Along with the office of Mayor, five (5) of Albuquerque’s nine (9) City Council seats will be on the October 3, 2017 municipal ballot with only one (1) incumbent City Councilor having no opposition at this time.

Seventeen (17) individuals have registered with city clerk’s office to run for City Council in their respective Districts. (See May 8, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, “City Council races start to take shape; 17 hopefuls, including 4 incumbents, already in the mix for October 3 ballot, page A-1)

Each City Council candidate will have to gather 500 signatures from registered voters in their district by June 28 to get on the ballot.

City Council candidates will also be collecting $5 donations to the city to qualify for public financing.

The opportunity to change the entire majority of City Council seats and the office of the Mayor only comes once every four years, and I for one hope there is sweeping change.

If no candidate gets 50% of the vote in the respective City Council Districts, a runoff election will be held one month later between the two top vote getters.

Following is a listing of the City Council candidates:

City Council District 1:

1. Three term Incumbent Democratic City Councilor Ken Sanchez
2. Progressive Democrat Javier Benavidez, co-director of Southwest Organizing Project
3. Independent Sandra Mills, Albuquerque native and retired IBM employee
4. Independent Johnny F. Luevano, retired Marine Captain and Presbyterian Health plan employee

City Council District 3:

1. First term Incumbent Democrat City Councilor Klarissa Pena (Unopposed)

City Council District 5:

1. Republican Robert Aragon, private attorney, NM Board of Finance member
2. Democrat Cynthia Borrego, retired city planner
3. Republican Jose Orozco, owner of business management and consulting firm
4. Independent Catherine Trujillo, provider of workforce placement
5. Phillip Ramirez, party affiliation unknown, construction company project manager
6. Robert Watson (no information available)

City Council District 7:

1. First term Democrat incumbent Diane Gibson, retired Sandia National Laboratories employee
2. Independent Tomothy Carlton McQueen, December UNM graduate, legislative analyst
3. Republican Eric L. Lucero, retired New Mexico Army National Guard and Air Force

City Council District 9:

1. Three term Republican Incumbent Don Harris, private attorney
2. Libertarian Paul Ryan McKenny, Air Force veteran, college student
3. Democrat Byron K. Powdrell, general manager of radio station and Albuquerque native

I for one have been very frustrated and disappointed in the job performance of my own City Councilor and gave my reasons why in my April 14, 2017 blog article entitled “I Cannot Support The Re-election of Diane Gibson As My City Councilor”.

I have been totally disappointed in the entire city council over the past seven (7) years, especially when it comes to APD oversight and our economy and do not recall any city council that has done so little for so long of time, and when they do act, they have made things worse.

It is my believe that before things can get better in Albuquerque and at city hall, there is a need for a complete change on the City Council with a new generation of leadership.

I do hope more people will run for City Council.

Following are a few issues voters should be thinking about and a few questions the candidates should be asked:

APD and CRIME:

1. The Albuquerque City Council plays a crucial oversight role of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) including approving its budget. As a City Councilor, would you challenge the APD command staff in any meaningful manner and demand compliance with the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree reforms? If not, what oversight role do you believe the Albuquerque City Council should play when it come to the Albuquerque Police Department (APD)?
2. What is your position on the APD and the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree and mandated reforms?
3. Should the City seek to renegotiate or set aside the terms and conditions of the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) and if so why?
4. The Albuquerque City Council has “advise and consent” authority over the Albuquerque Chief of Police and will be required to approve the new Mayor’s appointment of Police Chief. Should the current APD Chief be replaced? Should City Council authority to give “advice and consent” be extended to the Assistant Chief and Deputy Chiefs?
5. Should a national search be conducted for a new law enforcement management team to assume control of APD and make changes and implement the DOJ consent decree mandated reforms?
6. Should the City Council by ordinance create a Department of Public Safety with the appointment of a Chief Public Safety Officer to assume management and control of the Albuquerque Police Department, the Albuquerque Fire Department, the Emergency Operations Center and the 911 emergency operations call center?
7. Should the function of Internal Affairs be removed from APD and “civilianized” under the City Office of Inspector General, the Internal Audit Department and the City Human Resources Department?
8. What are your plans for increasing APD staffing levels and what should those staffing levels be?
9. Are you in favor of the proposed charter amendment that seeks to add 375 Albuquerque Police Officers at a cost of $16 million dollars a year and that would require the city to have 25 sworn officers for every 11,500 residents and if so, how would you pay for such an increase?
10. Should APD staffing be “work load” based or “population” based?
11. How do you feel the Albuquerque City Council can enhance civilian oversight of APD and the implementation of the Department of Justice mandated reforms?
12. Since 2010, there have been 41 police officer involved shootings and the city has paid out $60 million to settle deadly force and excessive use of force cases, with all settlements negotiated by the City Attorney’s office and the Mayor’s Office . Do you feel the City Council should have representation on the City Risk Management Committee that approves settlements or have ultimate and final authority to approve settlements? Should the City return to a “no settlement” policy involving alleged police misconduct cases and require a trial on the merits or a damages jury trial?
13. What are your plans or solutions to bringing down high property and violent crime rates in your district and Albuquerque and does your plan include community based policing?
14. Should APD personnel or APD resources be used in any manner to enforce federal immigration laws and assist federal immigration authorities?
15. Should the City of Albuquerque consolidate law enforcement and fire services with Bernalillo County and create a single agency under one governing authority?
16. The City of Albuquerque has a vehicle forfeiture program where vehicles are seized by the city when a person is arrested for the second time for DWI, the City secures title to the vehicles and they are sold at auction. Are you in favor of the program or would you order the program stopped?
17. Should the City Council reinstate the “red light camera” program where civil traffic citations are issued to combat and reduce red light violations and intersection traffic accidents?

