Jam-Packed Session Puts Process Under the Microscope

A whirlwind of a 30-day legislative session has come to a close in Santa Fe. The priority of these shorter, even-year sessions is of course the budget, but every year it seems the governor and lawmakers cram more and more onto the docket. That’s not a criticism of their work, as many of those non-budgetary items are in sincere need of immediate attention.    

As we watched the to-do list for lawmakers unfurl like a CVS receipt, we also noticed some unusual and concerning trends in the process of getting many measures through. And we weren’t the only ones. If you missed Santa Fe New Mexican columnist Milan Simonich’s piece this week, it was more than just an unflattering comparison of the oratory skills of the late Jesse Jackson to those of Senate Finance Committee Chair George Muñoz. Simonich also highlights the lack of transparency in the budget making process — not just to the public but to other lawmakers on that very committee. Marjorie Childress, the managing editor at New Mexico In Depth, chose a different issue to illustrate the blind spots this jam-packed legislative process has created — medical malpractice reform.    

It’s something the governor and some legislators have presented as the antidote for the doctor shortage that’s plaguing our state. It’s an issue almost everyone was paying close attention to, from those opposed to those in favor, to those who just want to be able to see their doctor in a reasonable amount of time. But the bill that went into the Senate Judiciary Committee reappeared with some surprises. Here’s how Childress characterized it: 

Rather than moving promptly to a hearing at its next stop — House Judiciary, chaired by the sponsor, Rep. Christine Chandler of Los Alamos — it entered a holding pattern while Chandler negotiated changes with people representing various interests. Those revisions subsequently passed her committee and then both chambers. That revised bill now makes its way to the governor for her signature.  

Who was among those stakeholders, who have been held up as agreeing to a compromise captured in the final version of House Bill 99? There is no public list. No meeting records. No formal accounting of who helped shape legislation that will reshape New Mexico’s medical malpractice landscape. 

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get into those transparency concerns during our roundtable this week, but you can read Childress’s full story here. 

And make sure you watch to see the items we do get to in what was a dense but fun conversation with some of our favorite guests, former state legislators Eric Griego and Dede Feldman, as well Michael Bird, the former president of the American Public Health Association. We hope you enjoy the show. 

-Lou DiVizio, Senior Producer