NM Senate Rules Commitee to Discuss Ethics Reform Today, Take Up Several Election Bills

From the NM Senate Daybook:
February 14, 2007, 8:00 AM – Senate Rules Committee – Room 321 – Committee Secretary 986-4746. For contact information for Senate Rules Committee members, click here. The Committee plans to hear an Ethics Task Force Discussion with Stuart Bluestone, Deputy Director, Attorney General’s Office and Dean Scarnecchia, UNM law School. The Committee also plans to review the following bills (among others):

SB 449 AUTOMATIC RECOUNTS IN CERTAIN ELECTIONS (FELDMAN): This is a very important bill being supported by Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, election reform activists and others to require and fund automatic recounts when the vote margin between the top two candidates in a general statewide or federal election is less than one half of one percent. Currently, only candidates can request a recount and must pay for it themselves unless serious mistakes or fraud is are found in the recount. Please contact the Committee members and urge their approval of SB 449.

SB 360 MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS BY COUNTY CLERKS (SANCHEZ M): Reassigns certain election duties such as providing a list of registered voters from municipal clerks to county clerks.

SB 363 ELECTRONIC CAMPAIGN REPORT FILING PROVISIONS (SANCHEZ M): Makes electronic filing of campaign reports voluntary, not mandatory as currently required.

SB 506 INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS (DURAN): Requires that independent candidate nominees for state office must have no affiliation with a political party and must reside in the district they're running in according to their voter registration as of the date of the governor's proclamation for the primary election.