Internet access is about to take a leap in rural New Mexico when the Legislature, as expected, approves $70 million for satellite service requested by the Broadband Office, but there's a higher hurdle to vault over to ensure reliable and speedy internet for households still waiting. 

The $70 million is earmarked to provide two years of subsidized satellite service while the cumbersome and expensive process of laying high-speed fiber to remote areas is completed. Upon completion the office assumes satellite service will then be replaced with the $70 million spent.

The state is receiving $675 million in broadband money, thanks to former President Biden's infrastructure bill, and the $70 million is a response to complaints over fiber taking years to get to households while ignoring satellite.

The concern now is that the state and feds are are already falling behind by failing to embrace future advances in satellite speeds even as current speeds are already more than proficient for the vast majority of households being targeted for fiber.

The major telco companies and other contractors are pleased as they get paid for the fiber rollout but  redirecting a healthy portion of that $675 million to satellite would position the state for future faster internet that would compete and perhaps surpass expensive fiber.

Already many households that do not need a government subsidy are accessing satellite and are pleased. They don't want or require the high speed fiber that even most ABQ and Santa Fe homes and businesses don't have. Those satellite fans will be unlikely to switch and pay for the fiber option if and when it becomes available. (Monthly service for Starlink is about $120 a month with the equipment advertised at $249.)

To back out of fiber Congress would have to approve a redeployment of the broadband funds, but that's no longer difficult to imagine. Starlink, the major provider of satellite service, is owned by Elon Musk, now a fixture in the Trump camp. 

Musk pointing out that satellites could provide high speed internet at drastically lower prices and not far in the future the same speeds could be flagged as a conflict of interest. But Musk is the one with the technology along with Project Kuiper from Jeff Bezos whose company could also be tapped by the Feds. (The cost of fiber can soar as high as $50,000 per household in remote areas.)

For the sake of rural New Mexico households stranded on the information superhighway, one can hope Musk, Trump and Congress do indeed disrupt what could be a mistake in the making as the state tries to lay fiber where satellite signals are making that technology unnecessary and possibly obsolete.

That $70 million in two year funding is welcome but more permanent subsides for satellite is the prudent road for policy makers to follow in a fast-changing tech landscape.

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After her relationship with lawmakers disintegrated like a pillar of salt in the wake of a special session on crime, the Governor played it safe in her State of the State address Tuesday, again going to bat on crime but emphasizing the popular and bipartisan issues of child education and welfare rather than reopening wounds or picking fights she couldn't win.

(Video here. Transcript and Governor's news release here.)

That also goes for any fisticuffs with The Donald whose presence hovered over the chamber but earned nary a mention--directly or even indirectly--from a subdued and more conciliatory chief executive. 

In fact, she bent over backwards to stress a turn away from the contentious to a more collaborative relationship with the Legislature. She repeatedly cited efforts she said had been successful from working together, giving shout-outs like: "You did it! and "You can do it!" 

One Wall-Leaner commented: "That's a change from: "You better do it."

She may have had to rehearse those lines a number of times to make sure she didn't choke on them but they were politely received, even if it seemed like some in the audience already had one foot out the door as she pitched her softball messaging.

That the power dynamic has switched now that MLG is in her final two years was made clear as she put forth a rather robust compromise plan for more oversight of the long-troubled Children Youth and Families Department. 

Democrats, now safely re-elected and freed from fear of the Fourth Floor, are finally ready to do something about CYFD and the horrendous circumstances that often confront children they take into custody. The Governor's move to meet them halfway will be well-received but not necessarily successful as more far-reaching reforms remain on the table. 

Crime, the agenda leader in Santa Fe for several years running, was acknowledged but not until later in the 50 minute speech. She reiterated her favorite bills, some of which have been rejected, but  her emphasis was less adamant (resigned?) than in the past. 

She completely ignored the second arrival of Trump who she campaigned against so rigorously. Also getting the silent treatment were immigration, abortion and gun control. In their stead were incentives for banning cell phones during school hours, tax breaks for foster parents and $50 million for the Indian Education Fund. That's what's known as low-lying fruit.

She did indicate she is on the same page with the Legislature in approving long-delayed plans to rebuild the state's behavioral health system and she threw a bone to progressives on climate change, calling for "net zero emissions" by 2050 but received only a lukewarm reaction. Yes, the political weather is also changing.

