Steve Fischmann rather than Ben Hall for the PRC

Our choice between Steve Fischmann and Ben Hall for the Public Regulation Commission is clear.

Fischmann is a smart former state senator who's spent years working for the public good on regulatory matters and fighting usurious interest charged by payday loan companies.

Hall, 82, has “good ol' boy” charm and a welcome bluntness. 

 

Fischmann understands our desperate need to use more renewables and for a functioning utility system that's fair to both the public and businesses – and considers environmental consequences.

Hall agrees we should move toward more renewables, but he's not so sure human activities have much to do with climate change.

Fischmann has a positive record as citizen, legislator, and businessman.

Hall's record is so full of financial and legal trouble that it won't all fit here. (Today's blog post has more details.)

Hall has littered his life with bankruptcies (one personal, and a business he denies he controls), liens (more than a dozen state and federal tax liens, and others filed by subcontractors or other creditors), and judgments. In 2015, Hall's ex-son-in-law won a $53,916.83 judgment against Hall, charging Hall never repaid a loan. Hall immediately declared bankruptcy. (Hall says the man lied, there was no loan, and Hall went bankrupt “so he wouldn't get a damned dime.”)

 

In 2013, the PRC paid $200,000 to Jocyln Gonzales, who in 2011 was standing by her car and was hit by a PRC vehicle Hall was driving. He admitted fault but said he was driving slowly.

Hall says the tax liens were forty years ago (despite significant liens in 1998 and 1999, and one in 2007 against Sierra Blanca Construction). He says Sierra Blanca Construction wasn't his company. (His wife and daughter were President and Secretary.) He added no one could be a contractor for forty years and not have some disputes. 

 

His 2014 PRC campaign apparently paid him and his lady friend. He reportedly claimed the Secretary of State had okayed paying himself. Secretary of State Dianna Durbin wrote him that Hall's campaign couldn't legally pay Hall. In October 2014 Hall told the Albuquerque Journal he paid Maria Cottom and himself $25 per hour, but paid himself only for campaign work after 5 or on weekends. To me, he said, “I didn't pay her any money, I didn't pay me any money,” and “I never paid anyone $25 per hour in my life, so I don't know where he got that.” The reporter stands by his stories, adding that Hall never sought or obtained a correction. 

 

Hall claims his initial campaign reports were wrong because “the girl who filled out my forms” was inexperienced. He says that once he filed amended reports omitting the self-payments, Durbin cleared him of wrongdoing. 

I also asked Hall if it was true that he gambles a lot at Casino Apache Travel Center. He replied, “I don't know as it's a lot,” adding, “I used my own money.”

Hall's extraordinary history of financial and legal difficulties doesn't qualify him to handle a bunch of our money, or make important public decisions. If he's “a thief and a liar” as one former adversary called him, that's a problem. If he's thoroughly honest but mismanages money, that's a problem. If it's all just bad luck, I'd still worry that his bad luck could affect the PRC. 

Fischmann's a strong candidate. Someone we need, as our climate changes. Hall's problems only make our choice even clearer. 

                                                    -30-

[The above column appeared in the Las Cruces Sun-News this morning, Sunday, 21 October 2018, as well as on the newspaper's website and KRWG's website.  A spoken version will air during the week on KRWG and on KTAL (101.5 FM).]


[Near as I can tell, Hall was untruthful or inaccurate with me on several points:

He said his tax liens were "40 years ago," which would be 1978.  In fact, he had tax liens in the 1980's and in 1991, 1992, 1998, and 1999; and Sierra Blanca Construction had one as recently as 1997.  (He denies that Sierra Blanca Construction is his company, and says he's just the qualified contractor.  His late wife, Wanda, and his daughter were listed as Sierra Blanca's President and Secretary, respectively.)  Hall's  one-time opponent, Bill McCamley, alleged that:

“ • From 1983-1998 there were 14 tax liens placed on Mr. Hall and his construction company totaling $356,233.89.

“ • 10 of these liens were for failure to pay Federal taxes, and 4 liens were for failure to pay State taxes.

“ … • From 1983-1998, there were 7 liens placed on Mr. Hall by individuals, subcontractors, and the Ruidoso State Bank totaling $112,681.59 for failure to pay for completed contracted services.]

[Hall denied paying himself or his significant other $25 per hour for campaign work in 2014.  He denied paying himself at all.  These statements contradict numerous campaign filings (eventually amended) with the New Mexico Secretary of State, a letter from the Secretary of State commenting on his paying himself, and his comments quoted in two 2014 Albuquerque Journal articles.

