It's Called Permanent for a Reason

New Mexico has something called a Permanent Fund.  It is money socked away in recognition of the fact that one day the oil and gas resources that fill our state coffers will be no more. It might be worth visiting Merriam-Webster's definition of the word permanent:

Main Entry: ¹per·ma·nent

Pronunciation: \-nənt\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French parmanant, from Latin permanent-, permanens, present participle of permanēre to endure, from per- throughout + manēre to remain — more at per-, mansion

Date: 15th century

: continuing or enduring without fundamental or marked change : stable

synonyms see lasting

— per·ma·nent·ly adverb

— per·ma·nent·ness noun

Now that we understand the word "permanent,"  I think we can all agree that there isn't any circumstance in which "Permanent Fund" could be misinterpreted to mean "Rainy Day Fund:"

A type of contingency fund in which money is set aside to be drawn upon in case of a future budget deficit. It is often referred to as a budget stabilization fund.

Yet, that is precisely the type of convenient rewriting of the English language one legislator is promoting:

A leading state Senate Democrat says it's time to borrow against New Mexico's rainy day funds for a $500 million loan — a gamble he says would make it unnecessary for lawmakers to approve major tax hikes and cut the salaries of state workers this year.
    
Under the terms of a bill introduced by Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, D-Belen, up to $500 million could be moved into the state's general fund by directing the state's Board of Finance to issue short-term revenue bonds.
    
The bonds would be paid off over five years via a special fund created for that purpose, Sanchez said, with the money coming from general fund appropriations and a portion of the state's gross receipts tax revenues.    

Sanchez acknowledged that the bill (SB184) hinges on a wager that the state's economy will improve in the next few years.

You might consider sending the good Senator from Belen an email letting him know that we, the taxpayers and our children and grandchildren, prefer that he keep his wagering to recreational pursuits done with his own money on his own time at any one of the fine tribally owned casinos found throughout the Land of Enchantment.

Taking Just a Pinch

Chances are that if you hear someone is promising to give you a good, quick pinch, you are going to move out of the way. Why? That's simple. Pinches hurt, and we're not just talking about pinching body parts.

You can be rest assured that when the government decides to start doing pinching, it is going to hurt (subscription):

The gap between expenditures and state revenue has grown steadily over the last three months as New Mexico increasingly finds itself being pulled into the national recession. For just the third time in 20 years, the state now faces the prospect of a revenue decline during the current budget year.

Miller and other members of the Richardson administration said Monday that they believe the combination of recouping unspent infrastructure appropriations, imposing minor budget cuts and a hiring freeze on state agencies, and taking a pinch of help from the state's cash reserves can balance the budget for the current fiscal year that ends June 30.

Ok, let's start by repeating the obvious. Facing a budget deficit should not have come as big surprise to anyone. We have had to do it three other times in the last the twenty years. You'd think government would learn. You can't spend, spend, spend in good years, because inevitably there will be lean years, and then you're going to have to make some cuts.

Now, what should the government do first to fix this problem? Well, that's relatively simple. They should look at all new recurring services and expenditures that have been added since Richardson came into office, and start cutting them.

The thought that they can fix this problem by simply "recouping unspent infrastructure appropriations" is ridiculous. Let me re-state that. If you think this is a one-time momentary blip in an otherwise booming economy, than it makes sense to just cut back on previously planned expenditures.

But, if you face reality and acknowledge that next year is likely to be just as bad, if not worse, then you realize that approach is nothing more than sticking a finger in a collapsing dam to plug a hole. The only thing worse than that approach is "taking a pinch of help from the state's cash reserves."

Taking a pinch from our reserves is the equivalent of robbing our children blind while they sleep. Rather than readjust to a budget that is within our means, we are talking about guaranteeing higher taxes on our children.

Plus, consider that this economy could sink further before it begins to rebound. If we're deciding to "pinch" at the first sign of economic weakness, then we're practically guaranteeing that we're going to be amputating when this gets worse, and it will get worse before it gets better.

Cross Your Fingers That Today's the Day

It is being widely reported that today is the day that President-elect Obama will announce Governor Richardson's selection as Secretary of Commerce [Hat tip: Heath Haussamen], and it's not a moment too soon.

It seems that there is growing movement, already 4,000 strong, by Chinese-Americans in the Silicon Valley to stop Richardson's appointment to Commerce Secretary:

In a move bound to create political tension between Latinos and Asian-Americans, a group of Chinese-American activists in Silicon Valley has launched a nationwide grass-roots movement to fight President-elect Barack Obama's nomination today of Bill Richardson as commerce secretary.

The group is upset at the New Mexico governor for his handling of the nearly decade-old case of Taiwanese-American Wen Ho Lee, a former nuclear scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory. U.S. officials once suspected Lee of giving nuclear secrets to China when Richardson was President Clinton's energy secretary.

The Chinese-Americans say they realize that challenging the nomination of Richardson, 61, the nation's most high-profile Hispanic politician, will ruffle the Latino community, many of whose leaders felt he should have been named secretary of state instead of Sen. Hillary Clinton.

But the Chinese-American group insists that Richardson's refusal to acknowledge making serious errors in the case makes it a moral imperative to oppose his nomination to Obama's Cabinet. They say their criticism of Richardson has nothing to do with him being Latino but everything to do with his lack of judgment in the case.

Which raises the question, if the announcement does indeed occur today, will Governor Richardson immediately do the right thing and tender his resignation? Or, will he hold onto power in order to insert himself in political machinations of the Democratic wing of the legislature until such time as he is confirmed by the U.S. Senate?

Tales of Richardson calling senators up to his office to lobby them on the leadership battle have circulated for weeks around the Capitol and were heard by more than a few lawmakers, including Sen. Mary Kay Papen, D-Las Cruces, a Jennings supporter. Papen said Monday she heard the same thing, although she didn’t know the names of those summoned to the governor’s fourth-floor Roundhouse office.

I, for one, am really hoping the Governor Richardson does the right thing for once, and puts New Mexico first. No, it's not because I'm concerned about the political infighting of Senate Democrats. Something much larger is at stake here:

Gov. Bill Richardson is backing a proposed overhaul of the state's school finance formula, which will cost an additional $350 million to implement.

Richardson said Tuesday he supports the increased funding for schools but wants voters to decide how to raise the extra money, possibly through a referendum or constitutional amendment.

Uh oh, there it is, and it's hard to miss. Okay, I added the bold emphasis. If I hadn't, some of you might have missed it. Raid me once, shame on you. Raid me twice, shame on me. This is the first official acknolwedgement that a second raid on our Permanent Fund is on the table.

Folks, it's only been five years since the first raid. Heck, the original changes have yet to run its course, and they're already putting another raid on the table:

Amendment 2 would increase the annual distribution rate from the Land Grant Permanent Fund in fiscal 2004 from 4.7% to 5% of the fund's average market value over the previous five years. The rate would increase to 5.8% starting in the 2005 fiscal year and continuing for the next eight years. The rate would then drop to 5.5% for the next four years, after which it would decrease to 5%.

The distribution rate could not exceed 5% if the five-year average market value of the fund dropped below $5.8 billion.

Legislators could set the rate at 5% at any time with a three-fifths majority of each legislative chamber.

The Land Grant Permanent Fund was established to fund education with income earned on assets, including revenue from oil and gas royalties earned on land granted to the state by the federal government when New Mexico attained statehood.

Here's hoping the today is the Governor's big day, and not a moment too soon.