We must reform the gross receipts tax. It’s one of the worst in the country. Having a gross receipts tax instead of a sales tax, that scares businesses away. – Governor Martinez in remarks Thursday at the annual meeting of the New Mexico Tax Research Institute announcing that tax reform will be part of the anticipated special session
The Crib Sheet is a collection of stories, events, and ideas that are shaping the conversation in New Mexico and D.C. politics.
[New Mexico]
- At the same New Mexico Tax Research Institute event an UNM economist shared his analysis of the state economy, including concerns that “New Mexico’s economy changed in the recession and won’t fully bounce back”, and that “decades of under-performance and under-investment in New Mexico’s schools… may also be coming to a head now”.
- According to a recent study by the Pew Charitable Trust the “employment rate for New Mexicans of prime working age has had the biggest drop in the nation since 2007”. My own anecdotal evidence agrees with this analysis as many of my peers have left the state for jobs elsewhere, especially places like Phoenix, Denver, and Austin.
- New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas announced this week that his office has launched an investigation “into the competitive practices in the cattle industry” among concerns that “historic family-owned farms and ranches may face harmful practices by large-scale, corporate farming operations.”
- The New Mexico AG also announced a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to compel “the U.S. Interior Department to reinstate a rule on how royalties are set for oil, gas and coal extracted from federal land.” According to his office the state of New Mexico “is at risk of losing out on millions of dollars in federal royalties as a result of the Trump administration’s attempted repeal of a new mineral-extraction rule”.
- The continued existence of two national monuments in New Mexico are under review after President Trump signed an executive order “directing Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to scrutinize some national monuments designated under the Antiquities Act”. Trump’s request for review includes national monuments nationwide, including the Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monuments.
[D.C.]
- On Thursday President Trump met with three Reuters reporters to reflect on his first 100 days in office revealing, among other things, that he “misses driving, feels as if he is in a cocoon, and is surprised how hard his new job is.”
- By Saturday (the 100 day mark), the President will have signed more than 30 executive orders, which is more than any president at this point since Franklin Roosevelt according to the White House.
- President Trump tweeted Thursday that if a new, fair deal cannot be reached “we will then terminate NAFTA.”
- Trump’s announced plans for tax reform remains light on details.
[Tech & Strategy]
- Popular Mechanics met with a member of President Trump’s NASA transition team to “learn a little about what we can expect from NASA in the coming years.”
- Facebook outlined additional actions they are taking to fight fake news on the social media platform.
[Culture]
- The New Yorker profiles a new book titled “Dinner With Georgia O’Keeffe” as well as reminding readers of her current retrospective exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum that runs through July 23rd.
