Does your state lean blue or lean red? Check out our new report, highlighting partisan control of state government from 1992-2013.
New Mexico Public Regulation Commission
| New Mexico Public Regulation Commission | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Partisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| 2012 FY Budget: | $19,081,863 |
| Total Seats: | 5 |
| Term limits: | Two consecutive terms |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | 4 years |
| Authority: | New Mexico Constitution, Article XI, Section I |
| Leadership: | Ben L. Hall (R) |
| Selection Method: | Elected |
| Other New Mexico Executive Offices | |
| Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Secretary of Education • Agriculture Secretary • Insurance Superintendent • Secretary of Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources • Secretary of Workforce Solutions • Public Regulation Commission • Public Education Commission | |
Contents |
Current officeholder
The current Chairman is Ben L. Hall. Hall, a Republican, was first elected in 2010. Valerie Espinoza serves as vice-chair. [1]
Commissioners include Karen Montoya, Theresa Becenti-Aguilar and Patrick H. Lyons.
Authority
The state Constitution addresses the creation of the Public Regulation Commission in Article XI, Corporations Other Than Municipal.
Under Article XI, Section 1:
|
The "public regulation commission" is created. The commission shall consist of five members elected from districts provided by law... |
Elections
As outlined in Article XI of the New Mexico Constitution, commissioners are elected to staggered four-year terms beginning January 1 following their election.
2012
Democratic incumbent Jason Marks assumed the 1st District seat since 2005 and was unable to seek re-election due to term limits. Democrat Karen Montoya was elected to his seat in the general election on November 6, 2012.[2]
- 2012 General Election Results-District 1
| New Mexico Public Regulation Commission District 1 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Karen Montoya |
55% | 94,526 | |
| Republican | Christopher Ocksrider | 45% | 77,256 | |
| Total Votes | 171,782 | |||
| Election Results via New Mexico Secretary of State. | ||||
In a four-way battle Valerie Espinoza won the Democratic nomination on June 5, 2012. Since no Republicans filed for the seat, Ezpinoza had no major party opposition in the general election.[3]
- 2012 General Election Results-District 3
| New Mexico Public Regulation Commission District 3 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Valerie Espinoza |
100% | 127,569 | |
| Total Votes | 127,569 | |||
| Election Results via New Mexico Secretary of State. | ||||
Term limits
Commissioners are limited to serving two consecutive terms.
State budget
The budget for the Public Regulation Commission in Fiscal Year 2012 was $19,081,863.[4]
Compensation
In 2010, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commissioners were paid an estimated $90,000 according to the Council of State Governments.[5]
Controversies
An investigation in August 2011 found a series of questionable charges made to Commissioner Jerome Block's state-issued gas card, totaling over $8,000 during the first six months of the year.[6] On the heels of that revelation came charges alleging Block drove a car off of a sales lot to take it to a mechanic and never returned it. He was also found to be driving on a suspended license.[7]
On August 12 the commission removed Block from his position as vice-chair. They, along with many other state officials, have called on Block to resign. If he does not, State Speaker of the House Ben Lujan, Sr. said he would form a committee to discuss Block's possible impeachment. Block and his father also have pending criminal charges against them for alleged misuse of public campaign money in 2008.[8]
Contact information
1120 Paseo De Peralta
P.O. Box 1269
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87504
Phone: (505) 827-4531
Email: Patrick.Lyons@state.nm.us
See also
- Public Services Commissioner
- Chairman Patrick H. Lyons
- Vice-chair Theresa Becenti-Aguilar
- Karen Montoya
- Valerie Espinoza
- Ben L. Hall
External links
References
- ↑ Albuquerque Business First, "Ben Hall picked as chairman for PRC," January 9, 2013
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedgenelec - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedprimary_results - ↑ New Mexico Department of Finance, "FY 2014 Executive Recurring Budget Recommendations," accessed April 15, 2013
- ↑ The Council of State Governments,"The Book of States 2010 Table 4.11," retrieved June 22, 2011
- ↑ KOB, "Commissioner's gas card account used to rip off state," August 5, 2011
- ↑ KOB, "PRC commissioner suspected of stealing car," August 8, 2011
- ↑ KRQE, "PRC strips title from vice-chair Block," August 12, 2011
| |||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