THE ALBUQUERQUE ECONOMY:

1. What strategy or policies should the Albuquerque City Council implement to bring new industries, corporations and jobs to Albuquerque?
2. Albuquerque’s major growth industries include health care, transportation, manufacturing, retail and tourism with an emerging film industry. What should the City Council do to help or enhance or grow these industries?
3. To what extent should the Albuquerque City Council use tax increment districts, industrial revenue bonds and income bonds to spur Albuquerque’s economy?
5. What financial incentives do you feel the city can or should offer and provide to the private sector to attract new industry and jobs to Albuquerque, and should the Albuquerque City Council implement a policy that includes start-up grants or loans with “claw back” provisions?
6. What sort of private and public partnership agreements or programs should the City Council promote to spur economic development?
7. What sort of major projects or facilities, such as a multi-purposed arena or event center, if any, should the City Council consider to spur economic development?
8. What programs can the City Council implement to better coordinate its economic development with the University of New Mexico and the Community College of New Mexico (CNM) to insure an adequately trained workforce for new employers locating to Albuquerque?
9. Are you in favor of the enactment of a gross receipt tax or property tax dedicated strictly to economic development, programs or construction projects to revitalize Albuquerque that would be enacted by the City Council or be voter approved?
11. What programs can the Albuquerque City Council enact to implement to insure better cooperation with Sandia Labs and the transfer of technology information for economic development?

CITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT:

1. What is your position on the two-year rewrite of the City’s comprehensive plan known as ABC-Z project which is an attempt to bring “clarity and predictability” to the development regulations and to attract more “private sector investment”?
2. What do you feel the Albuquerque City Council can do to promote “infill development” and would it include the City acquiring property to be sold to developers and the formation of public/private partnerships?
3. What do you feel the City Council can do to address vacant residential and commercial properties that have been declared “substandard” by city zoning and unfit for occupancy?
4. Should the City of Albuquerque seek the repeal by the New Mexico legislature of laws that prohibits City and City Council resolutions annexation of property without county approval?
5. What is your position on the Santolina development project on the West side and should it be annex by the City through City Council resolution to provide utility services?
6. What is your position on City and County consolidation for all government services, including zoning and development?

EDUCATION:

1. Should the City of Albuquerque have representation or be included on the Albuquerque School board, the University of New Mexico Board of Regents and the Community College of New Mexico Board?
2. What should the City do to help reduce high school dropout rates?
3. Should the City of Albuquerque advocate to the New Mexico legislature increasing funding for early child care development programs and intervention programs with increased funding from the permanent fund?
4. What education resources should or can the City make available to the Albuquerque school system?

POVERTY AND THE HOMELESS:

1. What should be done to reduce the homeless population in Albuquerque or your District?
2. What services should the City provide to the homeless and the poor if any?
3. Should the City continue to support the “coming home” program?
4. Should the city be more involved with the county in providing mental health care facilities and programs?

