Brian For Santa Fe

2011 Special Session on Redistricting

2011-10-10T20:39:00.002-06:00

Dear Friends,

I hope you are well. I am writing to give you a brief update on the recent special session of the New Mexico Legislature and what to expect in the next few months regarding job creation and redistricting.

On the important issue of jobs, the legislature was able to pass a capital outlay bill that is focused on starting new infrastructure projects immediately and state-wide. I pushed hard to get the bill passed and fought efforts by the minority party to adjourn before we could vote on the bill. Fortunately, we were able to defeat the effort to adjourn and kill the capital outlay bill, which eventually passed. I wish the bill has contained funding for more projects, but we will have a chance in the upcoming thirty-day session in January to invest in more infrastructure projects.

The legislature also passed an important bill to give New Mexico-owned businesses a real advantage over out-of-state companies when bidding on state contracts as well as a bill to preserve Medicaid funding for children and food assistance funding for our senior citizens.

I was glad that on the issue of capital outlay, in-state preference and other bills, I and the governor agreed about the importance of the proposals. It was good to work in a bi-partisan way to support the creation of jobs for New Mexico’s working families.

Also during the session, the legislature passed plans to redraw the district boundaries of the state house, the state senate, the public regulation commission, and the public education commission to account for shifts in the state’s population. Unfortunately, the governor vetoed the plans, which is regrettable because her veto has thrown redistricting to the courts at a very high cost to taxpayers.

The plans we passed are constitutionally sound, fair and protect the voting rights of Native Americans and minorities. The plans ensure that the principles of “one person, one vote” and equal representation will remain alive and well in New Mexico. Also, despite political statements to the contrary, the state house plan actually lowers the number of “safe” democratic seats by one, makes far more swing seats that could be won be either party, and brings new competition to several areas of the state.

The legislature did not pass a plan to redraw the boundaries of our US Congressional districts. There is a lot of speculation regarding why the plan failed to pass, but the fact is that the house was unable to vote on a congressional redistricting bill because the minority party was able to force the house into adjournment before action could be taken. As a result, we’ll never know what might have happened.

Finally, you may have read in the paper or seen on television that I am a plaintiff in a court case regarding redistricting. I chose to participate in this legal case because it will be the only way to achieve a redistricting plan once the governor vetoes the redistricting bills. I believe very strongly in the constitution and its promise of equal protection under the law. In order to preserve this important principle in New Mexico’s elections, I chose to go forward to fight for these important American values in court.

Thank you for your time in reading this update. If I may be of service, please visit my webpage to send me a message; I am always g;ad to hear from you.

Sincerely,
Brian

2011 Session Wrap-Up

2011-04-06T16:15:00.001-06:00

Dear Friends,

With the end of the 2011 New Mexico Legislative Session behind us, I thought you would like to see the letter I just sent to my constituents. I hope you enjoy reading it.

Dear Constituents,

I hope this letter finds you well. I write today to update you on the recent sixty-day session of the legislature; I hope you find it informative. I am incredibly honored to represent you in the legislature and thank you for the opportunity to serve our community. I understand how difficult the economic situation is and the impact the recession is having on so many in our community. Throughout the session, I have worked with an independent mind and across the aisle to find solutions-based ways to help our economy and our schools recover from the recession. This is work that I will continue throughout my term in office.

Overall, the session had a “slow” feel, with far fewer bills introduced than usual and a great deal of uncertainty about the direction of the new administration. The slim margin in the House between both parties added another new element to our debates and committee work, leading sometimes to good compromise and other times to strenuous debate. None the less, I hope to find more common ground with the governor and the minority party in the future.

On the important issue of jobs, we delivered results in several areas. The legislature passed an extension of the important job training incentive program (JTIP), which has helped employers hire and train thousands of new employees state-wide. I sponsored in the House several bills that will help spur new investment and job creation in renewable energy, including SB 237, 266 and 549. These bills will allow colleges and other public schools to make new renewable energy investments, allocate new bonding capacity for renewable projects statewide and allow towns and counties to keep money in their communities for renewable investment instead of sending it to the state’s large electric utilities. These bills will create jobs and new work all over New Mexico.

I also sponsored a successful bill (HB 174) that will allow homeowners who successfully defend their homes in foreclosure cases their attorney’s fees from the banks who brought the flawed actions against them. While so many of our neighbors are losing their homes around our state, I believe that it is important to give homeowners upon whom the banks wrongly attempt to foreclose a tool in their toolbox against the big banks. This bill is currently awaiting action by the Governor.

Unfortunately, two significant bills to stimulate our economy failed to pass. I introduced HB 173 to move billions of state dollars out of big national banks and into our community banks and HB 290 to create a new state-owned development bank to support our states’ small businesses. I believe strongly that these ideas are good for New Mexico and I will reintroduce them and continue to fight for their passage in the future.

The state’s successful film incentive program was another major issue during the session. The governor announced in her state of the state address her desire to target the program for reduction, and possibly elimination, despite the program’s record of creating and sustaining as many as 10,000 jobs and hundreds of small businesses. This unmerited targeting of the film industry was deeply disappointing to me and to the many legislators who understand the film industry’s importance to New Mexico’s economic future.

Throughout the session, I fought to keep the film incentive program intact because so many constituents and New Mexico families depend of this industry for their jobs. I pointed out that the governor presented a false choice: our schools or the film industry. The truth is that a strong film industry is good for education in New Mexico, offering students well-paying and exciting jobs in the field and generating revenue for our schools. In future sessions, I will continue to be a strong advocate for the film industry and will work to fully restore the program.

You may know that I accepted appointment as Chairman of the House Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which put me in the middle of the debate on conservation and energy policy. This new position allows me to stand up for the conservation and environmental issues that are so important to the future of our state.

With the support of my colleagues on the committee, we were able to pass a wide range of bills to support renewable energy. We also stopped every bill that sought to roll back common sense rules protecting our air, land and water. We were the first committee to hold hearings on the natural gas crisis that struck New Mexico at the beginning of February and learned a great deal about the outage. I am committed to finding solutions to prevent future outages that threaten the lives and property of northern New Mexico families and will continue to push the committee to develop solid recommendations in collaboration with other parts of state government.

The legislature passed a balanced budget package that left me very dissatisfied. As in past sessions, revenues were down and cuts were necessary. This year’s budget will be approximately $5.4 billion, down from more than $6 billion in 2009. The state’s workforce has now shrunk by 25%, and critical services have been scaled back several years in a row.

Unlike previous sessions, however, the governor promised to veto any measure that changed rates of taxation, including a refusal to close tax loopholes that allow large out-of-state corporations to avoid paying their fair share of corporate income taxes. The governor’s pledge means that working families will have to bear the burden of cuts and reductions to basic services. In future sessions, we must begin to address our state’s structural deficit by looking to level the playing field between New Mexico’s businesses and those who come from out-of-state.

While we may not agree completely on every issue, I am eager to hear your thoughts. I remain dedicated to creating and introducing legislation to create jobs, protect our natural resources, and improve the quality of education available to all our children. For a complete list of the bills I introduced, please visit www.nmlegis.gov. You can also stay in touch via my website and blog at www.BrianForSantaFe.com. Please feel free to contact me anytime with your thoughts, concerns and input. Thanks you, again, for the opportunity to be of service.

Sincerely,
Brian

The Truth About New Mexico's "Pit Rule"

2010-07-01T10:58:00.002-06:00

Over the past two years, a debate has raged in New Mexico between those who work protect our water and land and some irresponsible oil and gas operators who oppose common sense efforts to make oil and gas exploration safer for everyone. The subject of the debate has been New Mexico's new "Pit Rule," which requires that drilling operations follow several new procedure to ensure that groundwater doesn't become contaminated by the drilling operations.

First, the rule requires that the "mud pits" alongside drilling sites be lined for the first time to prevent contaminants from leeching into the ground. Second, the rule requires that a record be kept of where each pit is located. Third, the rule required that the toxic wastes in the lined pits be removed to a disposal facility when drilling finished. Finally, the rule requires that a "closed loop system" be used when groundwater is withing fifty feet of the service to prevent groundwater contamination.

Since the New Mexico Oil and Gas Conservation Division adopted the rule, opponents have many numerous, loud and baseless claims that the rule has cost jobs and revenue to the state. The claims are wrong and are unsupported. There is no evidence to support such claims. In fact, the truth shows that opponents of the pit rule are dead wrong.

