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Why I'm Running - Albuquerque Journal
Actions for wildlife speak louder than words: Why Stephanie Garcia Richard is our pick for Land Commissioner
A Proven Track Record Of Results
Stephanie has represented District 43 for three terms, in that time she has sponsored legislation to limit high-stakes testing and classroom sizes and has never relented on early childhood education, cosponsoring HJM 1 this session; a constitutional amendment to FULLY FUND early childhood education for every child in New Mexico. As a lifelong educator, Chair of the House Education Committee, and former member of the Appropriations Committee, Stephanie has repeatedly voted to increase teacher pay while staving off actions by the Public Education Department that would be devastating to the profession like merit pay or tying evaluations to test scores.
For years, she has sponsored bills to protect victims of sexual assault and domestic violence and provide additional protections for victims and funding for programs. Last year, she sponsored two bills to address gaps in current law to guarantee rape kit processing (HB 320) and to close the gun show sales loophole that would prevent domestic violence perpetrators, felons, and the mentally ill from purchasing a firearm (HB 50). This year she worked closely with service providers and advocates to carry legislation aimed at establishing intervention programs for batterers (HB 154) and voted to add strangulation to the list of domestic violence crimes.
When Stephanie talks about serving the residents of House District 43, she explains that with urban and rural communities surrounded by the Jemez mountain range, tribal land, land grants and public lands, it really is a microcosm of New Mexico. This opportunity to serve such a vast constituency and much of the land that makes our state so unique is one of the many reasons she has worked so hard to protect our water, protect us from future fires, and fully fund our local acequias and watersheds. In the past, she has used an overwhelming majority of the capital outlay funding she is permitted to award as a Representative to fund mutual domestic water systems and acequias, wastewater systems, and school improvements.
Since taking the oath for this office, bills have been submitted to increase investments in renewable energy. Every year, including this year, she has sponsored and voted on countless pieces of legislation to provide tax credits for solar systems, as well as encourage development of new technologies and businesses committed to lowering our carbon footprint. Although minor pieces of legislation have passed, Stephanie believes that we have missed critical opportunities to encourage this economic growth and lessen our budgetary dependency on oil and gas. Whether for residents of House District 43 or all New Mexicans as Land Commissioner, she will continue to stand for renewable energy initiatives and against harmful practices like fracking and trapping to make sure our land and wildlife are protected for future generations.