PROJECT PLANNING AND FUNDING:

1. The Albuquerque Rapid Transit Project (ART) is a $129 million-dollar project including $69 million Federal Transportation (FTA) grant that has yet to be approved by congress. Should ART project be completed?
2. If the total $69 million ART grant is not approved by congress, where do you propose the money should come from for any shortfall, the general fund, revenue bonds or a tax increase?
3. Are you in favor of increasing the city’s current gross receipts tax or property taxes to pay for essential services and make up for lost gross receipt tax revenues caused in part by the repeal of the “hold harmless” provision and that has mandated budget and personnel cuts during the last 7 years?
4. Do you feel that all increases in gross receipts taxes should be voter approved?
5. Are you in favor of diverting any funding from the Bio Park tax enacted by city voters that will generate $250 million for other services or projects not associated with the Bio Park?
6. The City Council has approved over $63 million dollars over the past two years to build “pickle ball” courts, baseball fields and the ART bus project down central by bypassing voters and using revenue bonds as the financing mechanism to pay for big capital projects. Do you feel revenue bonds is an appropriate funding mechanism for large capital improvement projects?

BALLOT INITIATIVES:

1. What is your position on the mandatory sick leave initiative known as the “Healthy Workforce” ordinance mandating private businesses to pay sick leave to employees and that will appear on the October 3, 2017 ballot?’
2. Should the City Council by resolution instruct the City Attorney’s office enforce the increase in the minimum wage enacted by voters?
3. Should the City Council by resolution instruct the City Attorney’s office to enforce the mandatory sick leave initiative if it is enacted by city voters?
4. Are you in favor of increasing public financing for Mayoral and City Council candidates or should Albuquerque’s public finance laws be repealed by the City Council?
5. Do you feel changes to the city public finance laws should be made expanding the time frame to collect contributions and making it easier for candidates for Mayor and City Council to qualify for public finance?
6. Do you intend to ask for or rely upon your political party affiliation to promote your candidacy for City Council?
7. Should major capital improvement projects such as the Albuquerque Rapid Transit project (ART), be placed on the ballot for voter approval and should there be a specified amount before a public vote is required?
8. What is your position on the ART Bus project and should it be stopped or scaled back if Congress does not fund the $69 million federal grant?
9. Should Albuquerque become a “sanctuary city” by City Council resolution?
10. Should the issue of Albuquerque becoming a “sanctuary city” be placed on the ballot for voter approval?
11. All municipal elections in the State of New Mexico are supposed to be none partisan. Notwithstanding, should the City Clerk be required to disclose party affiliation of candidates running for municipal office on the ballot?
12. Is it your intent to endorse any one of the candidates for Mayor and if so who?

CONCLUSION

Voters should demand and expect more from candidates than fake smiles, slick campaign flyers, and no solutions and no ideas.

Our City needs more than promises of better economic times and lower crime rates for Albuquerque.

Voters need to demand answers and find out what candidates really stand for and what they intend to do once elected.

Two worker rights groups held a press conference and are asking a state district judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed in April that seeks to keep Albuquerque’s proposed sick leave ordinance off the ballot. (See May 5, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, Business section, Section B, “SUPPORT FOR SICK LEAVE; Motions ask judge to toss suit seeking to keep ordinance off Oct. 3 ballot”)

Plaintiff’s in the same lawsuit are also asking that the judge declare unenforceable Albuquerque’s minimum wage ordinance.

Not a single candidate for Mayor nor City Council appeared at the press conference in support of the proposed sick leave ordinance nor in support of Albuquerque’s existing minimum wage ordinance.

The City of Albuquerque and the City Attorney’s Office should be aggressively defending the minimum wage ordinance and should enforce it.

The City of Albuquerque and the City Attorney’s Office should also be advocating that the sick leave proposed ordinance be placed on the October 2 municipal ballot as required by law.

In 2012, by a two-to-one ratio, voters in the City of Albuquerque decided to raise the City’s minimum wage from $7.50 per hour to $8.50 per hour. In 2012, Republican Mayor Berry, the Republican Albuquerque City Councilors and the business community opposed and campaigned against the minimum wage voter initiative.

After enactment of the City’s minimum wage ordinance, Mayor Berry did not object to his appointed City Attorney saying the City did not have the resources to enforce the law against all businesses who violated the minimum wage law.

The current attitude of City Hall is that workers need to go to court on their own at their own expense to enforce the minimum wage ordinance and that is why the class action lawsuit was filed by waitresses and waiters.

The existing minimum wage ordinance is a city ordinance that needs to be enforced by the city and the city attorney’s office and not leave workers hanging out to dry and to fend for themselves at their own expense.

If enacted, the mandatory sick leave ordinance should also be enforced by the City.

Every single business in Albuquerque is required to register and have a license to do business and must agree to adhere to all enacted city ordinances and laws.

Businesses cannot pick and choose what laws and City Ordinances they want to follow.

The City Attorney’s office and Planning Department have the authority to enforce existing ordinances.