Look this statement from Apache Corporation, a New Mexico producer. They're busier now than ever: " We expect to drill in excess of 200 new wells during 2010 and currently have five rigs running in the Permian Basin. Of the 200-plus wells expected to be drilled, 100 new wells will be drilled in New Mexico, which will represent the most wells drilled by Apache in the state in any year. Also, we’ve identified areas that can take advantage of horizontal well technology. The first of those wells is drilled and in the process of being completed." (http://www.apachecorp.com/explore/Browse_Archives/View_Article.aspx?Article.ItemID=978).

Opponents of the pit rule seem not to understand the fundamental truth of the oil and gas business: production follows opportunity, which is made or broken by the price of the commodity. It is the fall in prices since 2008, not the Pit Rule, that has affected production. I have repeatedly raised this issue in committee and on the floor. Each time I have asked for evidence to support the claims made by the rule's opponents, I have heard nothing but silence.

The funny thing is that there is a lot of evidence to contradict the opponents. Take a look at the Baker-Hughes Rig Count data from 02-08. Note that all three states saw rig counts drop in Dec. '08. Colorado saw a HUGE drop, far worse than NM or WY. New Mexico's pit rule, obviously had nothing to do with CO or WY. It was all about commodity prices. Here is the document (pay special attention to the final two pages):

2009 2-19 Baker Huges Rotary Rig Count Weekly Comparison Thru February 13, 2009

For more recent data, as of June 4, there were 67 rigs drilling in New Mexico; that's up from 50 in Feb. 09, and increase of MORE THAN THIRTY PERCENT. Colorado had 52, which is down more than twenty percent from Feb. 09. Wyoming only had 34 drilling, a huge further decrease from Feb. 09. So, since Feb. 09, only one of the three states has seen an increase in drilling: New Mexico!

So, the data show that New Mexico's production is GROWING IN SPITE OF THE PIT RULE.

Opposition to the pit rule is about politics and Republicans' opposition to common sense environmental protections.

A New Bank of New Mexico - One Step Closer to Reality!

2010-06-15T21:10:00.004-06:00

Since the last session of the legislature, I have been working on a plan to create in New Mexico a state-owned bank for New Mexico. Today, that vision got one step closer to reality.

Today, the New Mexico Finance Authority Oversight Committee, on which I serve during the interim (the period between our legislative sessions), added the creation of a state-owned bank for New Mexico to its agenda. We are working hard on a bill and plan to present it to the committee in October.

As you may know, this idea has been incredibly successful in North Dakota, where the Bank of North Dakota has been working with that state's local economy to grow its economy and work with its local businesses for over ninety years (learn more HERE and HERE). The idea is based on the concept that we should keep New Mexico's money in New Mexico for the benefit of our citizens instead of sending our state's funds to California, North Carolina and New York.

By creating a Bank of New Mexico, we will be able to provide an important new resource for the state and critical support to our community banks and credit unions during these tumultuous times. The Bank will be able to do several key things:

Work with our New Mexico-based banks and credit unions to expand credit to homeowners and small businesses,
Maintain our state's "check book" so we don't have to hire big national banks to do it for us, and
Invest in our local economies statewide by leveraging state funds to make available billions of dollars in loans to worthy projects.

The new Bank of New Mexico won't compete with our community banks and credit unions. Instead, it will partner with them to assist the loan-making process and drive credit access further into New Mexico's under-served communities.

The great thing is that New Mexico already has all the building blocks we need to make this vision a reality. We have a well-run and stable Finance Authority that is already doing some of this work, though on a much smaller scale. The Finance Authority will have a surplus in excess of $100 million in the next two years that can be used to capitalize the new bank. And, we have a terrific and competent staff that can manage this new bank.

Pleas follow this blog to keep up with the project.

2010-04-16T12:07:00.002-06:00

Earlier this week I listened to a story on This American Life about how a single Chicago-based hedge fund may have very likely been the proximate cause of the financial meltdown that nearly destroyed the global economy. That company is called Magnetar, and it is a scandal that you’ve probably never heard of it.

Magnetar played a critical role in keeping alive the market for some of the riskiest investments in 2006 and 2007. By doing so, Magnetar drove demand for riskier and riskier investments throughout the financial industry and created a market for the risky mortgage-backed securities that were the foundation for the collapse of the housing market. Here’s how they did it:

One of the biggest, if not the biggest, causes of the financial collapse in 2008 was the combined effect of two interlocking securities instruments called Credit Default Swaps (CDSs) and Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs). CDOs are a type of asset-back security, similar to a bond, that pays investors from the proceeds of an underlying bundle of investments. In some cases, CDOs are issued based on mortgage-backed securities. If the underlying mortgages default, the CDOs can’t pay the investors, and the CDOs collapse in stages. Failed mortgages led to a cascading series of failure of CDOs throughout the financial industry and eventually to the failure of the financial system itself.

CDSs come into play because they are like insurance. If you make a large investment, you can buy a CDS to protect, or insure, you investment in case the investment fails. You can also, unbelievably, buy a CDS on an investment even if you’re not the investor. This is exactly like taking out a life insurance policy in a stranger. In other words, you can buy a CDS for a small amount on a bet that a large instrument will fail. If it does indeed fail, you get paid the full amount of the investment.

Magnetar’s scheme was to buy the riskiest portions of the CDOs, encourage the CDO manager to place riskier and riskier securities into the CDOs (making the CDO’s failure far more likely), then bet against the success of the CDO by purchasing CDSs that paid if the CDO failed. For example, Magnetar would spend $10 million on the risky portion of the CDO, would make the CDO virtually certain to fail, would buy a CDS that pays when the CDO fails, then collect $100 million or more when the CDO fails. It makes, by doing this $90 million on a $10 million “investment.”

To make matters worse, in 2005 the CDO market was starting to dry up. Money managers and investors were starting to realize that mortgage-backed securities were getting too risky, and there was a dwinding appetite for CDOs based on them. Magnetar, however, realized that it could make a killing if the CDO market stayed alive and therefore propped up the CDO market by strategically buying the riskiest portion of the CDOs. This not only propped up the CDO market, it fueled it into record growth. This meant that a housing market that would have likely cooled off without a bubble actually sped up and grew. Along the way tens of thousands of Americans got mortgages they never should have gotten in order to supply the demand for mortgage-backed securities. When the housing bubble burst and the CDOs failed, Magnetar made billions.

The final outrage is that much of the Bush Bail Out Money went to stabilize institutions who made bad decisions in issuing CDSs. Undoubtedly some (or a lot) of Magnetar’s huge profits came from the US Government, via AIG and other financial firms.

In the final analysis, Magnetar seems to have created a scheme for huge profits based on the misfortunes of tens of thousands of Americans and the generosity of the American Taxpayer. You and I paid taxes so that Magnetar and other firms could get paid on bets that they new were sure to pay off because they had gamed the system. This is outrageous.

Please take a minute to watch this video, made by the good folks at This American Life. It sums up the story in about two minutes. CLICK HERE.

Also, please visit this page at Pro Publica CLICK HERE. They are the team of reporters who have broken the story and who have put this all together.

New Mexico Legislature Concludes its Special Session - We Have A Budget

2010-03-05T11:07:00.003-07:00

Yesterday the New Mexico Legislature concluded the Special Session called by the Governor for the purpose of passing a budget for the new fiscal year. It was a terribly grueling process and session. I am copying below a version of the email I sent to my email distribution list yesterday that sums up what we did in the session:

Dear Friends,

I write to update you on what occurred during the recently concluded special session of the New Mexico Legislature. First, and most importantly, I am very pleased to tell you that the legislature passed a balanced budget. It was a very difficult session, but the work is complete, and I would like to share with you some of the details of the new budget.

Regarding the state’s expenditures, the new budget continues the process of cutting waste and unnecessary spending that began at this time last year. With the passage of the new budget, the legislature has reduced state spending by 12% (more than $700 million) from the spending level of just one year ago. We have cut across the board, but we have done so carefully to ensure that critical education, health and human spending has been maintained. With specific regard to education, I am very proud that in spite of the tremendous challenges facing the budget, the House passed a budget package that actually increased classroom funding by $1.7 million. This was critical to my support of the budget because education is so important to the families of our community.

Unfortunately, the Senate failed to act on the full budget package. Because of that inaction, less than the full budget package passed the legislature, and education will see a cut of approximately 1.2%. I am terribly disappointed that education will see a cut. It was not the will of the House, but the Senate simply would not agree to fully fund education.

In spite of the cuts, the legislature found it necessary to increase revenues in order to balance the budget. I voted for a limited and responsible tax package, but I did so reluctantly. I voted for the package in the firm belief that it was the only way to avoid debilitating cuts to education and other critical spending on health care. On the positive side, for the first time in memory the legislature added major progressive elements to our tax code. The inclusion of new progressivity in the tax code has been a major goal of my legislative service, and I am glad to have made significant progress on this front. The tax package includes six elements:

· First, the package includes changes to the state compensating tax, which will begin to level the playing field between New Mexico companies and out of state corporations.

