamos Fire Department in getting trained in forest thinning and successfully applying for forest restoration grants. The state should encourage and fund this for Fire Departments throughout New Mexico.

I support local efforts to regulate oil and gas development for local environmental and social conditions. The State needs to strictly enforce environmental regulations on drilling, fracking, and handling of wastewater, which will require needed amendments to the Oil and Gas Act that I will pursue. There is economical recycling technology available for drilling wastewater which minimizes the use of water and the need for wastewater injection wells. With the scarcity of water in our state and the need to protect our groundwater resources, we should require recycling over injection. I support a statewide ban on fracking in environmentally or culturally sensitive areas, such as near Chaco Canyon or the Rio Grande.

New Mexico’s fragile water resources need to be vigorously protected. The Nacimiento copper mine near Cuba in my District 43 is an example of the damage that copper mining can do to groundwater: the present estimate is that cleanup, in addition to work already being done by the US Forest Service, will cost $5 million, while the companies that caused the pollution are long gone. We need to amend the State Water Quality Act to allow strict regulation of mining activity to prevent further disasters like this.

Renewable Energy

All forms of renewable energy, from hydroelectric, wind and solar to nuclear, need to be considered. The true costs of renewable energy sources must be evaluated against the true costs of fossil fuels. That includes environmental degradation, transportation costs, health costs, and international economic impact. When fossil fuels are produced and used, this must be done as cleanly and efficiently as possible, such as by installing equipment to minimize methane leakage.

We should transition electricity generation to renewable sources, such as solar with storage, wind, and other developing renewable technologies, while using smartgrid and energy conservation techniques to reduce electricity consumption. We should encourage energy-saving choices, such as use of mass transit, electric or hybrid cars, better home insulation, use of passive solar heating and lighting, and installation of home solar arrays and storage. Agricultural use of waste-into-energy techniques can produce net-lower-carbon energy. Many of these techniques, if done right, will not only reduce environmental damage, but are economically superior to use of fossil fuels.

I do not support present-day nuclear reactor power because it is not economically or environmentally viable due to safety, mining/environmental and waste disposal problems. However, new technology such as the NuScale Small Modular Reactor (SMR) shows promise, at least in the safety area (passive safety: safe emergency shutdown without operator intervention or auxiliary electrical power), with potential major cost savings. I believe the federal government should support building the first SMR to validate (or disprove) the design’s potential. Other difficult issues regarding nuclear power, such as the environmental and human cost of uranium mining, and waste handling and disposal, remain. If all these issues were resolved, nuclear power could be part of the solution to global warming, in addition to energy conservation, wind and solar.

I am proud of the progress that the Los Alamos Department of Public Utilities is making toward the county’s goal of becoming a carbon neutral electricity provider by 2040. Los Alamos already generates a significant amount of renewable power through hydroelectric plants in Abiquiu and El Vado, and with solar arrays with battery storage. Solar electric generation on rooftops or arrays on LANL mesa tops is increasingly affordable, and as energy storage and smart grid technology improves, it may be possible to supply a significant portion of our community’s and the Lab’s needs right here. The county is also doing increasing amounts of recycling, now including yard waste for composting, which not only reduces the amount of methane generated from landfills, but saves the county and its ratepayers money.

Fair Taxes

New Mexico’s tax system needs reform, but we need to separate the issue of what is fair from the issue of how much total revenue/spending is appropriate. A number of tax reforms would help the state’s economy. Gross Receipts Tax (GRT) is applied not only to retail sales, but to service purchases a business makes when it is preparing its product for sale. This adds costs that can hurt local businesses' competitiveness. Eliminating this double taxation (tax “pyramiding”) would reduce tax revenues collected, so we need to carefully calculate what this would cost, and find ways to replace that revenue as needed. GRT should be paid by out-of-state businesses selling in this state, which would let local businesses compete on a more level playing field. Any GRT reform will affect local government funding, so counties and cities need to be at the table when reforms are discussed.

We should re-evaluate New Mexico’s income tax rate, which is not progressive: it is 4.9% on a person’s taxable income above $16,000 per year. New Mexico also allows deduction of 50% of capital gains from taxable income, which predominantly benefits the wealthy, with questionable benefits to any public interest. Counties presently can offer a $350 property tax rebate to local homeowners whose income is less than $24,000/year, when they file their state income tax return (Los Alamos is one of only two counties that presently offer this rebate). I support amending this law so that counties can vary the amount of this property tax rebate as local incomes and property values require.