Businesses licensed by the City can be ordered to follow the minimum wage law or the City will take court action to have their business licenses revoked and secure Court Orders to shut down the businesses for violating the law.

The City Attorney’s Office needs to do the right thing and enforce the existing minimum wage ordinance and the sick leave ordinance if enacted by the voters.

All candidates for Mayor and City Council need to articulate their position on the Health Workforce Act mandating the payment of sick leave.

http://www.freeabq.com/2017/05/02/apd-in-deliberate-noncompliance-with-settlement-agreement/

If there is any truth in this recent update of the Albuquerque Free Press article that APD has in fact lied to Federal Monitor James Ginger, it is a very serious offense that should be sanctioned.

The Federal Monitor under the law and the Rules of Civil Procedure, is an officer of the Court and represents the court. and reports directly to the Federal Judge.

Lying to a Federal Judge can never be tolerated.

If APD did in fact lie to the Federal Monitor, the Department of Justice and the US Attorney need to file a “Motion for Contempt of Court” against APD and the command staff requesting sanctions and asking for an “Order to Show Cause” hearing where testimony can be taken and the Court can determine exactly who lied and what sanctions should be imposed.

If the command staff did write a special order subverting the settlement agreement, denied its existence when asked about it by the monitor and APD then refused to give the monitor a copy of the subversive order, sanctions are in order and need to be imposed and those responsible need to be held accountable and terminated.

If the federal Monitor believes he has been lied to as he seems to allege by implication in his report, he needs to say it in no uncertain terms to the Federal Court at the May 10, 2017 status conference when he gives his report and ask for sanctions himself.

Unless Ginger himself says something, he can can expect to continue to be “mystified” and “startled” by the lack of progress and implementation of the DOJ consent decree mandated reforms as he claims in his latest report.

http://ww.freeabq.com/2017/05/02/apd-in-deliberate-noncompliance-with-settlement-agreement/

On May 2, 2017, Federal Monitor James Ginger issued his fifth report on the Albuquerque Police Department’s (APD) progress on implementing the Department of Justice (DOJ) mandated reforms under the Federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA). (See also May 3, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, “Monitor faults APD leaders; But report says police are in “primary compliance with 93 percent of tasks”.)

The May 2, 2017 fifth report covers the time frame of August 2016 to January, 2017.

In his fifth report, Federal Monitor James Ginger says the lack of scrutiny given by the department’s highest ranking officer’s in use of force cases is “mystifying” and “startling”.

The report is very critical of APD’s high ranking supervisors and command-level officers, accusing them of “deliberate non-compliance”.

Ginger reports his team noticed a “palpable shift” in the police department’s approach to reform and found supervisors and command-level officers made too many lapses when reviewing use-of-force cases.

What is truly “startling” and “mystifying” is that the Federal Monitor was at all surprised by the actions of the command staff and management of APD when implementing the DOJ reforms.

The Berry Administration, Chief Eden and his command staff lack of commitment to the DOJ mandated reforms is documented in the second, third and the fourth progress reports submitted by Federal Monitor James Ginger to the Federal Court.

In his second report to the federal court, Federal Monitor James Ginger accused the City Attorney of what he called, “delay, do little and deflect” tactics saying his relationship with her was “a little rougher than most” compared with top attorneys in other cities and where he has overseen police reform.

Just ten (10) months ago in his July 1, 2016 third progress report of Albuquerque Police Department (APD) on the DOJ consent decree, Ginger found “Across the board … the components in APD’s system for overseeing and holding officers accountable for the use of force, for the most part, has failed … the serious deficiencies revealed point to a deeply-rooted systemic problem. … The deficiencies, in part, indicate a culture [of] low accountability is at work within APD, particularly in chain-of-command reviews.”

The November 1, 2016 fourth federal monitor’s report states that when “excessive use of force” incidents are investigated by the APD Critical Incident Team, it“ [deploys] carefully worded excuses, apparently designed not to find fault with officer actions” and “[uses] language and terminology apparently designed to absolve officers and supervisors of their responsibility to follow certain CASA [Court Approved Settlement Agreement] related provisions.

The most damning and disturbing findings made by the Federal Monitor in his fifth report are that APD “subverted” the reform process by issuing “covert special orders,” denying the existence of the orders, and APD exhibiting a “near total failure” to accept civilian oversight.

The report states that the monitoring team during a site visit asked to meet with APD Internal Affairs (IA) and the Critical Incident Response Team (CIT) to discuss problems with use of force cases, one in particular, and the monitoring team was told neither IA nor CIT had reviewed the case, prompting the monitor to report “despite clearly articulated monitoring team concerns about this case, it had dropped into a “black hole” at APD.