· Second, the package removes the double-deduction for state income tax. This change, referred to as the PIT add-back, means New Mexico joins forty other states that implement this sound tax policy.

· Third, the package increases by 20% the low-income comprehensive tax rebate to reduce and eliminate the impact of the tax changes on low income earners.

· Fourth, the package increases the tax on a pack of cigarettes by $.75 and earmarks a third of that for education.

· Fifth, the package includes a 1/8% increase in the gross receipts tax.

· Sixth, the package includes a provision that ends the exemption food has from locally-imposed gross receipts taxes. This element also ends the outdated tax policy that has sent to city and county governments hundreds of millions of dollars that could have been better spent on important state priorities like education.

Neither the budget nor the tax package is perfect, but we made tremendous progress in making the package vastly more progressive than when the negotiations started. We also provided truly progressive solutions in both the budget and tax package.

During the regular session of the legislature that ended two weeks ago, several important initiatives passed. First, I sponsored in the House the Natural Heritage Conservation Act, which for the first time will allow the state to obtain federal funds for conservation and restoration projects statewide. I also sponsored in the House the legislation that has ended “double dipping,” the practice that used to allow state workers to retire then return to state employment with both a salary and their retirement benefits simultaneously. Both of these measures passed and went to the Governor’s office for action.

I also introduced a bill that would have moved as much as $5 billion of New Mexico’s money from large national banks into community banks and credit unions statewide. The bill, House Bill 66, received national attention and passed the House unanimously but failed to receive a vote on the Senate floor in the final hours of the session. You can read about the bill by clicking HERE. I was deeply disappointed that this bill did not pass, but I will certainly reintroduce it in future sessions if I am reelected to the House. Two other bills I worked on during the session addressed serious environmental problems in New Mexico. I carried bills that would have allowed the state to recover damages for injuries to aquifers and other types of groundwater from industrial pollution and that would have allowed the state to deny permits to “bad actors” that repeatedly violate the terms of their air quality permits. The “bad actor” bill, House Bill 276, was only one vote short of passage in the House. For a complete list of the other bills I carried in the session, including the State Ethics Commission Act and legislation designed to end pay-to-play, please visit the legislature’s website at www.NMLegis.gov.

Finally, I want to thank you for the honor and privilege of serving in the New Mexico House. I am so proud to represent Santa Fe in the House and hope that my service has lived up to the expectations of my constituents and community. Thank you for your time reading this message. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or if I may be of service to you.

Sincerely,

Brian Egolf

New Mexico Representative, District 47

Progress in Moving New Mexico's Money!

2010-02-06T11:46:00.003-07:00

My proposal to move more of New Mexico's money to community banks took a big step on Thursday. The House Business and Industry Committee passed it unanimously, and the bill now goes to the House Appropriations and Finance Committee.

I am greatly encouraged by the bipartisan support of this bill and am optimistic that it will keep up its momentum.

Effort to Move New Mexico's Money to Local Banks Goes National!

2010-01-22T18:42:00.003-07:00

This week I introduced a bill, House Bill 66, that would start the process of moving New Mexico's $1.4 billion main account (it's like our state's checking account) from Bank of America to community banks and credit unions around the state.

So far I've gotten great responses, and today the Huffington Post picked up the story. You can read it HERE.

If we succeed in moving our money, we will be able to make a HUGE investment in our state and in the community banks and credit unions that do so much for regular folks statewide. This investment by the state will greatly expand the access to credit that so many need and will also keep New Mexico's money in New Mexico, where it belongs.

Yuo can follow the progress of the bill HERE.

The White Peak Fight Progresses

2010-01-20T12:27:00.003-07:00

Photo copyright ABQ Journal/EDDIE MOORE

Yesterday, the regular session of the New Mexico Legislature convened. Before the session started, there was a rally of folks from the White Peak area against the Land Commissioner's decision to give away prime hunting land in exchange for less desirable land. The following article describes the rally and the progress on the issue.

White Peak Swaps Protested
Dozens Rally in the Snow Against Land Commissioner Pat Lyons, Policies
By Phil Parker
Journal Staff Writer

State Rep. Brian Egolf told a crowd of protesters at the Roundhouse on Tuesday that he’ll introduce legislation to prevent trades like the controversial White Peak land exchanges planned by the State Land Office.

“That’s the only way I see to get away from precooked, back-room deals,” Egolf, D-Santa Fe, said.

Egolf addressed a camouflage clad throng of dozens of protesters who gathered in the snow to decry the White Peak trades as bad for hunters, with signs that read: “You trade state land for junk land” and “Stop giving away our public lands.” Hunters maintain the Land Office is giving up prime elk hunting territory for less desirable parcels.

State trust lands are managed by the Land Office, often with grazing or drilling leases, to generate money for beneficiaries including schools and prisons.

As legislators took turns firing up the crowd, State Land Commissioner Patrick Lyons, who says the trades of land north of Ocate are needed to solve trespassing, poaching and access disputes, was referenced repeatedly. One protestor held a sign with a crown on it that read: “Lyons is not a King.”

“This is turning into a political free-for-all,” Land Office spokeswoman Kristin Haase said later. “My boss is the only Republican in town, and the Democrats are taking aim. It’s so transparent. It’s political.” Haase said that by consolidating state trust land, the exchanges would allow hunters more access in an area that is now a checkerboard jumble of state and private property.

‘A sham’
Under Egolf’s bill, state trust land would only be disposed of through an open auction after weeks of advertising. Deals agreed upon ahead of time between the Land Office and private property owners would not be allowed before the land is put up for bid.

Egolf called the current bidding process, where the Land Office reached deals before the state’s land parcels were put up for bid, “a sham.” The Land Office did advertise that the White Peak trust land was available, but no one besides the four ranchers the office had negotiated with made offers.

The Land Office wants to trade about 11,000 acres of state trust land around White Peak — plus 40 acres in Albuquerque’s Mesa del Sol area and 3,600 acres just south of Española — for about 9,660 acres from the ranchers.

Egolf also said Tuesday, the first day of the legislative session, that he believes the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office is moving toward challenging the first of the four White Peak trades, between the Land Office and rancher David Stanley, who closed with the Land Office earlier this month. The three other swaps are moving forward but haven’t been completed.

Egolf said “it looks like” the Attorney General’s Office “may be close” to contesting the Stanley deal in court. Egolf said no one with the AG has directly told him that, but he’s reached the conclusion after seeing the office ramp up its review of the trade.

Attorney general spokesman Phil Sisneros said the AG continues to review the deal and “all things are on the table, in terms of our review and intent.” He said Attorney General Gary King “is very much aware of the problems that have been voiced by folks against the White Peak deals going on. He’s also concerned about the transparency in the negotiations, or lack of that.”

With the Stanley deal done, the next trade near completion is with UU Bar Express ranch, which is trading about 3,610 acres in White Peak to the Land Office for 3,431 acres of state trust land. Officials at the Land Office had previously said the deal might close Tuesday, but it was postponed because the Land Office is waiting for feedback from the AG and because title work has yet to be nailed down, according to Bob Stranahan, the Land Office’s chief legal counsel.

Name-calling
At the Roundhouse rally, Ralph Arellanes, a director with the League of United Latin American Citizens, said he was at a briefing held two weeks ago by Lyons, where a hunter from Ocate was loudly questioning the trade. Lyons said, “We don’t need any wiseasses,” and asked that police be called.

“Are we going to let him call us wiseasses?” Arellanes asked the protesters, who replied with a roar. “He thinks the power of money is stronger than the power of people!”

Former Land Commissioner Ray Powell, who is running to regain that post this year, said when he was land commissioner, “I didn’t sell one inch of state trust land.” When issues arose between hunters and private ranchers at White Peak, Powell said, his office would bring them together and mediate.

Powell said that over his 10-year tenure as commissioner he was approached by numerous parties interested in buying or trading for the state trust land in White Peak. He always said no, he said, because White Peak “is one of the few places in the West where you don’t have to be rich to hunt.”

The Land Office’s Haase responded later that Powell was “the commissioner of inactivity.”

“Revenues during his 10-year administration average $160 million per year. Revenues during Pat Lyons’s tenure average $375 million. It’s clear that Pat Lyons is the visionary and the more accomplished land commissioner.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

New White Peak Development - AG Asks Land Commissioner to Halt Swap

2009-12-31T11:18:00.002-07:00

There's more news in the White Peak land swap case: the Attorney General has asked the Land Commissioner to immediately halt all proposed trades at White Peak due to "significant defects" in the appraisals and other "significant concerns" of the AG.

