Ringside Seat: ‘Kill Bill’ Wasn’t Just A Movie; It’s A Way Of Life

By Milan Simonich
The Santa Fe New Mexican

Guard your wallet. State legislators are back in session.

They have 30 days remaining to elbow for openings to advance poorly conceived pet projects, often at enormous public expense.

William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens favored the phrase “dead as a doornail” and it has a place in this column. The literary giants also inspired the term “doornail bills” to highlight legislation that deserves to die — the faster the better.

Topping the list of bad bills for the second consecutive year is a proposal to establish a public bank in New Mexico.

Rep. Patricia Roybal Caballero, D-Albuquerque, is sponsoring the measure, House Bill 75. It would require the state treasurer to deposit $60 million in the public bank within 30 days of its incorporation.

That’s only the beginning. Under Roybal Caballero’s bill, another $50 million a year would be appropriated from the state general fund in 2023 and subsequent years “to capitalize” the public bank.

Readers who double as watchdogs pounce each time this retread is rolled out by one legislator or another.

“Capitalization is only one requirement for initiation of a bank,” a New Mexico resident wrote in a note to me. “It does not include any startup, facilities and banking systems, advisers and consultants, personnel and staffing, bonding requirements and insurance. Nor does it account for the years of carrying all that until such a bank, if ever, covers its costs.”

Another resident called a public bank “a foolish waste of taxpayer resources”.

“I have found that the shadow proponents for these initiatives in other states are often consulting firms that see lucrative contracts to assist in the complex and expensive process of creating one,” the resident said.

Public banks have been permitted in the United States for more than a century, but only one succeeded over the long term.

The surviving public bank is in North Dakota. Ten other states once operated banks, too. All of them quit the business, a fact omitted by proponents of a public bank in New Mexico.

Roybal Caballero’ s bill might be considered germane in a legislative session devoted mostly to the state budget. If so, it will meet with heavy opposition from the 34 locally owned and operated banks in New Mexico.

At least some of these community banks receive deposits of public money that propel hometown investments.

Force-feed public funds to a state-controlled bank and politicians will undercut private businesses and the people they employ.

Another potential drawback to a public bank is secrecy. Politicians always claim they must be tight-lipped about economic development projects.

This raises a question that should trouble residents: If a public bank were involved in lending money for what it described as a job-creation project, would its executives demand secrecy, even with taxpayers’ money at stake?

Proposals for public banks are popular in certain parts of the country. In most cases, ordinary consumers wouldn’t be able to do business with a public bank.

These ventures wouldn’t be geared to providing services such as individual checking and savings accounts.

Roybal Caballero’ s bill mentions other sorts of services. Many would be geared to government operations.

One section of her bill lists purchasing bonds and making loans to political subdivisions of the state “for the purpose of providing financing for any public project”.

A state agency already exists to provide the money to launch public works projects. Called the New Mexico Finance Authority, it was established in 1992 to assist cities, counties and other government entities.

The Finance Authority provides low-cost financing for public projects, especially for communities that might not be able to access the market for tax-exempt bonds.

This is a robust year for state income, in spite of the deadly pandemic. Legislators could make more money available for roads, bridges, schools and water systems through the existing financing system instead of again considering a dicey new venture.

New Mexico’s 112 state legislators churn out too many bills. Everybody, it seems, wants to pass something — or anything at all.

My thoughts drift to writer and director Quentin Tarantino, who created a two-volume set of movies called Kill Bill. They were full of brawling, but the titles remind me of the state Legislature.

Kill a bill and lawmakers might be doing a public service. The latest incarnation of the bill for a public bank would be a good beginning.

Ringside Seat is an opinion column about people, politics and news. Contact Milan Simonich at msimonich@sfnewmexican.com or 505.986.3080.

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