House committee likes smell of chile bill: The 2023 bill that has gotten perhaps the most attention outside of New Mexico received another favorable vote Saturday morning.

The House, Government and Indian Affairs Committee voted unanimously to advance Senate Bill 188, which is being sponsored by Sen. William Soules, D-Las Cruces, and would make the smell of roasting green chile New Mexico’s official state aroma.

“I love that we spell it with an e, which is proper, unlike Colorado, which doesn’t have real chile,” said Rep. John Block, R-Alamogordo.

There was little debate on the bill, other than some good-natured ribbing between the two chambers. If the bill passes the House, it will have to go back to the Senate for concurrence to an amendment due to an error in the original chamber — the Senate had intended to amend the bill to make roasting green chile the state’s aroma all year, not just “in the fall” as the bill originally said. The House committee readded it to the bill Saturday.

Job applicant secrecy stalls: A bill to keep secret the names of all applicants but the three finalists for appointed executive jobs, such as school superintendent, stalled on a 4-4 vote in the House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee this morning.

Supporters of Senate Bill 63 said it would encourage more people to apply for jobs, while opponents worried about reduced transparency. An amendment was proposed Saturday to release voluntarily reported demographic data on job applicants, although this apparently wasn’t enough to sway the two Democrats and two Republicans who voted against the measure. One Republican and three Democrats voted in favor.

Gov. appoints new Game and Fish commissioner: Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Friday that Edward Garcia, a philanthropist and car dealership owner, is her latest appointee to the State Game Commission as an at-large member.

Garcia is the governor’s second appointment to the understaffed commission in the past couple of weeks — she also recently named wildlife biologist Fernando Clemente to the commission. Garcia’s appointment brings the commission up to five members.

The governor’s news release noted Garcia is “an outdoor enthusiast who enjoys walking, hiking and fly-fishing along the Pecos River in San Miguel County.” He has also been a generous campaign contributor over the years, giving money mostly to Democrats but to some Republicans as well. Garcia gave $10,400 to Lujan Grisham’s campaign in July 2022, according to campaign finance records. 

Paid leave vote delayed: After hours of debate and public input Friday, members of the House Commerce and Economic Development Committee decided to put off voting on a bill that would create a paid family and medical leave plan for New Mexico. 

A roughly $36 million fund created under Senate Bill 11 would allow employees to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave for the birth of a child or to care for themselves or a family member when they’re sick. Employees also would be allowed to take time away from the workplace if they’re dealing with domestic violence. Employees wanting to take part in the benefit have to pay into the fund for at least six months. 

Many small business owners spoke against the bill during Friday’s committee hearing, contending it’s already difficult enough paying higher wages just to keep people on staff in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Some said it’s an example of government overreach and extra taxation and said they do their best to make sure their employees are happy and cared for. Some said they would probably have to close or relocate across the state border to Arizona to stay in business.

Supporters said the measure is the right thing to do for workers who toil with few benefits and who often cannot take much, if any, paid time off if they are sick or having a baby.

For the most part, Republicans have opposed the bill as it has made its way through the Legislature. But a few Democrats, including some on House Commerce and Economic Development, have spoken out against the bill, noting it would hurt small businesses that are struggling. In addition, many have questioned whether the leave fund would remain solvent and what would happen if it goes into the red.

Rep. Linda Serrato, D-Santa Fe, who co-sponsored SB 11, agreed to roll the bill over to a future hearing so she can work on it more to win committee approval. It is not clear when it will be heard again, though the committee is scheduled to meet Monday.

Quotes of the day: “When we are on this floor, if you say one word from up there — if you wave, if you clap, if you do any of that — all of you are out of this building! Do you understand? Somebody say something!” —Paula Ulibarri, Senate sergeant-at-arms, yelling at a group of doctors in the Senate gallery while waving her finger before the start of today’s floor session. Ulibarri accused the doctors of disrupting a committee meeting earlier in the day.

“If the sergeant-at-arms would like to talk to me about it, I would be glad to talk to her about it. But let’s stop the rumor. Let’s stop treating the doctors rudely. They have saved our lives over the last three years.” —Sen. Craig Brandt, R-Rio Rancho, who denied the doctors disrupted a meeting. He said the doctors stood up and clapped after he thanked them and made a statement about medical malpractice during a moment of personal privilege during the meeting.