Nukes And Oil Still Powering State Economy, Plus: Egolf Makes Peace With Land Grant Advocates, State House GOP Primary Featuring Conservative Firebrand Draws Eyeballs And More Reader Debate On Repealing SS Tax

Let's kick it off today with a few notable notes from the econ beat.

ABQ's Sandia National Labs reports their spending reached a record $3.9 billion in fiscal year '22, including $1.4 billion in annual payroll for over 12,200 NM employees. 

Then there's the announcement that oil giant ExxonMobil, a major presence in the oil fields of the SE NM Permian Basin, will be the main sponsor of the ABQ International Balloon Fiesta for the next three years. 

Permian production has exploded and energy taxes and royalties are largely responsible for the historic budget surpluses accumulating in Santa Fe. 

ExxonMobil recently announced that they plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in the Permian by 2030. That's a sweetner for skeptical enviros.

Nuclear weapons budgets are projected to continue upward and the latest forecasts from Wall Street predict oil will again flirt with the $100 a barrel price point. It's back in the 80's as we write. 

New Mexico's economy today is tied more than ever to federal spending and oil exploration and it's hard to envision when it won't be.

MAKING THE PEACE

After widespread criticism over his decision to dissolve the House committee that deals with land grant issues Speaker Brian Egolf is making the peace:

Egolf announced. . .the new Rural Development, Land Grants, and Cultural Affairs Committee will be established in the coming session, and will be chaired by Representative Susan Herrera (D-Embudo). Two other standing committees will also be newly titled: the Agriculture, Acequias, and Water Resources Committee and the Government, Elections, and Indian Affairs Committee. Together, these committees will respond effectively to the needs of land grant and acequia communities within the Legislature. 

“Land grants, acequias, and their contributions to our state have been critically important to me. . .I am grateful for the advice and input that we received from land grant and acequia leaders. I am glad that we have charted a path forward which will result in a new committee structure that will both elevate land grant and acequia issues and bring positive change for every land grant heir and acequia parciante."

Hispanic lawmakers, in particular, saw Egolf's first move as a slight. This second one should be enough to keep the peace. 

BLACK VS. BLOCK

John Block 

There's another Republican primary besides the '22 Guv and Light Guv races that will keep GOP watchers entertained. That would be the nomination contest for state House District 51 in Alamogordo. 

The district is currently represented by Rep. Rachel Black who is seeking a third term but who has now drawn a challenge from young John Block, an unabashed Trumper and editor of the conservative news outlet the Pinon Post.

Block, an ardent critic of MLG and all things Dem, says Black is not strong enough on tax relief and missed an abortion vote that he didn't specify. He says: 

Alamogordo needs an America-First conservative champion who shows up and takes the fight to the Radical Democrats. The hard-working men and women of District 51 should not be forced to settle for a representative who takes them for granted. This election, our community finally has a choice. We need to finally send a fighter to the Legislature.

Rep. Black

Black, an Otero County Deputy Treasurer, says she has brought $4.5 million in capital outlay to the SE NM district. She has not yet commented on the Block challenge but the Black vs. Block race will soon be joined. Block has already released a slickly produced video announcing his candidacy. 

GOP consultants point out that the twenty something Block is an openly gay Republican and that Alamogordo is Bible Belt territory. They say that could be problematic in scoring an upset. 

Black took her seat in 2018, succeeding Yvette Herrell who is now the southern district congresswoman. No D's need apply in House 51. This one is all R all the time. 

SS REPEAL DEBATE (CONT.)

The debate over repealing the state tax on Social Security amounts to a tempest in a teapot, argues tax expert James O'Neill of ABQ's O'Neill Consulting who joins this week's blog debate on the matter: 

Joe: Lowering the state income tax on only middle- and upper-income New Mexicans can be done in many ways. One of the cheesiest is granting a deduction for the federally-taxable part of Social Security retirement benefits while claiming that it would be a great boon for the poor. 

Under current federal and state tax law, no one (except some married persons filing separately) whose only income is Social Security pays any New Mexico income tax -- even if the recipient gets the maximum benefit (over $90,000 for married couples). See for yourself by completing the worksheet on page 31 of the 2021 form 1040 instructions. Even when there is a small amount of taxable income at the federal level, existing provisions of New Mexico's law reduce the state liability to zero. The point of these proposals is to allow other features, like the standard deduction, to apply fully to other income. Even that benefits only New Mexicans earning at least median levels of income. The poor, as usual, get nothing. 

The 30 day session begins Tuesday and that's when we will next be with you at NM Politics with Joe Monahan. 

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2022