Albuquerque Journal--By creating a rental database, Albuquerque would be able to gather data about the city’s residential rental market, improve communications between the city and landlords, and protect the health and well-being of rental occupants.
Santa Fe New Mexican--Through the Opportunity Enterprise Fund, there is now $70 million available “to increase economic activity in the state by providing financing for new or existing commercial facilities to attract businesses to New Mexico communities and allow existing businesses to expand their operations.”
NM Political Report--“Research shows what types of public policy is most impactful for reducing child poverty. Earned income tax credits and child tax credits are some of the most effective ways to reduce child poverty. It was one of the most critical bills under consideration at the legislature,” Wallin said.
Carlsbad Current Argus--Guns are the leading cause of death for kids in New Mexico, with the largest share of gun deaths being suicides. Legislators have the opportunity to protect our children from gun violence with common-sense regulations during this legislative session.
NM In Depth--Just because a particular tax is regressive doesn’t mean it can’t be a part of a pro-poor agenda, according to Sharon Kayne, a spokesperson for New Mexico Voices for Children. The nonprofit has long supported increases in alcohol and tobacco taxes, she said, and voiced support for an alcohol tax increase during the Monday hearing.
Carlsbad Current-Argus--“When oil and gas companies waste resources, the state loses critical tax and royalty revenue and families and children suffer from the loss of investment in schools and other critical public services,” Wallin said.
Carlsbad Current-Argus--Children are especially vulnerable to the consequences of climate change, which include extreme heat, poor air quality, drought, flooding, and wildfires. However, this legislative session, lawmakers have the opportunity to protect New Mexicans from these threats to public health by passing the Public Health and Climate Resiliency Act.
NM Political Report--New Mexico continues to sit last in the U.S. for reading and math proficiency but the rates of those proficiencies over the long term have improved at a higher rate when compared to the U.S. rates, Wildau said. “It’s not as high as we’d like but we have seen improvements. And the number of improvements are stronger over the long term than the U.S. as a whole,” Wildau said.
Associated Press--The advocacy group New Mexico Voices for Children is pushing for lawmakers to increase by nearly four-fold an existing state $175 child tax credit, saying that would help to offset the loss of the extra federal benefits and address the continued financial fallout from the pandemic for low-income families.
Santa Fe New Mexican--On a positive note, more young New Mexicans are enrolled in prekindergarten programs than at any time in the past decade, the 2022 data shows. Wallin attributed this change to recent investments in New Mexico’s early education system: It’s “one of our strong suits.”