Keep in mind, it was some 16 APD police officer involved shootings and APD’s use of force that lead to the Deapartment of Justice (DOJ) investigation into APD and the finding of a “culture of aggression” resulting in all the mandated reforms under a court approved settlement agreement (CASA).

The federal monitor lays direct blame on the APD command staff for the “deliberate non-compliance” with APD’s settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice.

The report says “zero percent of the command personnel, who should have ordered additional investigation to resolve inconsistencies and improve reliability and credibility of supervisory personnel’s use-of-force investigations, did so! Few systems can survive such a failure rate.”

The monitor report states “There seems to be no one person, unit, or group with responsibility and command authority to make change happen”. Really Dr. Ginger, really?

Three years ago after the DOJ consent decree was signed, Chief Gordon Eden, Eden’s appointed Assistant Chief Huntsman and APD Deputies represented to the monitor and the City Council they were taking on the responsibility of implementing the reforms under the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA).

Chief Eden went as far as to say “we’re going to take the department well beyond any findings the DOJ has”.

Where Eden has taken APD is further into the ditch.

It’s apparent that the only thing that has changed at APD is the passage of time and paying the Federal Monitor another hefty sum of money for another report that he could have just as easily cut and pasted from his last report.

Still no solutions or proposals from the Federal Monitor Ginger, but he says that’s not his job according to the DOJ consent decree and that is not why he is being paid millions.

For the fifth time in three (3) years, the Federal Monitor’s report reflects that you get failed law enforcement management when you appoint a Chief of Police who has absolutely no prior experience managing a municipal police department and who is considered a “political operative”.

This is what happens when you keep or return people who created participated or did not stop the culture of aggression and the “deeply-rooted systemic problems” found by the Department of Justice.

The Mayor and City Council continue to refuse holding APD Chief Gordon Eden and his command staff accountable for their failures in implementing the DOJ mandated reforms.

The entire chain of command of APD must be removed and replaced by the next Mayor with a new generation of leadership and not from within the ranks of APD.

A national search needs to be conducted to identify and hire a new Chief of Police, to hire new Deputy Chiefs and a new chain of command to assume control of APD.

The Albuquerque City Council has abdicated its oversight authority over APD for the last seven years and it needs to stop.

The City Council can implement complete civilian authority and management control over APD with a civilian Police Commissioner to assume responsibility for implementation of the DOJ mandated reforms and create a Department of Public Safety.

APD has repeatedly shown it cannot police itself and there is a need to “civilianize” the APD Internal Affairs functions to investigate police misconduct cases and use of force cases, and to implement the Department of Justice reforms.

The APD Internal Affairs Unit should be abolished.

The investigation of police misconduct cases including excessive use of force cases not resulting in death or nor serious bodily harm should be done by “civilian” personnel investigators.

The function and responsibility for investigating police misconduct cases and violations of personnel policy and procedures by police should be assumed by the Office of Independent Council in conjunction with the City Human Resources Department and the Office of Internal Audit where necessary.

Until there is a real change in the entire APD command staff, we can expect to continue to be “mystified” and “startled” by the lack of progress and implementation of the DOJ consent decree mandated reforms and the disappearance of the DOJ reforms into the “black hole” known as APD.

I get downright disgusted with elected officials who say and do absolutely nothing during their entire terms until they are up for election and then they seek solutions to problems for the sake of publicity.

Albuquerque City Councilors Ken Sanchez and Don Harris are two such elected officials.

Both have done absolutely nothing for the last eight (8) years when it comes to the Albuquerque Police Department (APD).

Both are seeking re-election in October and now five (5) months before the election they come up with a proposal to help with the APD personnel shortage.

Sanchez and Harris are calling for a public vote on a charter amendment to add 375 APD Officers costing the City $16 million.

(See April 28, 2107 Albuquerque Journal. “Proposal seeks to add 375 APD officers; Charter amendment would cost the city and additional $16 million”, Metro & NM , Section C-1.)

The proposed charter amendment, which they want to put on the October 2 municipal ballot, would require the city to have 25 sworn police officers for every 11,500 residents in effect mandating that APD have 1,215 sworn officers.

The Charter Amendment is ill advised, not needed, and both Sanchez and Harris know it.

Many law enforcement experts believe that police staffing levels should be tied to work load and case load demands and not tied to population levels.

Councilor Ken Sanchez said in support of the Charter amendment “People in Albuquerque today do not feel safe. … I am very concerned. … I go to community meetings and that’s the number one concern – safety. They do not feel safe in their own homes.”

