ALBUQUERQUE, NM – Here is the January 2021 news from the Green Party of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Area.

AREAS OF FOCUS, 2021
Please choose and rank items you would like to see GPAMA direct its efforts in 2021. We plan to focus on the top-three items from the vote results. Thank you for your input. www.opavote.com/en/vote/4734327020584960

REGULAR MEETING DAY
We anticipate our monthly meeting to move from the second Thursday to the third Wednesday. It is not clear when this will take effect. Please check the web site gpabqmetro.org for the latest news on this.

GPAMA ANNUAL MEETING
This will be the March meeting. It will be a virtual meeting. It is likely to be either the second Thursday or the third Wednesday. Officer elections and delegate selection to the state convention will occur.

PANEL ON SUPPRESSION OF MINOR PARTIES
The Gateway Greens recently hosted a very interesting panel on the obstacles faced by candidates from minor parties. Panelists included Oliver Hall of the Center for Competitive Democracy and Richard Winger, editor of Ballot Access News. Let us know if you want the Zoom link. .

CALL FOR CANDIDATES
If you are a registered Green interested in running for office in 2021 or 2022, please let us know.

2021 LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Below is a listing of several bills of interest. The bill finder at nmlegis.gov/Legislation/Bill_Finder is very useful to track progress of legislation and find the representatives and senators on the applicable committees.

• HB 99 -- SMALL LOAN ACT MAX ANNUAL PERCENTAGE RATE
  
  
• SB 66 -- PERMITTED PERCENTAGE RATES FOR LOANS
  
  
• HB 106/SB 84 -- COMMUNITY SOLAR ACT relating to utilities; enacting the community solar act; prescribing requirements for community solar facilities, subscriber organizations and subscriptions; prescribing requirements for administration of a community solar program; directing the public regulation commission to adopt rules to implement a community solar program.
  
  
• SB 10 -- REPEAL ABORTION BAN
  
  
• SB 32 -- ROXY'S LAW relating to wildlife; enacting the wildlife conservation and public safety act; providing for restrictions on the use of traps, snares and poisons; providing penalties.
  
  
• SB 80 -- NO SCHOOL DISCRIMINATION FOR HAIR relating to race; prohibiting the imposition of discipline, discrimination or disparate treatment in schools based on the hair or cultural headdresses of a student; defining terms in the public school code and the human rights act.
  
  
• SB 86 -- USE OF WATER FOR OIL & GAS OPERATIONS -- relating to natural resources; prohibiting certain uses of fresh water in oil and gas operations; providing penalties for the spill or release of oil, gas or produced water; creating the oil conservation division data compilation fund; directing the oil conservation division of the energy, minerals and natural resources department to adopt rules relating to produced water and nondomestic wastes that are protective of public health, worker safety and natural resources; requiring the tracking of produced water; alphabetizing definitions and adding definitions for "fresh water", "water pollution", "recycled water" and "treated water" to the oil and gas act; amending the produced water act to conform to changes in the oil and gas act; clarifying requirements for water quality control commission rulemaking related to the use of produced water outside of the oil field.
  
  
• SB 103 -- RESTRICTING USE OF NEONICOTINOID PESTICIDE
  
  
• There is also a joint resolution, known as the Green Amendment, that would put to the public the question of amending the state constitution to include environmental rights.
  
  
• SJR 3 -- ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS (GREEN AMENDMENT) proposing to amend the constitution of new mexico by adding a new section of article 2 that provides the people of the state with environmental rights, including the right to a clean and healthy environment and the right to the preservation of the environment, and directs the state to protect environmental resources for the benefit of all the people and by repealing the current pollution control provisions of article 20, section 21.

Finally, at the writing of this e-mail the senate bill to amend the Energy Transition Act by removing the guarantee that utility companies get 100% costs from ratepayers when closing a plant and reinstating PRC oversight for utility plant closures had not received a number.

Regards,

GPAMA
gpabqmetro.org
[email protected]