(Albuquerque) The Rio Grande Foundation has tracked floor votes in New Mexico’s Legislature from the perspective of individual freedom (both economic and under the US Constitution) for several years. Final results for the 2019 Legislature are available now. Unlike most legislative “scorecards,” the Foundation’s Freedom Index tracks hundreds of bills (more than 800 bills were […]
Job growth dismal Las Cruces businessman Dave Hooker hit a nerve when he complained about the city’s business climate. He said many things that the Rio Grande Foundation has been saying for years about economic policies in Las Cruces and the state. A few letter-writers took issue with Hooker, but the proof is in the […]
A Las Cruces businessman recently wrote a detailed critique of the business climate in Las Cruces. We at the Rio Grande Foundation have been concerned as well by the political and policy changes happening in the City and how they will impact the economy. The author cites permits and impact fees, water and sewer rates, […]
Paul interviews Mike Nasi of the Life Powered Initiative. Nasi, a native New Mexican, recently wrote a detailed critique of the recently-passed “Energy Transition Act,” legislation which will result in the shutdown of the San Juan Generating Station and a shift to 50% “renewable” electricity by 2030. Nasi’s article generated a response from US Senator Martin Heinrich who lamely […]
As we posted earlier in the week, the City of Albuquerque’s plans to up transit spending are a waste of money. But, there is another major mass transit project operating in New Mexico that, while operational, is an enormous boondoggle. That is the Rail Runner of course. Basically, when taken as a whole, the sorry […]
The ART system isn’t running at all and won’t be for over a year, but Mayor Keller’s billion dollar budget proposal includes money for it AND increases overall transit spending by 8.7 percent. As big of a waste as ART has been it is not as if Albuquerque’s bus system in general has been a […]
On this week’s podcast Paul and Wally discuss Albuquerque’s first-ever billion dollar budget as proposed by the Keller Administration and what taxpayers are getting for their money. Wallethub says New Mexico is the 2nd worst state in the nation for Millennials. Are they right? If so, why is NM at the top of yet another […]
We’ve already written in this space that the 2019 legislative session was the worst we’ve witnessed. Gov. Lujan-Grisham didn’t alter the session’s trajectory by vetoing any of the worst bills of the session. We’d hoped that the National Popular Vote might be veto-worthy, but late in her veto session she signed that one too. Where […]
The Rio Grande Foundation is a state-wide think tank. If you can get a good number (20 or more) of folks to come out for an event, we’ll likely be willing and able to show up and provide data and information about what is happening in New Mexico. Foundation president Paul Gessing recently spoke in […]
New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich does a lot of name-calling and obfuscating in an opinion piece that appeared in the Albuquerque Journal today about the recently-passed Energy Transition Act. The Rio Grande Foundation has staunchly opposed mandates that New Mexicans must use more so-called “renewable” energy, but Heinrich is a full-throated supporter of such policies. […]
