Action on Tax for Sufficient Funding Delayed. Increased Retirement Withholding on Way to Passage

Action Delayed on Tax Bill for Sufficient Funding

 

House Bill 346, which provides the funding for the formula set out in HB 331, received a do-pass recommendation from the important House Appropriations and Finance Committee late Monday afternoon and is on the House Calendar.  .  It was amended to allow for a .75% increase in Gross Receipts Tax.  (Senate Bill 412, introduced by Senator Cynthia Nava, does the same thing.  One of these bills or a bill raising similar revenue must pass in order for House Bill 331 to become effective.)   The measure was continually passed over yesterday as the House conducted its business.  Evidently House Democratic leaders did not believe that they had enough votes to pass the measure. House Bill 346 remains on the calendar as the second item of action for today; however, if enough votes for passage cannot be garnered for passage, it will likely continue to be passed over.

 

Follow this link to find your House member and office phone number. Call before the House convenes this morning at

10:30 AM

with the message to support HB 346.

 

Bill to Increase Retirement Withholding Passes Senate Public Affairs Committee

 

House Bill 854 received a unanimous do-pass recommendation from the Senate Public Affairs Committee yesterday.  The Budget train appears on a track for final passage soon.  The likelihood of derailing this train in this regular session of the legislature is dim.  Legislators feel the budget deficit is simply too severe to change course.  However, continue to ask senators to kill this measure.  Continue calling all to ask all Senators to raise revenues, not cut teacher and other school employee pay!  This is still some chance to ask the Governor to veto this measure or to change in the almost certain special budget session the legislature that will occur when new revenue projections are made and when the full effect of the federal stimulus package are known; this session could happen next month or perhaps as late as July.

 

House Bill 854, sponsored by Representative Saavedra, is a part of the budget package and will cut school employees’ and state employees pay by 1.5% for two years. House Bill 854 increases the employee contribution to the pension fund 1.5% and reduces what the state is paying into the pension fund 1.5%. The measure would take hundreds of dollars out of the average school employee’s pocket. House Bill 854, well intentioned thought it might be, targets a select group of employees for a pay cut.

 

In the Senate House Bill 854 received two committee referrals. Its next stop is the Senate Finance Committee.  Call   Committee Members  with this simple message:

Choose a new revenue source to use to balance the budget.  Don’t single out public employees with a 1.5% pay cut to balance the budget. Do not pass House Bill 854.

In addition to being, on its face, a highly unfair targeted tax increase, the plan to dock workers 1.5% is a direct hit to the

New Mexico

economy.  It targets

New Mexico

families and only

New Mexico

families.  Further, the vast majority of the affected workers make between $15,000 and $70,000/year.  These are working class and middle class families who spend the money they take in, helping to keep the

New Mexico

economy moving.

 

Follow this Link to Send a message opposing HB 854 to Senators and the Governor  

 

Funding

Formula

Bill

Passes

House

House Bill 331, sponsored by Stewart changes our state's outdated funding formula. The bill would base school funding on student needs including poverty, ELL, enrollment growth and other factors. House Bill 331 passed the House Monday on a near party-line vote with most democrats voting for the bill and most republicans voting against.  The measure received a do-pass recommendation from the Senate Education Committee yesterday.  It now moves to the Senate Finance Committee where it died last year without a hearing. 

 

Follow this link to find your Senator and office phone number. Contact all Senators with the message that this important measure at least deserves a hearing in the Senate Finance Committee this year.

Using the revenues form House Bill 346 or Senate Bill 412 and the new funding formula laid out in House Bill 331, there is sufficient revenue to meet the constitutional requirement to fund schools sufficiently.

 

Any reason to oppose tax increases for public schools should have been removed when a recent poll found New Mexicans willing to pay higher taxes for public schools.  NEA New Mexico and the other members of the New Mexico Education Partners funded a poll released last Friday.  The poll found that the majority of

New Mexico

’s registered voters (59%) support increasing

New Mexico

's gross receipts tax by three-quarters of one percent for additional public school education.  When told that school funding would be cut without the tax increase, even more voters supported the increase. Registered voters who were opposed or undecided about the tax measure were asked a follow up question in which they were informed that due to the state budget deficit, public school funding will probably be reduced starting this year. They were then asked whether they support or oppose the three-quarter of one percent gross receipts tax increase for public school education. In total, 64% of registered voters either initially support the tax or support the tax measure after being informed that public school funding will probably be reduced this year. Follow this link for the poll results.

It is still possible to get both bills on the same track in the House.

Keep asking Legislators to both create a better way to flow funding to schools and the needed increases in revenues for that funding formula.

Follow this link to send an email message on sufficient funding to your Senator