Here are the money lines from the state's May jobless report analyzing the 8.8 percent unemployment rate in the metro. We're shrinking:

...Total employment in May was reported at its lowest level for the month since 2005. Albuquerque, like much of the country, has lost years of employment growth to the recession...

The ABQ area unemployment fell to 8.8% in May from 9.0 percent in April. But we have a workforce the size of the one we had five years ago. That means less payroll, less spending and less tax money flowing into city coffers.

COPS AND THE COFFERS

The city's fiscal crisis has Mayor Berry tangling with the union representing city cops. How a two to three percent pay cut will be distributed is the issue creating tension. The union contract, before the fiscal crisis, had cops been expecting a three percent pay hike. What happens if there is no deal? We put that question to one our veteran City Hall sources:

On July 1, the cops will continue to work and salaries will be subject to what was funded by the City Council and the approved budget which had the 2-3% salary reductions.

The union contracts do not deal exclusively with salaries and have all sorts of terms covering a wide range of subjects such as cars, uniforms, overtime pay and PERA and medical contributions. The union would be wise to stick with fighting over the raises and no other terms while Berry wants to renegotiate all terms that have a fiscal impact.

Once July 1 gets here, the union will have three options: 1. Decide to accept working under the old contract with reduced salaries 2. Sue to enforce the contract that had the negotiated 3% pay raises or 3. Force arbitration or mediation with a third party.

The odds of winning a lawsuit are slim. I believe the contracts have a clause that subjects salaries to availability of funding...

A few months ago, I caught a report that police had busted their overtime budget by $9 million...The more experienced officers know how to work the system and can significantly increase their pay with overtime. Public Safety Director Darren White ordered the change in DWI arrest policy that requires an arresting officer to transport a suspect to jail as opposed to turning him over to the DWI unit. The policy was initiated to reduce court overtime, but has had the effect of reducing DWI arrests.

In fact, there has been a dramatic reduction in DWI arrests this year, compared to other are law enforcement. It could very well become a political issue for Mayor Berry. TV news came with the big story of fewer DWI offenders getting busted.

The budget medicine Berry is proposing is pretty mild, even if it seems like castor oil to public safety agencies used to getting an annual budget boost no matter what. Cities across the nation are laying off police officers. The new economic reality is only starting to sink in here.

NOT A SINKHOLE

Our blog this week referring to downtown redevelopment efforts as a "sinkhole" did not settle well with reader Homer Robinson:

Two of the most significant construction projects of the past few years are the downtown affordable housing apartment complexes--Silver Gardens and Downtown @. Together, these projects created well over 500 jobs, using over 50 local employers and pumping $15-20 million into the local economy.

The second phase of the Silver Gardens project is financed and set to start construction this coming winter. (I work for the company that developed and built Silver Gardens I and will be building Phase II.) Both are public-private partnerships, the result of development agreements dating back to the Baca administration, and brought to fruition by the Chavez administration.

For Albuquerque to be a truly viable city, it must have a thriving downtown. These new rooftops are one essential component...But for the restaurants, hotels and cultural attractions to really thrive, we also need a legitimate events center to bring in larger-scale conventions and conferences, which we cannot even compete for now...Now is the time for long-term thinking and investment for the future. Otherwise, we'll just plod along as we always have.

Thanks, Homer. But is a $400 million downtown sports arena in a market with no professional sports a wise long-term investment?

REALITY CHECK

We don't want to rain on the parade, but it's hard to let go without comment this line from the Governor's office praising a recent award received by the state's Secretary of Finance and Administration:

The fact that New Mexico has weathered one of the nation’s worst recessions is a testament to her skill as a policy maker and financial manager.

Hello, Santa Fe? This state has not "weathered" anything. And it's still storming. We face a cumulative state budget deficit of upwards of a billion dollars, historically high unemployment, government employee furloughs, a Medicaid funding debacle and housing and energy bubbles gone bust.

