State analysts are ‘spotlighting’ how New Mexico’s capital outlay funds are being spent
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SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Lawmakers have threatened to cut the cord on the reauthorization of billions of dollars in state funding for big projects that have sat unspent. Facing that criticism, state analysts are exploring a new tactic to keep lawmakers up to speed on the projects and help keep an eye on the money.
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The new “spotlights” are meant to show lawmakers which projects are completed and in progress, in the areas they are visiting during the interim. Earlier this year, lawmakers heard how roughly five billion dollars is sitting unspent in capital outlay projects throughout New Mexico. “At some point, we have to say enough is enough because we’re sitting on this money,” said Senator Crystal Diamond Brantley (R-Elephant Butte) in February.
Legislators on both sides of the aisle expressed frustration and went so far as to say they wouldn’t reauthorize funding because of this: “We’re going to draw the line in the sand and say, ‘we can’t get it done,'” said Sen. George Munoz (D-Gallup).
Amid that criticism, the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) is now taking a new step to shine a light on capital outlay projects in the works or finished.
“What we wanted to do is give you a more specific sense of what needs these local dollars are targeting in the communities you’re traveling to; what their outstanding unfunded [sic] needs are; and also especially focus on the outcomes these investments are having by taking kind of a deeper look at specific projects,” said Cally Carswell, an analyst with the LFC.
This is the first time the LFC analysts have done these capital outlay ‘spotlights.’ “One of the things we hope to do with these spotlights is both look at completed projects and understand what kind of challenges they may have had to overcome, how they did it, and identify the factors that support project success which can kind of be useful as we look at funding future capital outlay,” Carswell said.
At a Tuesday meeting, analysts highlighted two projects: the first, a new Cibola County Public Safety Complex in Grants put in a decommissioned armory—a three-year project with a price tag of $5.5 million. “The county undertook this project to consolidate three key public safety functions into one facility—those being the sheriff’s office, Office of Emergency Management, and 9-1-1 dispatch,” said Antonio Ortega, analyst with the LFC.
The second project highlighted was the construction of a new public safety building in Gallup.
“The existing building which houses the police department and municipal court is over 50 years old and suffers from long-standing mold and structural deficiencies,” Ortega said.
Ortega says this project got $11.5 million in state funding, $12.8 million from a local GRT bond, and $3.4 million from the city’s general fund. “The new building will offer expanded operational space and increase the capacity for evidence storage. It will include modern testing space and equipment for the narcotics unit as well as modern interview rooms, holding cells, and a courtroom,” Ortega said.
Despite half of the overall cost coming from local funds, analysts say this project’s costs were double the original estimate. Carswell says they hope these spotlights will help lawmakers see what’s holding projects back.
“It’s great to go ahead and see the system as you continue to improve the transparency as you continue providing the information and the accountability,” said Senator Pete Campos (D-Las Vegas).
Analysts say they also hope this will improve the appropriation and support process of these projects moving forward. They highlighted two key factors for the success of the two cases they presented: local communities contributed their own funds to get the projects done, and communities had the staff to oversee the projects.