Guess what Councilor Sanchez, for the last eight (8) years you have been in office, people have not been safe in their homes, but only now that you are running for re-election you want to do something about it.

Since 2010, Albuquerque’s violent crime rate increased by 14% and property crime rates have dramatically increased by 14% to 20% percent.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported that in 2015 violent crime and property crime in Albuquerque increased in by 9.2% and 11.5%, respectively.

In 2015, murders in Albuquerque spiked by 53%.

The truth is, there is no need for such a charter amendment nor any need for a public vote and the City Council could act if it wanted to.

There is clearly an element of hypocrisy with Sanchez and Harris calling for a public vote on APD staffing levels when they both voted for the ART Bus project and refused to put ART to a public vote.

Further, Sanchez and Harris voted for over $63 million dollars over the past two years in revenue bonds to build pickle ball courts, baseball fields and the ART bus project down Central not seeking public input and bypassing the capital improvements process (CIP) that mandates public votes.

The use of revenue bonds is discretionary with the City Council requiring seven (7) votes and revenue bonds do not require significant review and public hearings as is required with capital improvement bonds.

A city council resolution could be enacted calling for the increase in APD personnel and giving raises and calling for retention and incentive bonuses and sign on and education pay to help with recruitment.

The City Council has the ultimate and final authority to fund APD to whatever level it wants with a simple majority vote and historically has done so for many years.

In 2009, both Sanchez and Harris were on the Albuquerque City Council.

Eight (8) years ago, APD was fully staffed with 1,100 officers, and Sanchez and Harris voted for the APD staffing and funding for 1,100 sworn officers.

Eight years ago, APD was the best trained, best equipped, and best paid in its history and sworn officers were consistently given raises, retention and incentive bonuses and sign on and education pay.

Over the last seven years, Mayor Berry and his appointed Chief’s destroyed one of the finest police departments in the country that will take years to recover.

Over the last eight (8) years, Sanchez and Harris have said nothing about APD management, not even when the Department of Justice found a ”culture of aggression” that lead to a federal consent decree and mandated reforms.

The Albuquerque City Council plays a crucial oversight role of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) including controlling APD’s entire budget.

Sanchez and Harris have done nothing when it comes to Albuquerque Police Department (APD) reforms and have never challenged the APD command staff in any meaningful way demanding compliance with the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree reforms.

Each time the Federal Monitor has presented his critical reports of APD to the City Council, Sanchez and Harris have essentially remained silent and declined to demand accountability in any meaningful way from the Mayor and hold the APD command staff responsible for dragging their feet on the reforms, let alone staffing levels.

Three years ago, the City Council reduced funding from 1,100 sworn officers to 1,000 sworn officers because of the Berry Administration’s failure to recruit and keep up with retirements and Sanchez and Harris voted for the reduction in staffing.

APD is currently funded for 1,000, but employs only 856 sworn officers.

APD cannot recruit enough officers now to reach the 1,000 level, so what makes Sanchez and Harris think that a charter amendment approved by voters will do any good to add 375 more sworn officers to APD?

If Sanchez and Harris feel so strongly that we need 375 more officers, they should just introduce and city council resolution calling for it along with the $16 million funding, instead of calling for a charter amendment, but that would require a political backbone in a re-election year.

Both City Councilors have opponents for re-election.

City Councilors Ken Sanchez and Don Harris have both served multiple terms.

Sanchez and Harris should be thanked for their past service and move on and not be elected to another term in that they are part of the problem at city hall.

There are nine (9) candidates who have been certified by the City Clerk and who names will appear on the 2017 ballot for Mayor. (See April 29, 2017 Albuquerque Journal, “9 of 16 mayoral candidates qualify for ballot”, Metro & NM Section, Section C-1.)

All candidates should be congratulated and thanked by voters for their willingness to run.

Running for Mayor is not an easy task and requires candidates to really hustle to get the 3,000 qualifying nominating signatures from registered voters.

Four (4) years ago, there were only three (3) candidates for Mayor and just 19% of eligible voters voted.

With nine (9) candidates, I am hoping voter turnout will increase substantially.

In 2013, there was only a 19% turnout of registered voters in the Mayor’s race.