Well, the Santa Fe thinking is good for at least one thing--the long-suffering tourism business. With statements like that coming from the Fourth Floor, tourists can be assured that the City Different not only offers a reprieve from the summer heat, but also a total escape from reality...

THE BOTTOM LINES

Word comes to us of the passing of an old friend and New Mexico radio legend. Chuck Logan has died at Payson, Arizona. He graced the radio airwaves in ABQ in a big way from the 70's until the 90's. He was 71.

Chuck (real name Charles Lagomarsino) was of a time when men made careers of being a "disc jockey," but they were really exemplary entertainers, spinning records and dispensing humor as well as the information of the day. He did his finest work on the old KQEO-AM and on 50,000 watt giant KKOB-AM before it switched to a talk format.

Logan, as we all called him, was old school all the way--work hard and play hard. He was a constant presence at the ABQ press club in its heyday as a media hangout. His old friend and radio colleague Gary Diamond reminisced Thursday that the "walls at the club still echo from some of those nights."

He often addressed his audience by the Native American phrase "Kemo Sabe," made popular in the Lone Ranger radio and TV series and loosely translated as "trusty scout" or "faithful friend." Chuck was truly that to a generation of radio listeners.

So long, Kemo Sabe...

I'm Joe Monahan, reporting from Albuquerque.

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2009
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Mud Wrestlers
With two female candidates vying for the New Mexico governorship for the first time in history, the media coverage is being closely watched--including ours. We quoted from a column of retired newsman Ned Cantwell this week when he likened the race between Denish and Martinez to female mud wrestling. That brought this sharp retort from reader Lissa Knudsen, president of the graduate student association at UNM:

Coverage like this: "Mud wrestling," I said. "So far these ladies have displayed such lack of class, we're beginning to think, 'strip down and get 'er on, gals.'"

That's over the top. We're going to have a female governor. It's time to brush off the 1970's era sexism and get with the times...No one EVER makes such jokes about male candidates. So I ask, a) if you hear it don't repeat it and maybe even step up and call people on their BS, or b) make sure you objectify and sexualize male/transgender candidates at an equal rate.

Thanks, Lissa, you make a point, but let's not get carried away with political correctness. We're not about to play censor around here, and we don't think Ned was being malicious. He was commenting on the conduct of the political campaigns, not the candidates personally.

As for no one ever making such jokes about male candidates, fact check that one. Bill Clinton has been the butt of sexual innuendo during his entire national political career.

ABQ Mayor RJ Berry seems determined not to fall over the downtown development cliff even as he is being pushed by a stampeding city council.

Downtown, the sinkhole of political dreams for a long line of city mayors, including Rusk, Baca and Chavez, was again pushed to the fore this week when, on a vote of 7 to 1, the council urged the mayor to enter into an agreement with ABQ Public Schools to secure at least part of the First Baptist Church property for downtown redevelopment efforts. In others words, a $400 million project that would include a hyper-controversial downtown sports arena, now soothingly called an "events center."

But Berry is in charge of a city whose coffers are bare and who would undoubtedly have to raise taxes to finance such a venture, even as downtown continues to be a sinkhole. Developer Vince Garcia was recently indicted for fraud in connection with a major condominium project that now stands partially completed, a symbol of the epic Bull Market gone so sour.

The mayor has a task force to study the downtown project, but he is indicating they can take their time coming with a final report.

When the economy boomed, maybe there was a chance that a huge downtown complex like this may have had a chance of getting off the ground, but with the bear market still gripping the city and giving us a record-breaking jobless rate of over 9 percent, the councilors are barking at the moon. How about some ideas that might bring that jobless rate down?

FLYING SOLO

Who was the one city councilor to vote against the resolution prodding the mayor to form a downtown bandwagon? The West Side's Dan Lewis said he voted "no" because he disagreed with "the urgency" surrounding the resolution which does not carry the weight of a law.