You may recall that the White Peak swap is the proposed transaction where the Land Office seeks to swap state trust lands in the White Peak area for lands around the state. This has upset hunters and others who have long valued having access to the lands being given away by the Land Office. The proposed transactions have also raised in my mind serious questions about how this deal came to be and what analysis was done ensure that this is a good deal for New Mexico.

Among the problems the AG has identified are:
1. Faulty assumption in the underlying appraisals
2. Use of incomparable sales to determine value of the Trust Lands being lost
3. Numerous technical and clerical errors in the appraisal
4. Characterizing a "sale" and a "swap," which avoids additional public process

This is a serious development that will hopefully lead not only to a cancellation of these swaps but to much-needed reform of the Land Office's policies and practices.

I've attached today's ABQ Journal article and the letter from the AG to the Land Commissioner below.

White Peak AG Says Halt - Text

Here is the Attorney General's letter to the Commissioner:

King Letter to SLO

More coverage of the Land Commissioner's Bum Deal Land Trade

2009-12-17T15:14:00.001-07:00

NMPolitics is covering my call for an investigation into the Land Commissioner's White Peak land swap. Hopefully we can get enough attention to stop this bad deal - trading hunting lands for scrub brush.

The article is HERE.

Journal Covers White Peak Land Swap

2009-12-15T11:40:00.003-07:00

Yesterday, I sent letters to the New Mexico Attorney General and the State Auditor asking them to look into the "White Peak Exchange" being done by the Land Commissioner. It's a swap of state trust land for private land that will take thousands of acres of prime hunting land out of the trust and place it into private ownership. This means New Mexicans will no longer be able to hunt there - a real loss to northern New Mexico. In exchange, the trust is getting flat grassland along a remote highway.

Today's Journal North covered the story. You can find the article HERE. And here:
Abqjournal North_ Rep. Ques..

My concern is that the Land Office appears to have done no real analysis to support its argument that this is a good deal for the trust. Congress set aside these land to generate income for the School for the Deaf, the School for the Blind and the seventeen other beneficiaries of the trust. Any transaction undertaken by the Land Office must be done only after a decision is made that the transaction benefits the beneficiaries. When asked directly, the Commissioner was unable to say how this benefits the beneficiaries and was unable to describe the analysis he conducted.

I believe that New Mexicans deserve to know why this swap is being done and why it is a good decision to give up pristine hunting land.

The letters are here:

Letter to Auditor Balderas
Balderas Letter

Letter to Attorney General King

King Letter

Special Session Wrap-Up: Balanced Budget, Education Funding Intact

2009-10-24T10:11:00.003-06:00

The special session of the State Legislature that has just ended. On the important issue of education funding, I am happy to report that I maintained my commitment not to support a bill that reduces funding to our children, teachers, and classrooms. The final budget solvency package contains three key provisions that together mean our schools will not see a reduction in classroom funding.

The first component of the package is a novel provision that swaps state general fund money for unused capital money to reduce the strain on our state treasury while maintaining education levels. The net effect statewide will be a total reduction approximately .7 percent in education funding from the state, which will cause no perceptible change in the classroom. The package also provides an additional source of funding to districts to close the .7% gap to zero by opening up previously restricted funds at the district level. Finally, the package contains a $3 million fund to protect small districts from any unforeseen effects of this funding change. In short, we achieved my main goal of the special session: balance the budget without reducing education funding available to our schools.

In addition to the education funding package, the legislature passed bills that protect Medicaid funding while trimming 7.6% from the budgets of our state agencies and requiring the governor to reduce by 102 the number of exempt positions in the administration. These savings will be achievable without layoffs, furloughs or salary reductions for state workers. Taken together, the entire package achieves solvency for our state budget while reducing recurring expenditures by more than $200 million.

Finally, on the issue of new revenues, I led the fight in the House to have revenue bills considered. I introduced three revenue bills and argued strenuously that they should be considered. Unfortunately, because the governor’s proclamation failed to contain a call to pass new revenue bills, my proposals could not be heard. Though this restriction tied our hands and limited the options to balance the budget, we still found a solution. I will attempt during our next session to raise new revenue so that we can achieve long-term stability in our budget.

On a personal note, I was surprised how difficult the session was. The decisions were heart-wrenching, but I am certain that the legislature did all it could to maintain its responsibility to run our government while minimizing the impact of the budget shortfall on our citizens. I am deeply honored to represent district 47 in the House, and appreciate all the message of support before and during the session. in January we will again have to face hard budget decisions, and I hope to have your input.

Santa Fe New Mexican Highlights Efforts to Increase State Revenues

2009-10-16T20:30:00.002-06:00

The Santa Fe New Mexican today ran an article describing proposals from myself and Senator Wirth to raise new revenues in our state budget in order to avoid drastic cuts to education and health care. You can find the article HERE.

The paper also editorialized in support of our efforts. You can find it HERE.

The Special Session starts tomorrow. It is still a very fluid session as we attempt to fix a $650 million budget deficit. Stay tuned...

New York Passes Major Energy Efficiency Legislation - New Mexico Should Too

2009-09-25T16:18:00.002-06:00

Recently the New York State Assembly passed outstanding legislation aimed at tackling one of the toughest problems we face in the energy arena: how to make buildings more efficient. According to the New York Times, "the bill would enable state energy regulators to loan out funds to cover the upfront costs of improving the energy efficiency of a home or business — as much as $13,000 for residential customers and as much as $26,000 for qualifying businesses. The loan would then be paid back through monthly deductions culled from the energy savings arising from the retrofit." The entire article can be found HERE.

After the last session of our New Mexico Legislature, I think we could get something similar done here. Renewable energy is popular in the legislature, and a measure like the one passed by New York would likely do well. Stay tuned.

More Coverage of Renewable Energy Fight

2009-08-27T11:21:00.003-06:00

Last week, the New Mexico Business Weekly ran two great articles about the PRC fight over renewable energy and monopolization of new installations.

The first article can be found at this link: PNM Wants PRC To Protect Its Turf.

The second is here: PNM's rollback plan gets sunburned.

This issue is really picking up steam. As soon as we have a date for a hearing, I'll post it here.

Terrific Coverage of Our Fight For Clean Energy

2009-08-18T16:59:00.007-06:00

I want to share with you a few of the terrific articles and radio spots covering our fight to protect and encourage renewable energy in New Mexico.

The Santa Fe New Mexican ran a great article on Monday, August 17 by Staci Matlock. You can find it here: Legislators Push Case for Third-Party Power Producers.

This morning, Mark Bentley ran a "Dateline New Mexico" piece on 89.1 KANW on the the fight for renewables in New Mexico. You can hear it by clicking the play button below. It's about four minutes.

Also, an article by Michael Hartranft in the Albuquerque Journal from August 2 lays out very well PNM's plan to limit new residential renewable energy installation and REC payments. The article is a must-read. You can find it here: CLICK HERE. Michael did another good article on the third-party fight. You can find that article HERE.

The public support for renewables and the support of legislators and the Governor is incredible. Please join in the fight; send me an email if you'd like to know how to help out. CONTACT ME.

The President and I Have Something in Common

2009-08-06T09:40:00.002-06:00

Our Birth Certificates!

This can be made here: Kenyan Birth Certificate Generator.

I wonder if I'm eligible to hold my office as State Representative?

Hopefully this humor of this generator will show the "birthers" how ridiculous their claims are.

More Legislators Join the Brief

2009-08-05T10:13:00.002-06:00

Since filing our brief with the PRC, eight more legislators have signed on. They are:

The Honorable Eleanor Chavez

New Mexico Representative, District 13

The Honorable Joni Gutierrez

New Mexico Representative, District 33

The Honorable Clinton Harden

New Mexico Senator, District 7

The Honorable Sandra Jeff,

New Mexico Representative, District 5

The Honorable Patricia Lundstrom,

New Mexico Representative, District 9

The Honorable George Munoz

New Mexico Senator, District 4

The Honorable Cynthia Nava

New Mexico Senator, District 31

The Honorable John Sapien

New Mexico Senator, District 9

Eighteen Legislators Join Me in Critical Renewable Energy Filing

2009-07-31T17:08:00.003-06:00

Today I, along with eighteen other legislators from both chambers, filed an important legal brief with the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission in support of renewable energy in New Mexico. You can view the brief here:

PRC Brief
In this brief, we argue that the renewable energy financing mechanism called a third-party arrangement is legal under New Mexico law. This is important because there is an effort underway to ban such arrangements, which would devastate the growing renewable energy industry in New Mexico and would severely hamper the ability of companies like Sun Edison to do business in New Mexico.