I have not voted for any tax increases as a County Councilor, because I felt that we could provide good services with the revenues we have. I have taken positions in favor of public school property tax bond elections. I support, and I believe most people can accept, tax increases that are specifically tied to clear public needs. For instance, the gasoline tax to pay for maintaining our roads has not been increased in many years, so inflation has considerably reduced our ability to maintain roads. An increase of ten or fifteen cents per gallon would still allow gasoline to be sold at a price much lower than ten years ago, when oil was over $100 a barrel.

Equality under Law

Equal Rights Under the Law

All people deserve respect and equal protection under the law. Women should receive equal pay for equal work. Domestic partnership rights should be recognized. I support the right of workers to collectively bargain. New Mexico should increase our minimum wage, such as Senator Clemente Sanchez’ 2017 bill SB386, which was vetoed by Governor Martinez. We should increase the minimum wage to at least $10 per hour, and index it to keep up with inflation; our neighboring states Arizona and Colorado have already increased their minimum wages above that.

Crime is a big problem in New Mexico, which we need to tackle in several ways. Courts, probation departments, and public attorneys (both prosecutors and public defenders) have seen their budgets squeezed so tightly in recent years that they can’t deal with every case in the best way. Implementation of the recent Constitutional amendment that allows dangerous accused criminals to be denied bail, and indigent but non-dangerous accused people to be released without bail, has been slow and inconsistent. Bernalillo County is now using a computerized risk assessment tool, called Public Safety Assessment, to help judges make these decisions accurately and efficiently. Better statewide funding is needed to implement this system and see if it will have the desired effect of increased public safety. Better funding for behavioral health and anti-addiction programs will save lives and cost less in the long run than dealing with sick and addicted people in jails. Better education, health care, and a healthy economy will make people less likely to fall into drug addiction or criminal behaviors.

The First Amendment to the Constitution protects our right to practice whatever religion we choose, and to not have religious choices imposed upon us by the state. I support the right of women to make their own choices about contraception and abortion. I believe we should encourage the choice of life, and I will work to improve any social condition that might lead to the choice of abortion, such as fear of abuse, poverty, barriers to adoption, or lack of health care.

The Second Amendment guarantees the right to bear arms. It does not take away the rights of all to be protected from criminals or insane people bearing arms. I support measures to require background checks on all sales of guns, such as Senators Richard Martinez and Peter Wirth’s SB48 in the 2017 session. I also support laws to restrict possession of firearms by persons subject to court orders as a result of domestic abuse, such as Senator Cervantes’ 2017 SB259 (as amended in committee), which passed the Legislature but was vetoed by the governor.

At all levels of government, the opportunities for abuse of modern surveillance techniques involving the internet, cell phones, and other technology, are frightening. The Fourth and Fifth Amendments’ basic principle of due process of law must be strictly observed: any government surveillance must be specifically authorized by a court of law with records scrupulously kept.

Reform Government

Reform State Government: Ethical, Transparent, Accountable

Basic reforms that could reduce government dysfunction, fraud and abuse have been recommended by bi-partisan groups such as Think New Mexico. While the legislature has made some progress, there is still much more to do. We have to get all government business--legislative and executive--out in the open, where the public can see everything. I support the efforts of Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver to enforce campaign finance disclosure requirements. I believe that all donors to political campaigns should be disclosed to the public. It is outrageous that millions of dollars to influence elections can be spent today by unknown contributors, not only hidden corporations, but foreign groups with sinister intentions for our nation.

I disagree with the 2010 Supreme Court "Citizens United" decision that basically threw out any limits on corporate spending in elections. The U.S. Constitution does not say corporations are entitled to unlimited spending in the name of free speech, to the exclusion of actual human (non-billionaire) citizens’ rights to equal protection of the laws. If we have to pass a Constitutional amendment to enforce full disclosure and reasonable limits on campaign contributions and spending by corporations, PACs, and individuals, we better get started. I have worked since 2011 in support of resolutions in the NM Legislature supporting such a Constitutional amendment, such as SM3, passed by the Senate in 2012, and SJR12 in 2017.