Lewis's district is close to Rio Rancho. Maybe he was thinking about that city's financial disaster with the Santa Ana Star Center, another well-intentioned downtown development effort that tallied up millions in losses for City of Vision taxpayers

SHOOTING REACT

Mayor RJ Berry and the ABQ city council received an earful this week over one of the eight officer involved shootings we have had in the city this year. The family of one man who died during a dispute with police asserted the shooting was unnecessary. The police say otherwise. TV news covered the story.

This wasn't a poor Hispanic family from the valley as is often the case in these incidents, but a seemingly well-off Anglo family from the Northeast Heights where Berry's political support is deepest.

BERRY REBUKE

The honeymoon is over. The four Dem ABQ city councilors were able to upend Mayor Berry's plans for negotiating with city unions, and Berry started using the dreaded word "Democrat" instead of "Democratic," as in this:

It appears the four Democrat City Councilors led by Ken Sanchez were trying to politicize a very important function of City government during Monday’s meeting. What’s important is that we keep moving forward with these negotiations on behalf of our City employees and taxpayers...

That's a hard partisan kick from Berry who has mostly avoided using that boot. And how about that direct hit on council president Sanchez? Well, Sanchez has made it no secret that he will seek the mayor's job in 2013. Looks as though that campaign may be getting an extra early start.

THIRD CANDIDATE OR NOT?

Alan Woodruff hopes to be a candidate for the ABQ congressional seat held by Dem Martin Heinrich, but he is having his share of trouble. From his campaign:

Woodruff Tuesday filed the candidate petitions required to qualify as the Green Party candidate for U.S. Representative for congressional district 1 for the 2010 general election. The Secretary of State refused to accept those petitions, claiming that the Green Party is not a "qualified" party.

The "qualified" status of the Green Party of New Mexico was put in doubt following the 2008.

Woodruff says he plans a lawsuit to make the ballot. So far, it's Heinrich vs. Republican Jon Barela.

THE PIT DEBATE

With the oil spill catastrophe in the gulf, we wonder if public perception of New Mexico's "pit rule" which has come under so much fire from independent oil producers here is finding more favor with the average New Mexican.

We blogged May 12 asking pit rule critics for definitive proof that the rule--which sets environmental standards for disposing of drilling waste--cost the state jobs as opponents of the measure maintain. We received a lot of email, but no one could point to the name of a company and their employees who were laid off as a direct result of the pit rule, or moved out of the state as a result of the environmental regulation.

The crush of primary election news led us away from the issue, but we pick it back up today with a response to our skepticism from Karin Foster, the executive director of the Independent Petroleum Association of NM. She says the industry does not claim the pit rule specifically costs jobs, but:

Industry has never stated that the Pit Rule alone has killed oil and gas operations. We agree that the decline in the price of oil and gas has had a significant impact on the decision to drill, but the Pit Rule is the straw that broke the industry's back. The rule is not based on science, it was pushed for political reasons and the agency responsible for administering the rule is doing so in an unreasonable...manner.

...The 2009 Fraser Global Petroleum survey...looks at barriers to investment for oil and gas production...New Mexico has a composite ranking of 43rd in the world behind Louisiana, Namibia, Croatia, Ghana and even Egypt as having poor investment opportunity and high regulatory risk for oil and gas operations. The report explains why New Mexico received such a poor rating:

"Corrupt government. Furthermore, politicians want to stop development but they still want the income. The state should rely on one agency to police the oil and gas industry rather than every agency, county, and city, having a separate permitting procedure. State government is extremely 'anti-oil'; very hard to make a profit."

Did you know that the Pit Rule is being litigated in two separate cases? Why is the Independent Petroleum Association of New Mexico (IPANM), which represents well over three hundred companies in NM, a party to the suit? Because the Oil Conservation Commission failed to use a scientific basis for their one size fits all rule. They ignored the law--the OCD had the duty to look at the economics of the Pit Rule to determine the regulatory costs to small businesses.