Third-party arrangements help cities, churches and non-profits (entities that cannot take advantage of tax incentive that support renewable energy because these entities do not have tax liabilities) deploy renewable energy generation. The arrangement allows a company to install solar systems at a customer's location while maintaining ownership of the system. In the arrangement, the third-party owner installs, owns, operates and maintains the PV system, charges the customer for the system based on kilowatt hours (kWhs) produced and receives the benefits of owning the system, including state and federal tax credits, depreciation, tax incentives and private investor-owned utility (IOU) cash incentives. The third-party ownership PPA model is fast becoming "the financing method of choice" in many states because of the low or no initial investment cost to the customer. (See Frantzis, L., "Photovoltaics Business Models", National Renewable Energy Laboratory Subcontract Report 581-42304, February 2008.).

In the ongoing effort to support and extend the reach of solar, this case will me a major milestone. Please stay tuned.

The legislators who signed on to my brief are:

The Honorable Ben R. Lujan
Speaker of the House, District 46

The Honorable Mary Jane Garcia
Senate Majority Whip, District 36

The Honorable Sheryl Williams-Stapleton
House Majority Whip, District 19

The Honorable Carlos Cisneros
New Mexico Senator, District 6

The Honorable Nathan Cote
New Mexico Representative, District 53

The Honorable Dede Feldman
New Mexico Senator, District 13

The Honorable Steven Fischmann
New Mexico Senator, District 37

The Honorable Timothy Keller
New Mexico Senator, District 17

The Honorable Lynda Lovejoy
New Mexico Senator, District 22

The Honorable Antonio Lujan
New Mexico Representative, District 35

The Honorable Roger Madalena
New Mexico Representative, District 65

The Honorable Antonio Maestas
New Mexico Representative, District 16

The Honorable Cisco McSorley
New Mexico Senator, District 16

The Honorable Jerry Ortiz y Pino
New Mexico Senator, District 12

The Honorable Benjamin Rodefer
New Mexico Representative, District 23

The Honorable Sander Rue
New Mexico Senator, District 23

The Honorable Jeff Steinborn
New Mexico Representative, District 37

The Honorable Mimi Stewart
New Mexico Representative, District 21

Governor Signs HB 572 - Solar Financing Bill Becomes Law!

2009-04-09T19:22:00.005-06:00

Today, at the Santa Fe Community College's Biomass-powered heating facility, Governor Richardson signed HB 572, my solar financing bill. It was a terrific event at which the Governor also signed a broad range of clean energy bills that encourage development of new renewable energy technologies, incentivize the hiring of new employees for green-collar jobs, and allow counties to issue bonds to pay for new training programs in the renewable energy industry.

Here is the Governor signing the bill:

Here the Governor gives me the pen he used to sign the bill:

Now, the effort moves to the county governments, who must use these new tools to implement solar financing programs.

Discussing the Solar Revolution on KNME

2009-04-05T10:19:00.002-06:00

On Friday, I appeared on KNME Channel 5 (our NM PBS station) to discuss solar energy and the big changes our legislative session made to the solar landscape. I spoke about my solar finance bill, HB 572, and about solar gaining wider adopting and recognition as a cost-effective means of generating electricity.

You may find the video by clicking HERE. If you would like to skip to the segment where I appear, click the progress bar at the bottom of the viewer to 16:25.

Solar Financing Bill Passes Senate Unanimously!

2009-03-20T15:39:00.003-06:00

Great news! Just a few minutes ago, the New Mexico Senate passed HB 572, my solar financing bill, unanimously on a vote of 35-0. The bill can be found HERE.

The bill now goes to the Governor.

Thanks to all of you who have supported me in this effort!

Solar Financing Bill Advances in the Senate

2009-03-15T14:59:00.002-06:00

This morning, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 10-0 to send House Bill 572 to the Senate Finance Committee. With less than a week to go, the bill has to clear one more committee and pass the Senate floor. It may not seem like much time, but in the Round House, a lot can happen in only six days.

Winding Up or Winding Down?

2009-03-10T11:24:00.002-06:00

We have two weeks to go and a great deal of work left to do but here are a few of the things that happened this past week.

How the Process Alters a Bill

HB 572 “Solar Energy Improvement Special Assessments Act” was passed by of the House on Thursday on a vote of 55-7. We now wait for its first Senate hearing to be scheduled in the Judiciary Committee.

There were a few subtle changes to the bill during its progress through the House. The Business and Industry Committee submitted a substitute for the original bill, which added a stipulation to limit the bill to counties with populations between 135,000 and 450,000. It also specified a 10% maximum amount to be attached to the assessment to cover the county’s administrative costs. Language was added in the committee substitute to make it explicit that the county did not become liable in any way for the debt of the property owner.

Then the Taxation and Revenue Committee also amended the bill to strike the language limiting the eligibility to residential property owners and instead opening eligibility to all private landowners. They further amended the bill by adding a provision to limit the lien amount to no more than the amount of the Solar Energy Improvement Special Assessment.

When HB 572 came to the House floor on Thursday, I introduced an amendment, which effectively removed the county-size specification, opening participation to all counties. The amendment was adopted and the bill passed with minimal debate.

My thanks to all of you who attended hearings and showed your support on behalf of this important bill. I will try to keep you informed about committee hearings in the Senate as we try to move this bill as quickly as possible.

Childhood Cancer Therapy

While HB 365, the Insurance for Cancer Therapy for Children Bill, passed the Health & Government Affairs Committee a few weeks ago, it was unfortunately tabled in Business & Industry Committee over the weekend. I will continue to advocate for our children in the future and find ways to support the healthcare coverage for our most vulnerable populations, especially for children fighting cancer.

Surface Owners Notice Bill

While I am unhappy that the Free Market in Energy Restoration Act (HB 219) died in the House Judiciary Committee this week, I feel that we did a great deal to further the issue this session. We fought hard for surface owners and I view this as a temporary setback. I will continue to work with community organizations to address the split estate problem both here in New Mexico and across the West. I also plan to reintroduce this legislation at a future legislative session.

Solar Financing Bill Passes the House 55-7

2009-03-05T14:14:00.002-07:00

This morning, the New Mexico House of Representatives passed HB 572, my solar financing bill, on a vote of 55-7.

The vote was bipartisan.

Now, we are off to the Senate.

Solar Financing Bill Headed to the Floor

2009-03-04T11:49:00.002-07:00

Great News! On Monday, the House Taxation and Revenue Committee unanimously passed HB 572, my solar financing bill. In passing the bill the committee added an amendment to expand the bill from residential properties to commercial properties as well.

Now, the bill heads to the House floor for final passage.

The Session So Far - Solar Financing & Childhood Cancer Bills Advance

2009-03-02T21:49:00.001-07:00

As we enter these last three weeks of the session, I’d like to keep you posted weekly on the work I am doing in the New Mexico House of Representatives. Below, please find brief updates on four pieces of legislation I have introduced and am working hard to pass this session. You can see all of my proposed legislation at:

LIST OF LEGISLATION

Many of you have contacted me about legislation important to you and I hope you will continue to do so. I truly appreciate hearing from you and I will continue trying to respond in a timely fashion.

Sincerely,
Brian Egolf
New Mexico Representative, District 47

HB 367 TO LIMIT PRINTING OF LEGISLATIVE PAPER PASSED UNANIMOUSLY OUT OF THE HOUSE

On Friday, February 27, the “Limit Electronic Records Act” (HB 367) passed out of the House of Representatives with a vote of 64-0. It will be heard next in the Senate Public Affairs Committee.

This bill will greatly reduce the amount of paper printed by all sections the New Mexico state government for the Legislature. The volume of paper distributed to each legislator is staggering and unwarranted. By the end of the session it is likely each legislator could have a dozen printed documents pertaining to each of 943 house bills. With HB 367, even the bills introduced will not be automatically printed and distributed if they exceed five pages. All reports by state entities would be available electronically and also made available as a hard copy upon request. This bill will potentially save a tremendous amount of paper, toner, equipment wear, storage space, and recycling process, not to mention millions of tax-payer dollars.

SURFACE OWNER NOTICE BILL SCHEDULED FOR HOUSE JUDICIARY

The “Free Market in Energy Restoration Act” (HB 219) is first on the House Judiciary Committee schedule for Monday, March 2 in room 309 beginning half hour after the House Floor Session ends.