According to the City Clerk’s office, following are the qualifying candidates who secured the required number of nominating signatures from registered voters:

• Former Bernalillo County Commissioner Deanna Archuleta, a Democrat.
• Former state Democratic Party Chairman and private attorney Brian Colón.
• Republican Bernalillo County Commissioner Wayne Johnson.
• Republican Ricardo Chaves and founder of Parking Company of America.
• University of New Mexico undergraduate Augustus “Gus” Pedrotty.
• Independent Susan Wheeler-Deichsel and founder of the civic group Urban ABQ.
• Republican City Councilor Dan Lewis.
• Democrat first term State Auditor Tim Keller.
• Independent Michelle Garcia Holmes, a retired Albuquerque police detective.

The election is Tuesday, October 2, 2017.

If no candidate gets 50% of the vote, a runoff election will be held one month later between the two top vote getters.

Following are issues voters should be thinking about and a few questions the candidates should be asked about:

PERSONNEL AND SERVICES:

1. Will you replace the current Chief Administrative Officer, City Attorney, Chief of Police, Fire Department Chief, Chief of Staff, Chief Operations Officer and all other current
department directors and if so with whom?
2. Are you in favor of, and will you lobby for, a state “right to work statute” that would impact or eliminate city employee unions?
3. Are you in favor of privatizing city services or work such as public safety, the 311 call center operations, the bus system or the maintenance and repair work done at city facilities such as the Bio Park?

APD and CRIME:

1. What is your position on the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree and mandated reforms?
2. Should the City seek to renegotiate or set aside the terms and conditions of the Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) and if so why?
3. Should the APD Chief, Assistant Chief, Deputy Chiefs and APD command staff be replaced?
4. Should a national search be conducted for a new law enforcement management team to assume control of APD and make changes and implement the DOJ consent decree mandated reforms?
5. Should the function of Internal Affairs be removed from APD and civilianized under the city Office of Inspector General, the Internal Audit Department and the City Human Resources Department?
6. What are your plans for increasing APD staffing levels and what should those staffing levels be?
7. Are you in favor of the proposed charter amendment that seeks to add 375 Albuquerque Police Officers at a cost of $16 million dollars a year and that would require the city to have 25 sworn officers for every 11,500 residents and if so, how would you pay for such an increase?
8. Are you in favor of allowing retired APD sworn police officers return to work and be paid both their PERA pensions and salary, also known as double dipping?
9. What would you do as Mayor to enhance civilian oversight of APD and the implementation of the Department of Justice mandated reforms?
10. Since 2010, there have been 41 police officer involved shootings and the city has paid out $60 million to settle deadly force and excessive use of force cases. Should the City return to a “no settlement” policy involving alleged police misconduct cases and require a trial on the merits or a damages jury trial?
11. What are your plans or solutions to bringing down high property and violent crime rates in Albuquerque and does your plan include community based policing?
12. Should APD personnel or APD resources be used in any manner to enforce federal immigration laws and assist federal immigration authorities?
13. Should the City of Albuquerque create a Department of Public Safety, consolidating Police, Fire and 911 operations under a single civilian Public Safety Director?
14. Should the City of Albuquerque consolidate law enforcement and fire services with Bernalillo County and create a single agency under one governing authority?
15. The City of Albuquerque has a vehicle forfeiture program where vehicles are seized by the city when a person is arrested for the second time for DWI, the City secures title to the vehicles and they are sold at auction. Are you in favor of the program or would you order the program stopped?
16. Should the City reinstate the “red light camera” program where civil traffic citations are issued to combat and reduce intersection traffic accidents?

THE ALBUQUERQUE ECONOMY:

1. What strategy would you implement to bring new industries, corporations and jobs to Albuquerque?
2. Albuquerque’s major growth industries include health care, transportation, manufacturing, retail and tourism with an emerging film industry. What programs would you propose to help or enhance or grow these industries?
3. Do you intend to keep the current Director of the City’s Economic Development Department and support staff?
4. To what extent should tax increment districts, industrial revenue bonds and income bonds be used to spur Albuquerque’s economy?
5. What financial incentives do you feel the city can or should offer and provide to the private sector to attract new industry and jobs to Albuquerque, and should that include start-up grants or loans with “claw back” provisions?
6. What sort of private and public partnership agreements or programs should be implemented to spur economic development?
7. What sort of programs or major projects or facilities, if any, should the city partner with the State or County to spur economic development?
8. What programs can the city implement to better coordinate its economic development with the University of New Mexico and the Community College of New Mexico (CNM) to insure an adequately trained workforce for new employers locating to Albuquerque?
9. Are you in favor of the enactment of a gross receipt tax or property tax dedicated strictly to economic development, programs or construction projects to revitalize Albuquerque that would be enacted by the City Council or be voter approved?
10. Do you support the continuation of the “Innovate Albuquerque” program or its expansion?
11. What programs can Albuquerque implement to insure better cooperation with Sandia Labs and the transfer of technology information for economic development?

CITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT:

1. What is your position on the two-year rewrite of the City’s comprehensive plan known as ABC-Z project which is an attempt to bring “clarity and predictability” to the development regulations and to attract more “private sector investment”?
2. As Mayor, what do you feel the City can do to promote “infill development” and would it include the City acquiring property to be sold to developers and the formation of public/private partnerships?
3. What do you feel the City can do to address vacant residential and commercial properties that have been declared “substandard” by city zoning and unfit for occupancy?
4. Should the City of Albuquerque seek the repeal by the New Mexico legislature of laws that prohibit city annexation of property without county approval?
5. What is your position on the Santolina development project on the West side and should it be annex by the City to provide utility services?
6. What is your position on City and County consolidation for all government services, including zoning and development?

EDUCATION:

1. Should the City of Albuquerque have representation or be included on the Albuquerque School board, the University of New Mexico Board of Regents and the Community College of New Mexico Board?
2. What should the City do to help reduce high school dropout rates?
3. Should the City of Albuquerque advocate to the New Mexico legislature increasing funding for early child care development programs and intervention programs with increased funding from the permanent fund?
4. What education resources should or can the City make available to the Albuquerque school system?

POVERTY AND THE HOMELESS:

1. What should be done to reduce the homeless population in Albuquerque?
2. What services should the City provide to the homeless and the poor if any?
3. Should the City continue to support the “coming home” program?
4. Should the city be more involved with the county in providing mental health care facilities and programs?

PROJECT PLANNING AND FUNDING:

1. The Albuquerque Rapid Transit Project (ART) is a $129 million-dollar project including $69 million Federal Transportation (FTA) grant that has yet to be approved by congress. Should ART be completed?
2. If the tatotal $69 million ART grant is not approved by congress, where do you propose the money should come from for any shortfall, the general fund, revenue bonds or a tax increase?
3. Are you in favor of increasing the city’s current gross receipts tax or property taxes to pay for essential services and make up for lost gross receipt tax revenues caused in part by the repeal of the “hold harmless” provision and that has mandated budget and personnel cuts during the last 7 years?
4. Do you feel that any and all increases in gross receipts taxes should be voter approved?
5. Are you in favor of diverting any funding from the Bio Park tax enacted by city voters that will generate $250 million for other services or projects not associated with the Bio Park?
6. The City has borrowed over $63 million dollars over the past two years to build “pickle ball” courts, baseball fields and the ART bus project down central by bypassing voters and using revenue bonds as the financing mechanism to pay for big capital projects. Do you feel revenue bonds is an appropriate funding mechanism for large capital improvement projects as identified?

ANIMAL WELFARE
1. Are you in favor of replacing the current Director of the Animal Welfare Department?
2. What is your position on the City’s “catch and release” program for feral cat’s that upon being caught by the city’s Animal Welfare Department, they are spade or neutered and then released?
3. What would you do to promote dog and cat adoptions or should the city euthanize all animals after a thirty (30) day hold?
4. What is your familiarity with the HEART ordinance and do you feel it is too restrictive and should it be amended or repealed?

BALLOT INITIATIVES:

1. What is your position on the mandatory sick leave initiative known as the “Healthy Workforce” ordinance mandating private businesses to pay sick leave to employees and that will appear on the October 3, 2017 ballot?
2. Should the City and the City Attorney’s office enforce the increase in the minimum wage enacted by voters?
3. Should the City and the City Attorney’ enforce the mandatory sick leave initiative if it is enacted by city voters?
4. What is your position on the proposed increase in public financing for Mayoral candidates from $360,000 to $640,000 that will appear on the October 3, 2017 ballot?
5. Do you intend to ask for or rely upon a measured finance committee to set up to promote your candidacy for Mayor?
6. Should major capital improvement projects such as the Albuquerque Rapid Transit project (ART), be placed on the ballot for voter approval and should there be a specified amount before a public vote is required?
7. What is your position on the ART Bus project and should it be stopped or scaled back if Congress does not fund the $69 million federal grant?
8. Should Albuquerque become a “sanctuary city”?
9. Should the issue of Albuquerque becoming a “sanctuary city” be placed on the ballot for voter approval?

CONCLUSION

Voters are entitled to and should expect more from candidates than fake smiles, slick commercials, and no solutions and no ideas.

Our City needs more than promises of better economic times and lower crime rates for Albuquerque.

Voters need to demand answers and find out what candidates really stand for and what they intend to do once elected.