Rethink the PRC
Issue Summary
Update: Bipartisan legislation to implement Think New Mexico's proposed RPC reforms passed both the House and Senate during the 2012 legislative session as HJR 11, HJR 16, and HJR 17. As a result, New Mexicans will have the opportunity to vote for three constitutional amendments on the 2012 election ballot: one to increase qualifications for PRC commissioners, one to transfer the PRC's authority over the reporting and registration of corporations to a one-stop shop for business registrations and filings at the Secretary of State's office, and one to remove the PRC's authority over insurance and reforms how Superintendents of Insurance are selected.
New Mexico's Public Regulation Commission (PRC) touches the lives of every New Mexican who pays a gas, electric, or water bill, or buys home, auto, or health insurance, yet the agency has been in an almost constant state of turmoil since it was created in the late 1990s as a merger of the former State Corporation Commission and Public Utility Commission.
The PRC suffers from two fundamental problems. First, it has a broader jurisdiction than any state utility regulatory agency in the nation. The PRC is responsible not only for regulating the rates and service of electric, gas, water, and wastewater utilities, as well as telecommunications, but also for appointing the Superintendent of Insurance, who approves rates and policies of health, life, property, auto, and title insurance; controlling the market entry and rates of buses, shuttles, taxis, ambulances, and moving companies; registering for-profit and not-for-profit corporations and LLCs; regulating the safety of oil, gas, and hazardous liquid pipelines; regulating underground excavations that may affect buried pipes or cables; ensuring the safety of railroad crossings; and appointing the State Fire Marshal.
The second problem is that the only qualifications required for PRC commissioners are that they must be (1) at least 18 years old, (2) residents of New Mexico for at least a year, and (3) not convicted felons. As a result, New Mexico's PRC commissioners have tended to be less qualified than their peers in other states. For example, while only 11% of utility commissioners nationwide have less than a college degree, a full 44% of New Mexico's PRC commissioners had not completed college when they were elected.
To address these problems, Think New Mexico recommends making two fundamental reforms to the PRC.
First, we recommend refocusing the PRC on its core duties of regulating utilities and telecommunications by:
- Creating a separate Department of Insurance
- Transferring the State Fire Marshal to the Department of Homeland Security & Emergency Management
- Consolidating corporate reporting in the Office of the Secretary of State
- Eliminating duplicative regulation of railroads by the PRC and DOT
- Moving ambulance regulation to the Department of Health
- Deregulating market entry and rates of motor carriers and ending duplicative regulation of motor carrier safety and insurance by the PRC and DPS
Second, we recommend increasing the qualifications of PRC commissioners by requiring candidates to have either a four-year college degree or five years of relevant professional experience. This proposal achieves the goal of strengthening commissioner qualifications while being as inclusive as possible, since there are many New Mexicans who have not had the opportunity to graduate from college but who have worked hard to gain the skills and expertise needed to succeed at the challenging and highly technical job of PRC commissioner.
Think New Mexico will be championing legislation during the upcoming legislative session to place these reforms on the 2012 ballot for New Mexico voters to consider. Sign up for our email alerts and join our Facebook and Twitter pages to stay informed and get involved on this issue!
Resources & Media
Read Think New Mexico's policy report on rethinking and reforming New Mexico's PRC (full bibliography available online)
Check out the elected officials and organizations supporting Think New Mexico's legislation to reform the PRC!
Newspaper Articles & Editorials
Read Albuquerque Journal and Santa Fe New Mexican editorials calling on the New Mexico Senate to approve Think New Mexico's PRC reform legislation • February 9-10, 2012
Read Albuquerque Journal editorial praising Think New Mexico's legislation to reform the PRC • February 2, 2012
Read Associated Press article about Think New Mexico's legislation to reform the PRC receiving unanimous support in all of its House committee hearings • January 31, 2012
Read Rio Grande Sun editorial in support of Think New Mexico's legislative package to reform the PRC • January 26, 2012
Read Albuquerque Journal article describing Think New Mexico's legislative package to reform the PRC • January 26, 2012
Read Las Cruces Sun-News editorial supporting Think New Mexico's new initiative to rethink the PRC • October 16, 2011
This editorial was also published in: the Carlsbad Current-Argus, the Farmington Daily Times, the Ruidoso News, and the Silver City Sun-News.
Read Albuquerque Journal editorial in support of Think New Mexico's new initiative to rethink the PRC • October 5, 2011
Read Santa Fe New Mexican editorials supporting Think New Mexico's initiative to rethink the PRC • January 22, 2012 • October 12, 2011 • October 2, 2011
Read Associated Press article about Think New Mexico's new initiative to rethink the PRC • October 5, 2011
Read Santa Fe New Mexican article about Think New Mexico's new initiative to rethink the PRC • October 2, 2011
Read Alamogordo Daily News article on Think New Mexico's proposal for rethinking the PRC • October 1, 2011
Radio and Television
Watch an interview with Fred Nathan on KOB-TV's Eye on New Mexico program about Think New Mexico's PRC reform initiative • November 27, 2011 (27:23)
Watch KRQE News 13 follow-up report on Think New Mexico's PRC reform initiative • October 4, 2011 (2:32)
Watch KRQE News 13 report on Think New Mexico's initiative to rethink the PRC • October 2, 2011 (2:20)
Listen to KSFR Santa Fe Public Radio story on Think New Mexico's initiative to rethink the PRC • October 10, 2011 (mp3, 6:00)
Listen to KSVP Artesia AM 990 interview with Fred Nathan about Think New Mexico's initiative to rethink the PRC • October 2011 (mp3, 16:20)
Listen to an episode of the Morning Show with Harvey T on KEDU Radio in Ruidoso featuring an interview with Fred Nathan on Think New Mexico's initiative to rethink the PRC • October 11, 2011 (mp3, 31:11)
Listen to Santa Fe Stories podcast featuring an interview with Fred Nathan about Think New Mexico's initiative to rethink the PRC • October 8, 2011 (mp3, 28:25)
Blogs, Online Media, and Other
Read an excerpt of Think New Mexico's policy report on Heath Haussamen's nmpolitics.net • October 14, 2011
Get Involved
Think New Mexico's legislative successes are due in large part to the grassroots advocacy of our supporters. During the 2010 legislative session, Think New Mexico supporters sent over 15,000 messages to their legislators and the governor urging them not to reimpose a regressive food tax, and as a result, the governor line-item vetoed it and kept food tax-free for New Mexico families. If you would like to assist Think New Mexico in our efforts to reform the PRC,
please call or write state policymakers and urge them to support legislation reducing the PRC's jurisdiction and enhancing commissioner qualifications. Ask your legislators and the governor to support these reforms.
Vocal public support of policy reforms like reforming the PRC is crucial to making them a reality. Legislators and the governor are attentive and responsive to letters to the editors from their constituents.
We encourage you to express your support for reforming the PRC through the media, as well as directly to your representatives.
The Media section of Think New Mexico's Action Center provides the names and contact information for your local media, including newspapers, radio stations, and television stations, and you can compose and send any of them an email or letter right from the page.