In the end it was a pragmatic and mild speech given in a more conversational tone and that seemed to recognize her new political limits. Let's just say she didn't get where she is without knowing how to read a room. 

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The defining features of the legislative session opening today are the status of the sitting Governor as a lame-duck and the November election results that pushed Democrats toward the center on crime and public safety. 

(Session previews here, here and here. The Governor's State of the State address early this afternoon will be shown on the major TV news channels and on the Governor's Facebook page.)

Gov. Lujan Grisham's special summer legislative session on crime fell flat, to put it kindly, but since then she and key legislative leaders have patched things up some and appear ready to pass crime related bills--and with the support of Republicans. 

However, MLG is already saying her long struggle for a pretrial detention bill that would keep more persons charged with crimes behind bars is "a heavy lift," shorthand for dead on arrival. 

This is her first session as a lame duck, and she will see the shift in power from the fourth floor to downstairs that comes with that status.

The most meaningful and new crime proposals appear to be those aimed at keeping guns out of the hands of youth and tougher action against those under 18 who commit gun violence. The spike in youth crime is new and alarming and threatens to embed itself further into the state's bloodstream.

Other crime measures--changing competency laws and that detention bill--are process measures already defeated at the special and whose impact is questionable.

MEAT AND POTATOES

The meat and potatoes of the 60 day session is the sudden interest of Democratic progressives and the Governor to finally fully address the ubiquitous behavioral health crisis after six years of blaming Republican Governor Susana Martinez for destroying the system in 2013. She did but that has been a feeble excuse for the inaction of the majority party perhaps too consumed by the "woke" movement that is now receding in the wake of Trump's win. 

The election clarified that the public is not keen on the status quo. Upgrading behavioral health is a crime-fighting measure that brings all sides together and addresses the public's impatience. That is where the payoff can be very impactful, unlike scattered get-tough-on-crime bills which do have public support but those already approved did not get at the core of the problem.

A package of bills would appropriate $200 million for infrastructure for behavioral health facilities to handle the crush of clients in need of services. A $1 billion trust fund made possible the continued state surpluses generated by the oil and gas boom--would be established to fund behavioral health--including crucial personnel. The fund would generate $50 million annually. 

The problem is finding and keeping qualified personnel for the ticklish work of treating addicts and others staring into the abyss. It is noble work but those following that path often risk their own mental health.

TAX CUTS?

With revenue and budget reserves at unheard of amounts, the outright elimination of the state income tax on lower income households is an easy reach. We have not yet seen such a bold measure introduced, but House Speaker Martinez is pledging some kind of tax relief for low and middle income households, the very ones that abandoned the Democratic Party in November.

The historic surpluses have the General Fund budget proposed at nearly $11 billion, up from $6 billion only a few years ago, but the state has seen that money alone is not going to do the trick in reversing deep-seated negative trends. 

MANAGEMENT MATTERS

Much better management of the state bureaucracy is needed to effectively deploy the billions. Legislators have repeatedly seen money they appropriated to key agencies left unspent or spent without any apparent impact. New approaches are warranted as New Mexico's government is often impervious to outside influences that could reshape the culture to more effectively deal with the unprecedented and ongoing largesse.

The long-troubled Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) is a prime example of stubborn institutional resistance to change including the Governor. That could change this session if bills for more outside oversight of CYFD become law. That would be a nice side dish to the meat and potatoes that are served up during the next 60 days. 

SECOND THAT MOTION

Trujillo

We've said as much on a number of occasions. Now MLG:

She said she believes Santa Fe is currently at a key juncture in its struggle to address housing, crime and drug use, while Albuquerque is "going to take years" to fix.

Agreed. 

Santa Fe's November mayoral election is the most important of our lifetimes. Laid-back leadership there is out of the question if the storied capital city is going to avoid the plight of ABQ which MLG rightfully analyzes as taking "years" to fix. 

We simply can't allow Santa Fe to become a mini-version of New Orleans with a small, thriving tourist center surrounded by crime and chaos. 

Former City Councilor Ron Trujillo has joined a growing list of candidates seeking the mayor's office. He's tough, has moxie and a furious passion for his hometown. His candidacy is a welcome addition to an essential debate.

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