'An issue they will be forced to confront'

Local governments join guv in not doing enough to prepare for coming budget cuts

The Las Cruces Sun-News’ Walt Rubel pointed out in a weekend column that local governments in Doña Ana County are doing little to help the state deal with a massive budget deficit over the next 18 months that’s approaching $1 billion -- but, then again, neither is the governor who asked them to pitch in.

Asked to cooperate with the state finance department’s efforts to identify some $200 million in capital outlay money that has already been approved but can be deauthorized, the City of Las Cruces came up with only one project -- a skeet shooting range for which $65,000 had been set aside. While that isn’t much, it’s better than any other government within the county, because it was the only project any of them identified for deauthorization.

The problem for the local governments is stated in a letter from the state Rubel quotes in his column:

“Local governments that do not recommend capital appropriations for potential deauthorization will lose the opportunity to indicate which priority projects need to reach completion,” the letter states.

Do these local governments think they are somehow going to escape cuts in already appropriated money when the Legislature and governor both want to cut those projects by $200 million? Many are trying. In fact, what local governments around the state have largely done is, in record numbers, submitted invoices to the state to cash in on their already approved capital outlay funds and get them spent before the state can take them away.

Gov. Bill Richardson has done his own share of not doing his part to aid in the coming budget cuts, Rubel pointed out. In the month before the hiring freeze he ordered for state government took effect, his administration made 416 new hires.

“If Gov. Richardson isn't able to convince his own administration as to the significance of the state’s current financial mess and the appropriate steps needed to deal with it, how can he expect city and county leaders to do their part?” Rubel asks.

Rubel points out that the state has gotten used to having lots of money to spend, and writes, “The idea of actually making budget cuts must, by now, seem a foreign concept to many. But it’s an issue they will be forced to confront next month, ready or not.”

He’s right. The current estimate is that the state has to deal with a $450 million budget shortfall in the current fiscal-year budget and an additional $400 million in next year’s budget. And that’s based on current oil and gas prices. It could get even worse before lawmakers convene on Jan. 20 to address both budgets.

Meanwhile, the state is preparing a $1.8 billion wish list to give to President-elect Barack Obama’s administration next month, the Albuquerque Journal is reporting. Obama has announced a massive project to boost the economy through spending on infrastructure, and the state has to be thinking that some of what it now can’t fund because of the coming budget cuts, it just might get cash for from the feds.

Click here to read the full list of projects on the current draft of the list.

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