Local Issues

Public Safety: Job 1

Because of the presence of Los Alamos National laboratory, this county needs excellent Fire, Police and Public Utilities Departments. We were very well served by the members of these departments during the Cerro Grande and Las Conchas fires and evacuations. We need to make sure their pay and benefits will keep them eager to work here, and we should do what we can to make it possible for them to own homes in this county.

Priorities vs. Amenities

Although Los Alamos collects substantial Gross Receipts Taxes (GRT) from Los Alamos National Laboratory as well as other businesses, maintaining infrastructure for the Lab and the town is a substantial and continuing expense. The County can and should support its public schools, to the extent allowed under under New Mexico's state-funded educational system. Amenities, such as libraries, the golf course and the aquatic center, also require staffing and maintenance. Public safety, basic infrastructure and education are my priorities, followed by reasonable encouragement of economic development. If we manage these activities well, we will be able to further develop the amenities that make for a nice community. I have seen Lab budgets go up and down in my years here, so we don't want to be too aggressive in spending money we haven't yet received. I have defended our county policy to maintain 15 to 20% of yearly general fund revenues as a reserve in case of unanticipated revenue shortfalls.

Economic Development

The role of the Lab in our national security is not going to disappear, so it should remain a solid economic engine, with some fluctuations. Downtown Los Alamos and White Rock, with all the people living and working here, should be able to support more small businesses. It is not government's role to guarantee profits for anyone, but it is appropriate for County government to support a stable environment where businesses can expect to earn a fair return on their investment.

The new Manhattan Project National Historical Park, and transfer of the Valles Caldera to National Park Service management, will provide a needed boost to local retail. We need to plan our downtown redevelopment so that we will be ready for the increased tourist traffic.

The Lab will see a lot of retirements in the next few years, and many of those people will want to continue to live here. A new generation of workers has already begun to be hired to replace retiring staff. If new hires and some of the 7000 people who presently commute to work from other counties chose to buy homes here, our retail businesses would see a significant boost. The county is investing in infrastructure development at sites in White Rock and Los Alamos, and encouraging in-fill developments and housing rehabilitation, to provide better housing options for all. If this development is done following a sound Comprehensive Plan, we can preserve the beauty of our neighborhoods while accommodating some population growth.

Capital Improvement Projects

Since the Lab contract went to a for-profit contractor in 2006, the County has had enough income from GRT to pay for extensive capital improvement projects. The County Councils on which I have served have worked hard to get maximum value for those dollars invested. For example, we sent back the original Teen Center and White Rock Library, Senior and Youth Center proposals because they were too expensive. After re-scoping, we were able to build excellent facilities that serve these needs for about half of the originally estimated cost. There has been good citizen participation in the planning and advocacy of individual projects, but some people question the overall prioritization--which projects go first and why. Priority for funding projects should be based on a transparent rating system, which includes capital costs, operating costs, economic benefits, and impact on other County strategic goals.

New or improved recreational facilities attract some tourists to stay and spend more money here, helping local retail, and these projects will make people more enthusiastic about living here. But I place a higher priority on using the money and land we have to revitalize downtown Los Alamos and White Rock, and grow the local economy. These investments in economic development will create new jobs and private investment, leading to increased tax revenues that can support additional recreational development. In general, I agree with the idea that existing County assets, such as the Duane Smith Auditorium or the Golf Course, should be maintained before additional new large projects are constructed.

We don’t know whether or not the new Lab contract to be awarded in 2018 will continue with a for-profit contractor; if not, county GRT revenues could drop by as much as $20M per year. I insisted before voting for the latest recreational capital improvement (the multi-generational pool) that no construction funds may be committed until after we know that the new LANL contractor will continue to pay Gross Receipts Tax.

Transportation

I strongly support Atomic City Transit, and reasonable funding in support of regional transit. Roads should be planned to accommodate peak automobile traffic loads, but make room for all the alternate forms of transportation including walking and bicycling. Trinity can be made a much safer and prettier way through our town, that will invite people to stay and do more business here. I believe several pedestrian underpasses and/or overpasses will be needed for people to cross 502 safely.