He denied making those comments, adding "I don't know where he got that."  The reporter, Thomas J. Cole, said the quotes were accurate, adding that Hall had not requested or received any kind of retraction or correction.  Further, the articles have indicia of accuracy.  "I don't see what the big damn deal is" is just the way Hall would phrase his response.  Secondly, there's an extra level of detail beyond what Cole would be unlikely to invent, in that he quotes Hall as saying he paid himself and Cottom but only paid himself for work after 5 p.m. or on weekends because of his PRC job.  It seems highly unlikely Cole would have thought to make that up.  He also quoted Hall as claiming the Secretary of State had told him it was legal to pay himself for campaign work.  (In a letter dated 29 October 2014, then Secretary of State Deanna Duran bluntly denied her office had told him any such thing.) That's another detail Cole wouldn't have likely invented.  (In addition, there were two separate articles . . ., suggesting more than one conversation -- without, apparently, any criticism of the first article; but that's my speculation.)  At any rate, Duran apparently absolved him of legal wrongdoing after the amendments.]


[Hall blamed the filings that mentioned payments to himself on "the girl who filled out my forms for me," saying that she was new and made mistakes.  That seems unlikely; and the filings persisted through several amendments, and correction was only made after the election and after earlier amendments (including Nov. 17 and Nov. 21] didn't make the change.  When he amend again on November 22, some put in entries claiming the payments to Cottom were reimbursements for expenses she'd paid.  But with other entries, there was no such change.  For example, the October 4 and 5 entries originally had payments of $500 (10/4) and $465 (10/5) to Hall and Cottom for "Campaign Work" (which at $25/hr. would have been 16 hours, or 8 apiece, of going from house to house campaigning).  The final amendment eliminates mention of Hall, keeps the amounts the same, and replaces "Campaign Work" with "Door-to-Door Advertising."  Unlike the 10/2 entry, for going door-to-door in Deming, where the entry switched from paying them both for "campaign work" to paying her but included the notes "Campaign Forum" and "paid to helpers," the 10/4 and 10/5 entries have the campaign paying her for going door-to-door  -- for 16 hours on the 5th and a little more than 12 on the 4th.  And the mention of the "forum" adds a new mystery.  The earlier entry seems to be paying him, in part, for attending the campaign forum.  But now with him out of the payment picture, the amount is the same, and part of what the campaign is paying for is her attendance at the forum.  A further amendment might be in order.

"The girl wasn't experienced and made mistakes" sounds a little like "the dog ate my homework"  -- or, as one of Grant and Tenya's grandkids had it on a T-shirt yesterday, "the unicorn ate my homework" -- and if I'd been employed at the secretary of state's office in 2014, I might have suggested an investigation. note: see below for images of the actual entries mentioned]

[He seems also to be lying either when he says he owns Sierra Blanca Construction or when he denies that!
In a 2018 candidate profile in the Albuquerque Journal, Hall says he "owned and operated a construction business for 40 years."  I think he's said that elsewhere.  And it seems probable: three construction companies, including Sierra Blanca, list as addresses either his residence or another address he's associated with.  (The other two are or were Hall Brothers Development, Inc. and ABC Building Corporation.)  To me, when I asked about Sierra Blanca's lien and bankruptcy, he said it wasn't his company, he was just the required "licensed contractor" associated with the business.  (His late wife was listed as the President and his daughter as the Secretary, I think.  He was not listed in the filings I saw.)   Without his years with Sierra Blanca Construction it's not clear how he'd have 40 years owning and operating a construction business. 
But maybe he lent his name to his wife's business, and worked for her a little, but also owned and operated something else for some of those years.]

2014 Second General Report -- October version

2014 Second General Report -- November 22 version

Vote! . . . . . . . . . . . Our Recent Primary

            If elections were graded, we’d fail.

            Most Doña Ana County voters would get suspended for non-attendance.  

            Some non-voter's say there's no one worth voting for; but that wasn't true here.  Merrie Lee Soules was an extraordinary candidate for the PRC, which matters to the average person far more than s/he imagines.   Alan Webber and Howie Morales both impressed me a good deal, and Lawrence Real seemed extraordinarily knowledgeable about how this state should be governed.   The race for county sheriff included at least three good candidates.

            And each vote does matter.  In the last general election, Joanne Ferrary lost to Terry McMillan by just eight votes, and this week Bill Gomez appears to have unseated long-time Representative Mary Helen Garcia by nine.   

            Equally fatuous is the excuse that the lines are long.   Where we voted, there were six or eight voting booths, all unoccupied.  (Admittedly, it wasn't lunch-time or after work.)

            If only this newspaper could eliminate from the “Sound Off” and “Letters to the Editor” communications from folks who don't vote!

            We did stumble into some correct decisions.   