This bill gives surface landowners the right to know about the lease or sale of mineral rights below their property PRIOR to the completion of the transaction. There are millions of acres of land in New Mexico where the surface owner does not also hold title to the sub-surface mineral rights.

HELP TO HARNESS THE SUN IS IN THE WORKS FOR NM HOMEOWNERS

The “Solar Energy Improvement Special Assessments Act” (HB 572) will assist New Mexican homeowners to install solar systems on their homes for heating and electricity generation. The cost to install these systems has been prohibitive to many homeowners. This bill will create a means to finance solar systems up front and repay loans through property tax payments, rather than to a bank or other financial institution.

HB 572 will be heard Monday, March 2 in the House Taxation and Revenue Committee, starting at 1:30 pm in Room 315. It passed out of the House Business and Industry Committee on Thursday as substituted by HBIC.

HB 365 SEEKS COMPREHENSIVE CANCER THERAPY FOR NM CHILDREN

HB 365 “Insurance for Cancer Therapy for Children” will ensure that all New Mexico children fighting cancer receive the best care their doctor can prescribe. Many insurance formularies do not cover the medical costs associated with clinical trials, which save lives and cure children every year. Regardless of insurance formulary, HB 365 will provide coverage of all prescribed cancer therapies for children to 19 years old, including all of the other associated medical costs, like medicine to combat side-effects of chemotherapy, CAT scans, lab work, and hospitalization.

This bill was passed out of the House Health and Government Affairs Committee on February 12 as substituted by HHGAC. HB 365 currently is awaiting a hearing in the House Business and Industry Committee.

First Major Victory!

2009-02-18T21:45:00.001-07:00

Today in the House Energy and Natural Resources Committee, we passed HB 219, my surface owner notice bill.

This is the bill that gives surface owners notice before the minerals beneath them are leased by an oil company, notice of who owns the minerals, and an opportunity to use a thirty day period to buy the minerals from the mineral owner.

From here, the bill moves to the House Judiciary Committee.

Bill Brings New Solar Opportunities to New Mexico

2009-02-03T20:54:00.002-07:00

Today I introduced House Bill 572, "The Solar Energy Improvement Special Assessment Act" (CLICK HERE). If passed, this bill will revolutionize the way solar systems are installed and financed in New Mexico by vastly expanding the number of homes that can afford an installation.

The bill will allow property owners statewide to opt into special assessment districts, which will then let the owners to finance solar system installations trough their property tax payments. By using this form of financing, property owners will obtain important benefits:

they will be able to avoid the need for up-front capital investment for a solar system installation,
they will be able to finance the systems over longer terms than are available through second mortgages or other financing, which is essential for the system installation to be cost-effective, and
they will be able to make their loan payments through their county's property tax system instead of making payments directly to a bank or other lending institution

This is also a good deal for the lender because:

the loan is secured by a lien on the borrower's property, which stays with the property until the loan is paid
the county assessor collects the loan payments and forwards the money directly to the lender with little effort from the lender
the loan is ultra-secure because it is guaranteed by the borrower's property

Finally, the bill is a great deal for the state because:

it will create many jobs installing and maintaining the solar systems
it will provide a new market for the solar panels that will be manufactured here in new Mexico by our new solar companies
it will reduce New Mexico's reliance on electricity generated by coal-fired power plants

Please keep an eye on this legislation as it moves through the legislature.

Recognizing Local Governments' Authority to Protect Their Citizens

2009-01-29T15:44:00.002-07:00

I introduced a bill today in the House (HB 471), which recognizes a local government's authority to protect its citizens by enacting regulations regarding oil and gas operations.

The bill can be found HERE when the Legislature's website updates this evening.

The bill states that "the legislature recognizes the inherent authority of municipalities and counties to protect the health, safety and welfare of their residents by enacting ordinances protecting water and watershed from oil and gas drilling, imposing reasonable bonding requirements on oil and gas drilling, production and other activities and otherwise regulating oil and gas operations within their respective zoning jurisdictions."

This bill is the mirror-image of Senate Bill 17, which seeks to strip counties and municipalities of their power to regulate oil and gas operations.

I am happy to note that the bill is cosponsored by the Santa Fe House delegation, members of the House's leadership, and Santa Fe State Senator Peter Wirth.

There will be a huge fight over this bill, but it's a fight worth fighting.

Three New Bills

2009-01-27T14:08:00.002-07:00

I introduced three new bills today.

This first requires insurance companies to cover cancer treatment for children, including experimental & clinical trials, regardless of insurance company formularies or other policies. If passed and signed by the Governor, children in New Mexico will be able to get the cancer care they need so long as their doctors thinks they will benefit.

The second will prevent wasteful government printing and mailing of annual reports, calendars, updates, etc. The bill states that there shall be no unsolicited mailing of bound materials in excess of five pages by any state agency, division, board, commission, etc. There is also a penalty for a violation of the law - any cabinet secretary or division director who violates the law will get a ten percent salary reduction.

The third bill creates a new state fund to be used for the purchase of documents and literary works of historical significance to the state that would otherwise be lost to private collections.

The Legislature's website will update this evening to reflect the new bills I introduced today. You can find my bills HERE.

First Day & Swearing In

2009-01-25T20:24:00.006-07:00

Courtesy of my family of photographers, here are some photos of my swearing-in.

Here my father and sister take a moment before coming into the Capitol:

Here my father and I take a photo with Speaker Lujan:

Members of Santa Fe's ROTC presented the colors to the Legislature:

The swearing-in:

First Bill

2009-01-22T13:26:00.002-07:00

I just introduced my first bill.

The Free Market in Energy Restoration Act is House Bill 219 and will be heard in House Committees on Energy and the Judiciary.

The original cosponsors included the Speaker, the House Majority Leader, the Chairman of the Energy Committee and others.

You will be able to follow the bill through the process at www.nmlegis.gov.

Session Almost Underway

2009-01-19T15:37:00.002-07:00

There are less than 24 hours to go before the 49th Legislature of New Mexico convenes in Santa Fe. The pace has been fast for the last week, and it's only going to get faster.

I've got several bills lined up, including two to give surface owners and counties greater protections when oil and gas exploration comes to their area.

Please keep checking this blog frequently as I will be updating regularly.

Fiesta Parade 2009

2008-11-01T16:27:00.004-06:00

This year's annual Fiesta Parade was a lot of fun and saw a huge crowd come out from all over norther New Mexico. As always, the political and campaign floats were a major presence, and for the second year, my campaign was there.

The first step of a successful Fiesta Parade march is the purchase of the candy that we had out to the kids along the route. Here are Kelly & Cameron with this year's candy:

We practically emptied Target's candy aisle! The candy almost lasted through the end of the parade; we'll need more next year.

Just like last year, we decorated the truck with my campaign signs, streamers, balloons, etc.:

Our friend, and long-time Santa Fean, Helen Sanchez rode in the bed to load our walkers' candy bags:

(Photo by LeRoy Sanchez)

Before the parade started, former Lt. Gov. Roberto Mondragon and I chatted for a few minutes:

(Photo by LeRoy Sanchez)

Kelly & Cameron were real troopers:

(Photo by LeRoy Sanchez)

Here I am with the police chief and a few other officers along the way:

(Photo by LeRoy Sanchez)

All together, I walked with fifteen supporters. Here we are crossing through the Plaza:

(Photo by LeRoy Sanchez)

We had a great time and are looking forward to next year.

Boots...Made for walking

2008-05-20T14:13:00.004-06:00

The best part of my campaign has been walking (or biking) door to door throughout the district. District 47 covers about 250 square miles - from Villa Linda Mall to the Ski Basin and from Lamy to Tesuque. When I started walking I decided that I would wear the same pair of boots each time I went out. You can see the results above. These bots have been resoled four times, and they are ready for their fifth.

Talking with voters at their front doors is not just about spreading the message about a campaign. It's more about hearing from voters, learning from them, and making the message of the campaign about them.

Even though I'm unopposed, I'm still going out, and I'm still learning.

Helping out in Las Cruces

2008-05-19T15:09:00.005-06:00

Over the past weekend, Kelly, Cameron & I went to the Las Cruces area to see some family and to help out the campaign of a great State Rep., Nate Cote. Nate is running for re-election to district 53, which was long held by Republican Terry Marquardt. Nate's is a swing district, so he has a lot of walking to do every two years. I walked door-to-door for Nate on Saturday and attended a barbecue for him on Sunday. The folks who came out were very enthusiastic about Nate and about the future of Democrats down south.