The costs that operators need to absorb because of the Pit Rule are all over the board because of the complexity of the rule--it applies to both oil and gas production, in both the Permian Basin and the San Juan Basins...

As you would say in your blog, the bottom line is this: Independent operators don't like the Pit Rule but since there are still natural resources in the ground here, companies are staying and taking the risk.

So, Mr. Monahan, your assumptions in your blog may be correct,it's not just the Pit Rule that has killed oil and gas operations in New Mexico, it's the negative, regulatory environment, low commodity prices and better opportunity elsewhere that is causing industry to leave the state.

It's significant to us that Foster says the pit rule has not cost us specific jobs. That was our original contention when we wrote that May missive. Political candidates who claim otherwise are clearly off the mark.

As for Foster's argument that the overall NM energy industry is getting crushed by an out-of-control regulatory bureaucracy, here's a response to that....

THE GUV'S RESPONSE

The vigorous debate over this continues, with Big Bill coming withe this mid-May release that aims to knock down the industry argument:

Governor Richardson announced that New Mexico's drilling activity has more than doubled this year according to the Baker Hughes rig count with 63 operating rigs reported on May 14, 2010, compared to 31 operating rigs a year ago on May 15, 2009. The number of oil- and gas-producing wells in New Mexico remains constant with new environmental regulations balancing our energy needs while protecting New Mexico's precious ground water and our environment.

"New Mexico's pit rules have shown that protecting our health and water resources are good for industry and the environment," said Governor Richardson. "The BP oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico is a sobering reminder that preventing environmental contamination is always less expensive than cleaning it up."

Activity in southeastern New Mexico's Permian Basin is especially strong. Apache Corporation, an independent energy exploration and production company, recently announced it expects to drill in excess of 200 new wells during 2010 in the Permian Basin. Of the 200-plus wells, 100 will be drilled in New Mexico...

...Current prices in the $60-$70 range are driving healthy activity in New Mexico's southeastern oil fields. Unfortunately, natural gas prices have not increased to the same extent keeping activity at a lower level in the gas fields of the San Juan Basin.

The price of oil and gas fluctuates, but companies can find and produce oil and gas more safely, efficiently and with increased environmental protections using new technologies, such as directional drilling, reusing existing well pads for new wells and using closed loop systems to manage their waste.

We'll continue our coverage in the weeks ahead...

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Bob White, retiring after 16 years as city attorney for ABQ, shares a laugh with City Councilor Rey Garduno at Bob's going away party. Rey gave Bob a T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan "community organizer," joking that White was now free to resume the role that got him started in politics back in the 70's.

White was an effective city attorney, dispensing sound advice and keeping a low profile. We also recall his service as a a city councilor back in the 80's. In fact, he represented the district now served by Garduno. That council experience served White well as both R's and D's and everyone in between seemed to be pleased with him. His personal liberal Democratic politics were kept to himself. How else do you last 16 years in a position in which you serve at the pleasure of the mayor?

We wish him well and hope he makes more time now to listen to his Bob Dylan collection. Hasta La Vista, Mr. White.

THE NEW GUY

Taking White's place is Rob Perry who we recall as an effective head of the corrections department under GOP Governor Gary Johnson. He also ran for attorney general as the GOP candidate against then incumbent Democrat Patricia Madrid. He lost but ran a spirited campaign.

The Legal Beagles say Perry would do well to follow in White's shoes and run the city attorney's office in a nonpartisan manner, even as he may be tempted to do otherwise.

MEDIA MOVING

The all-female NM Guv contest has roused semi-retired newsman Ned Cantwell. He brings his wry sense of humor to the big story, saying he has talked to an old friend about the contest:

Barney follows New Mexico fairly closely and is aware of our problems: a debilitating shortage of Medicaid funds, a struggling education system, too many poor and disadvantaged, persistent unemployment. "What do you think will be the defining issue, what will decide this race between Diane and Susana?" he wondered.

"Mud wrestling," I said. "So far these ladies have displayed such lack of class, we're beginning to think, 'strip down and get 'er on, gals.'"