            Norm Osborne consistently seemed a great candidate for Magistrate Judge; and when I saw him at the Democratic Party's forum, he stood out for his judicial bearing and his recognition that “Patience, patience, patience!” was the key to the job he sought.   Credit Rick Wellborn for campaigning hard to retain the seat Governor Martinez gave him.   This was another close race; and without any disrespect to Mr. Wellborn, I think we got it right.   

            I feel the same way about our retention of Beverly Singleman.   Next to Osborne, she seemed the most judge-like and patient among the candidates I saw at that forum.

            Writing this Wednesday, I don't know who'll face incumbent Ben Hall for a seat on the PRC.

            We may have allowed Sandy Jones to win the nomination through a flood of false and stupid advertising.  (He had plenty of money, of course, while Soules was limited by the public-financing option.  We don't yet know how much of Jones’s money came from industry folks who recall his deference to industry, and his lukewarm reaction to renewable energy, when he sat on the PRC.)

            In time-honored fashion, he found a uniquely tired-looking photo of Soules.  His charge that she was a poor candidate because GM recently recalled cars is like rejecting a candidate who served in the Viet Nam war because that war didn't go very well.  She had a responsible position in a huge organization, but she didn't make decisions about whether to put plants in Mexico, nor was she responsible for GM's overall production.   Yes, she worked for GM in Juarez for three years; but she didn't decide to put the plant there and at least during her tenure with GM, the plant observed the more stringent U.S. safety standards, regardless of local standards.   She never managed a GM plant in Mexico; she had nothing to do with the electronic ignition switches that caused the recent recall; and Jones’s ads showed a document she signed in 1996, as if it were relevant, that in fact concerned “Character Standard for Machine Vision Verification of Devices Used on Electrical Centers.”  (I'm guessing that Jones, like me, couldn't even tell you what that means.)

            On issues, qualifications, and record, Soules was a much stronger candidate, so credit Jones for using what he could to prevail.  If politics is a barroom brawl, he done good.  Unfortunately, his Republican opponent may argue that there were questions (fairly or unfairly) about Jones's ethics before the election, and that his misleading ads answer those questions eloquently.

            Jones might well be a better choice than Hall in the general election.  I haven't yet formed an opinion on that.  But Soules was what we all say we want, a new and honest voice, a non-politician with a high degree of competence and an open mind, an engineer and businesswoman.  If she wins, she'll be a far superior choice to Hall.

            Similarly King would probably be a better governor than Martinez has been.  (Unfortunately, so would our cat.)   He won not because of his accomplishments or brilliant ideas but because of his name – and that's the foundation for his claim that he'd be a stronger candidate than Webber in November.   That's practical politics, but damned sad.   

            I think any of 'em would be a long-shot.  Martinez will likely win, despite her poor record.  But Webber offered new ideas, and he hasn't spent his life in politics.  He seemed a refreshing choice for a state that’s seen too many Richardsons and Martinezes. He also came from nowhere politically, and ran a good race.   And I hope Morales takes another shot in four years.   

            Maybe the low turnout was just a result of there being (at least where I voted) no pretty stickers with which to announce one’s virtue.
                                               -30-

[The column above appeared in the Las Cruces Sun-News today, Sunday,  8 June, under a title that suggested that I objected to results of the election.  I guess I did disagree with a couple of results, but I meant mostly to criticize non-participation.  Nor did I intend to suggest -- as folks so often do -- that results I didn't like were caused by non-voting.  I get tired of hearing that the "real" [but evidently non-voting] County dislikes progressives, didn't want a Monument, etc.]
[I received a flurry of email discussing the possibility of writing in Ms. Soules's name in the general election between Ben Hall and Sandy Jones for PRC commissioner.  I've been advised, but haven't actually checked, that the politicos in all their wisdom did away with the requirement to count such votes, except in an organized write-in-campaign for which the candidate has set on.  I regret that for two reasons: first, obviously, in a general election between two old-style candidates, a strong refusal to vote for either would make a useful statement; and, as a young reporter long ago, I always liked reporting after each election that Daffy Duck and Mickey Mouse had gotten a few votes.]
[Looking ahead, I definitely do recommend voting for King rather than Martinez; and with regard to the PRC I guess I'll wait and see if Jones [or Hall, perhaps] articulates a really compelling reason to vote for him over his opponent.  If I don't hear one, I'll leave that line blank.  In an ideal election, while hundreds of thousands of voters turned out, and voted in other races, King would beat Martinez by about 12 votes to six, and the PRC race would be a 3-3 tie, with each candidate getting his own vote and two from family-members.]
[Meanwhile, we have a host of other important races with candidates well worth supporting -- and a few where a good candidate faces no opposition.]