One of the most important reasons to hold onto seat like Nate's - other than the fact that he does a great job - is the way the New Mexico Legislature allocates seats in committees to Democrats and Republicans. Though Democrats have the majority now are are very likely to retain in in the next legislature, if the majority shrinks more than a few seats, committee make-up changes throughout the House. This means that the majority is far less useful as committees no longer have decided Democratic advantages. So, by holding onto Nate's seat and several other swing seats in the state, we do a great deal of good for the effectiveness of the Democratic Majority in the House.

I have a few photos from the trip:

Unopposed -- THANK YOU!

2008-03-18T18:35:00.006-06:00

I have just returned home from the County Clerk's office, and have great news to share: I am unopposed on the June 3 Primary Ballot!

This new is thanks to all my supporters' hard work going door-to-door over the past six months, all the house parties, and all the great work circulating my nominating petition. I added up all the numbers this morning, and I found that we had more than fifty volunteers spend over 120 hours going door to door to get nominating signatures. This number is incredibly humbling, and I owe all of them a huge debt of gratitude.

We have a few photos of filing below. I hope you like them:

Kelly & me walking into the Clerk's office:

Cameron & me with my nominating signatures & declaration:

Me & Cameron handing my signatures & declaration to Denise Lamb, Santa Fe's great elections director.

Finally, here are me & Kelly learning that I did not draw a primary opponent or a Republican challenger:

Thanks to all of you again!

Fantastic Volunteer Effort!

2008-03-16T22:07:00.005-06:00

On Sunday, March 16, sixteen volunteers braved some of the windiest and nastiest weather Santa Fe has seen in a long time to go door-to-door throughout District 47 and help me get on the ballot by collecting signatures on my nominating petition.

Here's a photo of the crew, including little Cameron in her campaign T-shirt:

The volunteer support for the campaign has been, and continues to be, amazing. Over the last four weekends, over thirty people have devoted over 120 hours to the campaign going door to door for petition signatures. In addition to the door-to-door effort, many people have been collecting signatures on their own throughout Santa Fe. This show of support is truly humbling, and I am incredibly grateful to all those who have contributed to the effort.

Filing day is less than 48 hours away. When it comes time to file, I will be turning in signatures from every precinct in the district, and the vast majority of the signatures were collected at voters' doors. It was a big task that took a lot of time and planning, but there is no better way to earn support from voters than to meet them at their door and to personally ask for their help.

The experience of meeting voters at their front doors has been an experience I could not have imagined before the campaign began. I can think of no greater motivation for my campaign than the feeling that comes from listening to people tell their stories and express their support in personal meetings at their homes. There is also no better way to learn the concerns of voters or to learn about a legislative district than walking door-to-door. The people of District 47 are truly amazing in the depth of their passion for progressive change and the breadth of their knowledge and experiences. I will truly be an honor to represent them if I am fortunate enough to win the upcoming election.

Thanks for your time and interest in the campaign. Stay tuned for the final tally on the number of signatures we have on my petition...

Why this election is so important.

2008-02-25T21:50:00.004-07:00

Since the beginning of my campaign I've talked about the importance of having members of the legislature who look beyond the end of their two or four years terms in office and instead look twenty years down the road. We will only succeed as a state - and a nation - when our elected leaders have a clear vision of a sustainable future and a clear plan for how to get there.

Ever since Cameron's birth, I have been struck by how much more important the campaign has become to me. When I look into her eyes, I cannot help but feel an even deeper obligation to serve and to try to make New Mexico a better place. I always knew how important it is to serve and to work for a better future, but now I feel it in a stronger and more profound way than ever before.

So, this campaign has truly become a campaign about our children and about the future we will leave for them. I simply cannot stand by and hope that the future will be one with safe schools, clean water, and good jobs. I owe it to Cameron - and all of New Mexico's children - to work every day to make that vision a reality.

The New Energy Future HERE in New Mexico

2008-02-24T10:19:00.004-07:00

A few days ago, the New Mexican ran a story about a new solar energy installation in Arizona that will be one of the the largest in the world. The article can be found HERE.

This is just one more piece of evidence in support of the fact that New Mexico can - and must - be a leader in bringing renewable energy to the United States. With the correct investment incentives in place, the renewable energy industry could make New Mexico a major part of its future.

Consider the benefits that this new solar power plant will bring to Gila Bend, Arizona:

$1 billion in direct investment for the construction and operation of the plant
70,000 Homes powered by clean renewable energy
A tripling of the renewable energy provided by Arizona Public Service
Many new jobs for the operation and maintenance of the plant

Not only will the project bring many benefits, it also uses a new and exciting technology that harnesses the sun's heat to generate the power, not the sun's light. The process looks like this:

At the top of the "central receiver" are liquids that store and retain huge amounts of heat, which is generated by the sunlight reflected from the mirrors below to create heat at 600 times greater than normal solar radiation. An instaled tower looks like this:

New Mexico, like Arizona, is perfectly positioned to take advantage of the growing renewable energy industry. We have the sun, the space, and a proven means to attract the industry. We have shown that with the right incentives and assistance, New Mexico can attract new industry to the state. Look at what we've done with film in just the last ten years. Imagine what we could do if we took the same incentives and programs that brought film to New Mexico and used them to attract the green economy. We could become an exporter of renewable energy and a leader in fighting global climate change.

For more information, please take a moment to visit New Mexico's very own "New Energy Economy" for lots of great insight about the potential benefits renewable energy could bring to New Mexico's future: CLICK HERE.

Basic Rights: Give Surface Owners a Chance

2008-02-11T07:43:00.000-07:00

Ever since the specter of oil and gas exploration and production arrived in Santa Fe, I have been bothered by one simple fact: this never needed to happen.

At the heart of the matter is the fact that oil and gas exploration and production cannot commence without the consent of a mineral rights owner. Without the mineral rights owner's signature on a lease of his or her rights to a producer, the status quo is preserved, and our community remains intact.

So, how could the current situation -- the threat of thousands of new wells stretching from Soccorro to Nambe -- have be prevented? It could have been prevented in large measure by a state law giving surface owners the right to purchase mineral rights from the mineral rights owner before the mineral rights owner leases them to a production company.

If elected, I will introduce this as the first bill during my service in the New Mexico Legislature.

With such a law in place, imagine how the situation in Santa Fe County might have played out. Hundreds of surface owners would have received notice that the minerals beneath them were up for lease to exploration and production companies. The surface owners would have been given the opportunity to purchase the minerals beneath them at fair market value, and many would have done so. With their newly acquired mineral rights, many surface owners would refuse to grant leases to operators, thus making the operators' job vastly more difficult, if not impossible.

This law could apply with equal force to mineral rights owned by both the state and by individuals. There would be no "takings" problem with the law because the mineral rights owners would receive fair market value for their mineral rights should they choose the sell. Most importantly however, this law would finally put the surface owner on a level playing field with the mineral rights owner. This would justify the law's passage all by itself.

Drilling Threat Gives us Wonderful Opportunity

2007-12-13T22:15:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday, the New Mexican published an Op-Ed I wrote about the threat of oil and gas exploration arriving in Santa Fe County. In short, I think the threat gives the County government the opportunity to restore the balance of power between the people, the special interests and the corporations in favor of the people.

By passing strong legislation restricting oil and gas operations in the County, the County Commission can show the rest of the United States that it is possible to stand firm and defend the interests of the regular folks the commissioners represent.

The text of the Op-Ed is below, and the link is here: Op-Ed

My View: Drilling Issue Presents Civic Opportunity

By Brian Egolf |

12/9/2007

To paraphrase Mark Twain: Nothing focuses one's attention quite so much as the prospect that your community and your way of life may be radically disrupted by forces and events that seem beyond your control.

The arrival in Santa Fe County of oil and gas wildcatters has brought such focus to our community, and this attention and energy give us an incredible opportunity. We have the chance to restore the will of the people to its proper place in the debate and to shift the balance of power in favor of our community.

For too long, political debate has ignored the will of the people in favor of the will of special interests. Special interests have sought to take without contributing their fair share and inevitably leave ordinary people and communities shouldering the burden of their activities. Oil and gas exploration in Santa Fe County is a perfect example: Our community will shoulder an enormous burden should exploration and production commence but will reap few, if any, benefits.

The activities of the wildcatters (who arrive first) and the major corporations (who inevitably come later) pose serious threats to our water, our land, and ur air. In return, they offer nothing but empty promises. The revenues generated will be a pittance compared to the economic and social consequences to Santa Fe, and the impact of their operations could last for many generations after they leave.

Our county government has a golden opportunity to show the rest of the country what government can do when it acts in the best interests of the people. Our county can enact a tough ordinance to ensure that we preserve the things that make Santa Fe such a special place to live and raise a family.

