Cabinet Secretary Gregory J. Fouratt
STATE News:
SANTA FE – The New Mexico Senate today unanimously confirmed by a 37-0 vote Cabinet Secretary Gregory J. Fouratt to continue his leadership over the New Mexico Department of Public Safety.
Secretary Fouratt was appointed by Gov. Susana Martinez and began overseeing the Department of Public Safety March 15, 2014. He has a highly qualified background equipping him to lead the Department of Public Safety. He served as a prosecutor at the United States Attorney’s Office in New Mexico for 17 years, prosecuting the full range of narcotics, firearm, racketeering, immigration and violent crimes, including death penalty prosecutions.
January 2008 to May 2010, Secretary Fouratt served by appointment of the U.S. District Court as United States Attorney for New Mexico. In that capacity, he was the chief federal law enforcement officer in New Mexico. His tenure as United States Attorney was headlined by significant public corruption investigations and prosecutions, as well as a surge in prosecutions designed to enhance Southwest border security.
In addition to his service in the Department of Justice, Secretary Fouratt also is a military veteran. From 1988 to 2012, he served on active duty in the United States Air Force, in the Air Force Reserve, and in the New Mexico Air National Guard. He retired in September 2012, with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Raised in Roswell, Secretary Fouratt received his Bachelor of Arts degree from New Mexico State University in 1988 and his Master of Public Administration degree from Golden Gate University in 1991. In 1995, he graduated first in his class from the Texas Tech University School of Law.
In his first year as Cabinet Secretary, Secretary Fouratt has implemented positive changes in the Department of Public Safety. In July 2014, he was instrumental in achieving, for the first time, pay parity for all Department of Public Safety commissioned officer personnel.
He is personally spearheading a major reorganization of the Department of Public Safety which includes a lengthy and complex restructuring of the statutes that created the Department of Public Safety, the New Mexico State Police, and the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy. Secretary Fouratt also has endeavored to increase the Department of Public Safety budget to increase the number and capacity of New Mexico State Police recruit schools to address the critical staffing shortages in the State Police.
