Commentary: Santa Fe, N.M. – Today, a do pass motion on the Public-Private Partnerships Act (HB 275, Larrañaga/Cisneros) failed on a 7-4 vote in the House Labor and Economic Development Committee In response, CVNM Legislative Director Ben Shelton released the following statement:
“Like in 2015, New Mexicans stood up against attempts to privatize our water and other critical public services this session. When something seems too good to be true, it probably is. This is the warning our legislators took to heart today when they voted down HB 275. Our financial and jobs crisis is real and impacting New Mexicans deeply – but privatizing our water should never be an option. New Mexicans will pay the true costs when critical services are privatized through higher costs, lower quality and expensive legal battles in the long term. We thank the legislators who voted against HB 275.
We encourage those interested in advancing public-private partnerships, or p3s, to look to SB 143 sponsored by Sen. Michael Padilla for an example of a solidly written piece of p3-enabling legislation that includes the appropriate and necessary transparency and accountability measures.”