Lawmakers prioritize unemployment insurance

Two area lawmakers said replenishing the state’s depleted unemployment insurance fund would be a high priority during this week’s special session of the New Mexico Legislature.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham last week announced her calling of the special session for what she hopes is a $300 million coronavirus aid package for small business grants, housing assistance and jobless benefits. The special session was scheduled to begin Tuesday, which is after the Quay County Sun’s deadlines.

State Sen. Pat Woods (R-Broadview), whose District 7 encompasses most of Quay County, said in a phone interview Friday he’s been told by fellow lawmakers the aid package would be consolidated into one bill for an up-or-down vote by the full Senate.

State Rep. Jack Chatfield (R-Mosquero), whose District 67 includes all of Quay, Harding and Union counties, said he had been in the Roundhouse last week as a member of the state’s House Appropriations and Finance committee.

Chatfield said during a phone interview Friday he wanted to use some of that $300 million in federal money from the CARES Act for the state’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. The fund is so drained, the state is borrowing money from the U.S. government to continue paying claims.

“I’d like to see it backfill some of the debt we’ve incurred paying for people’s unemployment insurance,” he said. “Maybe we should replenish that fund.

“I’m a conservative. I believe in paying your debts first before you incur more,” Chatfield added. “It’s important that we find some way to be financially solvent as a state and as a nation.”

Woods agreed with Chatfield’s advocacy to replenish the state’s jobless fund. He said the longer the fund goes into debt, the more hardship it would create for businesses when the economy begins to recover.

“One we get things cranked back up, the employers would have to build the fund back from a negative,” Woods said. “That’d be really nice if we can keep our employers from paying that back.”

Asked about proposed business grants, Chatfield said he was “not against it.” But he said the bigger issue is the lack of balance between safety from the virus and letting businesses operate.

“I’m worried about people’s health, and I’m worried about coronavirus,” he said. “But I’m also worried about the safety of our economy. We don’t know what the strain will be on the healthcare system, how much it can stand. But we need to seek a balance. How much can our economy stand?

”I personally think people should be free to make their own decisions on their personal safety,” Chatfield added. “I will always vote for freedom.”

Chatfield said he’d rather use some of that money to expand COVID-19 testing, including for antibodies, that would screen employees faster for the disease and return them to work quicker.

Woods sounded a similar note in concerns regarding current coronavirus restrictions and their effects on the economy.

“You keep shutting down businesses. How much longer can we stand that?” he said.

The senator said the Legislature will have to make “a tricky move” to craft a relief bill that won’t violate the state’s anti-donations clause, especially if the state plans to dole out grants to small businesses.

Woods also questioned whether the special session even is necessary. He said the Democratic-controlled leadership of the Legislature already has authorized Lujan Grisham to spend as she sees fit during the current public health emergency.

“This is more of a PR stunt than anything,” he said of the special session and proposed relief bill. “She’s already been spending a lot of money.”