By doing that, we will tell industry that it must, for once, bear the true costs of its activities.

Some may fear that industry will bring lawsuits to tear down tough ordinances or to remove safety laws. We should not shirk from the fight and should not be intimidated by such threats. The ground on which the county government stands in defending safety and health ordinances is the strongest ground on which it can ever stand. Attempts to use the courts to defeat protective ordinances may succeed, or they may fail. But we will surely win no matter the outcome because we can never lose when standing to defend ourselves. Compared to the costs of the effects of lightly regulated oils and gas exploration and production, the costs of defending the lawsuits that may come will be insignificant. It is far better to face and defend a lawsuit than to face the destruction of our homes, land and water at the hands of those who do not care about the effects they create, or for the future they leave behind.

I urge the county government to recognize the importance of the days ahead and to seize this important opportunity to stand up for those they represent. In passing an ordinance that contains stronger bonding requirements, stronger set-back requirements, and stronger aquifer protections, our county government will be restoring the balance to the debate and will long be remembered for their courage and foresight.

Brian Egolf is a Santa Fe water lawyer and a candidate for the State House, District 47.

Depleted Uranium and Oil Drilling in Santa Fe

2007-11-18T10:33:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, November 15, the Santa Fe County Commission hosted a session at El Dorado Elementary School along with Reps. Peter Wirth and Rhonda King to talk about the arrival of oil and gas prospectors in Santa Fe. The panel members discussed the Surface Owners Protection Act and about the ongoing process to develop a new Oil & Gas Ordinance for Santa Fe County.

The crowd was quite large, and the energy in the room was very encouraging. Clearly, the threat of oil rigs and the associated consequences arriving in Santa Fe has stirred a powerful force among the population of the Galisteo Basin.

(Photo used with the permission of Tony Bonanno)

I spoke about three serious issues raised by the arrival of drilling operations:

The risk that fracturing operations will contaminate the Galisteo Basin Aquifer
The possibility that depleted uranium will be used to perforate the well bores
The fact that the Galisteo Basin (and all the people who live there) is entirely dependent on groundwater. Thus, contamination puts drinking water for thousands of people in serious jeopardy with very little possibility that replacement water can be found.

I want to briefly discuss the perforation process because it's been getting very little attention despite the serious effects it could have in Santa Fe.

Perforation is the phase of production in which high explosives are used to blast through the cemented casing that is put in place after the drilling phase is completed. The casing needs to be perforated so that the oil and gas in the reservoir can flow into the casing and back to the surface. Click HERE for a good overview of the process of drilling a well.

This is what a completed well looks like:
This is what the perforation process looks like:

This is what one type of a "perf gun" looks like:

The principle behind the perforation technology is the use of shaped charges, the same technology used to make IEDs in Iraq. The concept is that a shaped charged turns a hemisphere of metal into a molten projectile that travels into the rock surrounding the well bore to open it up and thereby allow the fracturing fluid to travel into the oil & gas bearing formation.

It works like this:

This is how the charge is put together:

The problem here is that in some applications, the perforation guns use depleted uranium as the metal that penetrates into the formation. You can see patent applications for such devices here:

Application No. 1 (by SCHLUMBERGER), Application No. 2 (by Owen Oil Tools LP). The extent to which depleted uranium is used in the United States is unclear, but the prospect should be taken seriously, and I hope that the County will address this urgent matter in its new ordinance.

Needless to say, the prospect that depleted uranium could be used to open up oil and gas reservoirs in Santa Fe County is a serious concern. This should be a main focus of the County's drafting of its new Oil & Gas ordinance.

I a future post, I will talk about the risk that the fracturing process may create vertical fractures that could contaminate the Galisteo Basin aquifer.

GA Gov's Drought Solution: Pray for Rain

2007-11-14T13:36:00.000-07:00

As you may know, Georgia and large parts of the southeastern portion of our country are undergoing serious drought conditions that have persisted for as long as twenty months in some places. The situation is dire, and this is happening in a region that (unlike the Southwest) is unaccustomed to droughts of this magnitude or duration.

(Photo by the AP)

Today, in an effort to address the problem, Georgia's Governor Sonny Perdue did one of the most absurd things I have ever seen a public official do: he organized an official state-sponsored "Pray for Rain" event at the State Capitol. Here he is praying for rain:

(Photo by the AP)

Now, I have no problem with people praying for rain. I do, however, have a problem with the Governor of a State doing so as if it were a realistic approach to solve the crisis facing his State. The Governor seems to forget that the problem in Georgia is the result of years of bad planning and short-sighted decisions about irrigation and development. Instead of being serious about the problem, he decided to pray. Incredible.

One thing I'm praying for is that our elected officials at the state, county, and city levels start to get serious about the situation we face in New Mexico and begin to talk seriously about conservation on a much bigger scale and about how to grow in a responsible way within our water budget. I learned yesterday that Santa Fe's water supply seems secure until 2040. After that, who knows what will happen. If we do nothing, we'll be in a terrible position.

In spite of the Governor of Georgia's bizarre approach, there are some people in Georgia who are taking a better approach and communicating a message in a great way:(Photo by the AP)

This is a group of Georgia football fans at a recent game promoting conservation. I have no doubt that this will do more than the Governor's efforts.

Living with Wolves & the NM Wilderness Alliance

2007-11-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

Last night Kelly & I attended a showing of Living with Wolves sponsored by the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance. The film and presentation by Jim and Jamie Dutcher were fantastic and revealed a side of wolves that I'd never seen before.

I've always been interested in efforts to reintroduce wolves throughout the West and believe that reintroduction is very important to restoration of healthy ecosystems. The movie and presentation reinforced this belief, but more importantly it showed how wolves live in small social groups that are far more advanced that I'd previously known.

Most impressive to me was the footage of Jim and Jamie interacting closely with the wolf pack and clearly forming meaningful bonds with them.

I encourage you to check out the film and the Dutchers' work.

Drilling in the Galisteo Basin

2007-11-01T21:38:00.000-06:00

Tonight Tecton Energy held a public forum at the Genoveva Chavez Community Center in Santa Fe's South Side. The turnout was amazing, and the crowd was decidedly (and deservedly) anti-drilling.

(Photo by Tony Bonanno)

The issue is whether Tecton should be allowed to commence drilling for oil in the Galisteo Basin south of Santa Fe. Many of the landowners in the affected area do not own the mineral rights beneath their lands, and they are therefore subject to drilling when Tecton leases the mineral rights from the mineral rights owners. Thus, Tecton may be able to enter land without the consent of the surface owner to drill for oil.

The evening consisted of a brief presentation from Tecton and numerous comments from the community.

I spoke about the deep concerns I have regarding the inability of Tecton to ensure that they will not irreversibly damage the aquifer in the area. To me, the issue is about whether my kids will be growing up in a community that is safe, clean, and sustainable. I am also deeply concerned by the inability of Tecton to address serious questions regarding the source of the water they will need to operate and the inability of Tecton to ensure the community that the effects of their operations will be mitigated in the short-term and eliminated in the long-term.

Right now there are many more questions unanswered than answered. One this is for sure, however: this is not a good development for the Santa Fe area, and the community needs to continue to be mobilized to protect our land and water.

More photographs can be found here: PHOTOS.

New Mexico Environmental Law Center Anniversary

2007-10-25T23:17:00.000-06:00

Tonight the New Mexico Environmental Law Center celebrated its twentieth anniversary. It's a wonderful organization, and Kelly and I were happy to attend the festivities.

The Center provides legal services to communities throughout New Mexico that cannot afford representation on their own and that are facing serious environmental threats. It has been an amazing advocate for two decades in preventing the construction of new incinerators in New Mexico and has been a leading defender of clean water in New Mexico.

For a big part of 2007, Kelly had the Center as a client of her consulting business. She helped the Center improve its fundraising capacity and reach into the community.

If you have a moment to visit the Center’s site, I encourage you to.

Fiesta Parade

2007-10-22T20:56:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago I walked with supporters in the annual Santa Fe Fiesta Parade. It was a great day, and I met many Santa Feans along the way.

Welcome to our campaign blog

2007-10-22T20:42:00.000-06:00

Welcome! This is the official blog of Brian Egolf's campaign for the New Mexico House of Representatives -- District 47.

I'm running for the legislature because I want my children -- and all the children of New Mexico -- to be able to raise their families in New Mexico. Over the next eight months, I will be running an inclusive campaign to bring Santa Fe together around a progressive agenda. Together we can find a sustainable way to live in our community, and I hope that you'll be a part of the effort.

I hope that you'll find this a great way to follow the progress of my campaign, and I look forward to hearing from you.

-- Brian