MORE MEDIA MOVING

Longtime KKOB-AM radio news anchor Larry Mohlenbrink moves to afternoons at the 50,000 watt talker. Larry Behrens takes over the morning slot...Weatherman Michael Kelting is out at KOB-TV and we're told KOAT-TV's Jason Stiff takes over the map there. It wasn't reported when he came here last year, but Kelting, in June 2009, filed a $7.684M lawsuit against former employer KRON-TV in San Francisco citing a hostile work environment and sexual harassment...

The conservative think-tank, the Rio Grande Foundation, says it has hired a reporter to cover the state capitol. Rob Nikolewski descrives himself as "a former Emmy Award-winning sports anchor whose interests morphed into the public policy realm."

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Voters may be in an anti-incumbent mood, but Dem Guv nominee Diane Denish certainly isn't when it comes to elected county officials in NM. The Light Guv, in a speech before the NM Association of Counties, backed a constitutional amendment that would allow county commissioners and other elected county officials like sheriff and assessor to go for a third, four year term. Right now, they get to go for two terms or a total of eight years. Said Di:

I'm going to be voting for constitutional Amendment 2 so you guys can continue to do your great jobs..The experience and continuity is really worth something...

But what about fresh faces and new ideas being worth something? Let the debate begin. The constitutional amendment will be decided at the polls Nov. 2.

SHE'S LUCKY

Di is lucky that Big Bill can't run for a third term. The odds that he would be re-elected--and she along with him for a third term as Light Guv--would be low. Denish's dream of being governor would end with such a defeat.

New Mexico only allowed one four year term for its governor from 1971 until 1994. That's when R Gary Johnson won his first of two four year terms. Before the 70's, state governors were allowed to serve a total of four years, but their terms were for two years.

MORE FROM PUNDIT BILL

Big Bill put on his pundit cap last week, analyzing the race that will determine who will take his place. Of the Republican Guv ticket of Susana Martinez and John Sanchez, he opined:

The most important dynamic is going to be, can the Republicans take advantage of having two Hispanics at the top of the ticket? That’s probably never happened anywhere in the country...

Actually, it has. Former ABQ Journal reporter Larry Calloway, who was around in the 60's, reminded everyone that Fabian Chavez and Mike Alarid formed the 1968 NM Guv ticket. They lost to Republican Dave Cargo and E. Lee Francis.

But Big Bill's main point is that the Hispanic vote this year will be key. It traditionally votes heavily for the Dem. But if some of those votes are lured away by the GOP's all Hispanic ticket, it could make the difference.

On the other hand, if Di, who was born and raised in Hobbs can peel off Anglo votes in the southeast that traditionally go to the R's but might balk at an all Hispanic ticket, she could make up lost Hispanic votes.

It's just one of many angles that will keep all the pundits, including Big Bill, fully occupied with Campaign '10.

MIXED FEELINGS
Homans
Is Big Bill ally and former NM Taxation and Revenue Secretary Rick Homans the right pick to permanently lead the NM Spaceport Authority? The Las Cruces Sun-News has mixed feelings:

Our concern is that Homans had this position before, and left for what he believed to be greener pastures. This is a critical time for the spaceport. Construction is accelerating...It is absolutely imperative that Homans sees this project through to completion...

Homans led a national search for a new spaceport director and the search ended with him. Kind of like when Dick Cheney picked himself to become Bush's Veep.

Homans served as the first chairman of the New Mexico Spaceport Authority from 2005 to 2007, and was briefly its executive director in 2007. Homans served as Secretary of Economic Development from 2003 through 2007,

The spaceport is one of the most potentially promising projects for the state's future. Could it eventually become a center for a myriad of space initiatives as Sandia and Los Alamos became the focus of nuclear science in the last century? A major player in the commercial space industry, employing hundreds if not thousands? We can hope.

The next governor--whoever she is--needs to keep this one front and center.

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