Episode 703 | NM Water Rights, The New Public Defender Commission, NM Employment & Education

This week on New Mexico In Focus, the series on water continues. NMiF correspondent Gwyneth Doland sits down with State Engineer Scott Verhines and Estevan López, director of the Interstate Stream Commission, to talk about water rights and the state’s plans to meet future demand.

The Line Opinion Panel looks at the controversy over Gov. Susana Martinez’s nomination of a career prosecutor to the new Public Defender Commission. Critics say it goes against the intent of creating an independent Public Defender’s Office, which happened last year through a constitutional amendment. They argue Susan Riedel does not have the requisite experience to serve on the oversight commission.

And The Line also discusses a new report that indicates New Mexico will have 335,000 new job openings in 2020 but only 152,000 workers with the job skills and education required to fill them. The study by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce finds that job growth will be fastest in the mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction industries, as well as education services and health care. How can the state’s educational system prepare to meet these demands?

The panel also discusses the phenomenon of farmers and ranchers, financially stressed by drought, selling their water rights to the oil and gas industry for hydraulic fracturing.

Host: Gene Grant

Guest:
Scott Verhines, State Engineer of New Mexico
Estevan López, Director of Interstate Stream Commission

Correspondent: Gwyneth Doland, NMiF correspondent

Line Panelists:
Dan Foley, former NM House Republican whip
Sophie Martin, former editor-in-chief, New Mexico Law Review
Larry Ahrens, host, “The Morning Brew”

Line Guest: Diane Denish, former lieutenant governor of New Mexico

The Producer of NEW MEXICO IN FOCUS is Matt Grubs. Associate Producer is Kathy Wimmer. Funding for this program was provided in part by the McCune Foundation. Subscribe to the New Mexico in Focus Podcast on iTunes.

Episode 703 for air July 19, 2013