Of the thousand odd (sometimes very odd) bills introduced in any legislative session, some deserve to be enacted, and some are well intended but loaded with unintended consequences. Some should be put out of our misery.
In the “What Were They Thinking?” category is SB 595. The lodgers surtax, by Sen. George Munoz, would have tacked another 10 percent onto the lodgers tax, which is already plenty high; the total bite for Santa Fe and Albuquerque would have risen to 25 percent.
The Gallup Democrat’s argument that his tax would mostly fall on tourists was off the mark. Say you want to enjoy a ski outing or weekend getaway, your cost would jump. Still want to go? Now imagine the impact on the state’s hotels and motels, which employ thousands of people and are already watching their vacancy rates climb.
What’s more disturbing is that Munoz had no specific purpose for the tax, other than a vague desire to help education and economic development. The tourism industry saw to it that this one croaked in the first committee. Lesson for the freshman Munoz: Don’t cross the tourism people.
HB 725 by Rep. Dennis Kintigh, would have killed the state’s film incentive program by eliminating the film production tax credit and reducing the State Investment Council’s investment in films shot here. Kintigh says the state can’t afford the $55 million cost and compared the incentive to a bailout, apparently unclear that the industry drops a lot of money before it gets anything from the state.
“What other business do we do this for?” Kintigh asked.
Is he kidding? What industry doesn’t enjoy incentives, credits and handouts?
Kintigh read two conflicting studies done on the industry’s return to the state, and in his mind, that made him an expert. But the former FBI agent knows squat about business. Hint to the freshman Kintigh: Look at the jobs. Look at the support industry. Try listening.
Recently I was given a directory of media industries and was surprised at the number and variety: costumers, set dressers, storyboard artists, caterers, prop makers, grips, set painters, production houses, sound experts, special effects, post-production houses and more – even folks who design the movie’s Web site.
They pay taxes and salaries, and they don’t get incentives. There are scores of these little businesses.
As Kintigh made his moves, actor Denzel Washington was making his. “The Book of Eli,” filming in the legislator’s own district, has filled Carizozo’s motels for months, and the filming itself drew tourists, according to New Mexico Business Weekly. Washington recently donated $50,000 to Roswell’s Boys and Girls Club. Where do bean counters tally that?
Another misguided effort was SB 21, to create a Hispanic Affairs Department. For $700,000, it would “focus our attention, resources and energy on the social and economic challenges facing Hispanics,” claim its sponsors, Sen. John Ryan, an Albuquerque Republican, and Sen. Michael Sanchez, a Belen Democrat.
Citizen Dennis Salazar wrote: “Ryan and Sanchez argue that the department would assist Hispanics in the areas of health, education and economic opportunity. What trait do Hispanics have that makes them more in need of this type of assistance than other groups?
“Who will qualify as ‘Hispanic’ and thus be eligible for ‘help’? Perhaps a new legion of bureaucrats can be created to determine how Hispanic a person is. Is 51 percent Hispanic enough to make a person incapable?”
This one passed both houses, probably because nobody wanted to risk looking anti-Hispanic by voting against it. They should just give the $700,000 to education.
And finally, there is the casino ATM “parity” bill, offered up by Sen. Richard Martinez, an Española Democrat, which allows racinos to have ATMs inside restricted gambling areas, like Indian casinos do. This is parity we can live without.
It’s too bad common sense can’t be added to drinking water.
© New Mexico News Services 2009