Legislative Update

Restrict drones

To protect facilities that are critical to the public’s welfare, a bill introduced State Sen. Greg Baca, a Republican from Belen, would make it unlawful to fly an unmanned aircraft, commonly referred to as drones, within 500 feet of certain installations.

Drones would be banned from around facilities such as power plants, chemical storage facilities, and petroleum refineries under Senate Bill 348, which also would make it unlawful to fly a drone that interferes with first responders.

“For the privacy and protection of these facilities that are critical to our safety and welfare, it is critical for us to be proactive to prevent possible problems and regulate this relatively new aircraft in our state,” Baca said.  “It is important that the state be proactive, and to be prepared to address any problems with this flying craft.”

While some federal regulations exist, Senator Baca said it is important to have state regulations to make it unlawful to fly near critical infrastructure including drinking water treatment planes and storage facilities, law enforcement and military facilities. A first time violators would be guilty of a petty misdemeanor and a second and subsequent time would be a misdemeanor.

Drones used for law enforcement and those with written permission for the property owners would be exempt.

No time change

“Summertime all the time not only sounds great, it makes sense,” Senator Cliff Pirtle said. The Republican state senator from Roswell State once again is sponsoring a bill to avoid the inconvenience of springing forward, falling back. 

His bill, SB 239, was introduced Tuesday to keep New Mexico on Daylight Savings Time for 12 months, instead of the current eight. He said it does not make sense to change to Standard Time for only four months.

“No one likes changing clocks twice a year, so let’s stop doing it,” he said.

The bill currently is in the Senate Judiciary Committee for review.

Ever since he sponsored his first bill to remain on daylight savings time throughout the year two sessions ago, he’s received an outpouring of support from New Mexicans, he said. He contended the change can be dangerous to health.

“I have seen reports that show changing the time twice a year has an adverse effect on people’s health,” Pirtle said. “When the time changes, people experience more mishaps, accidents and even more heart attacks. Sometimes, no change is good.”

Researching the original reason for the time change, Pirtle found that it was to save lamp oil and to help farmers and ranchers.  He also found that the farmers and ranchers he spoke to like Daylight Savings time and said they would work from sunup to sundown no matter what a clock says.

Citizens of New Mexico would have eight months to adjust to the idea. The federal government allows states to exempt from changing their clocks. Currently, Arizona and Hawaii and some territories do not change their clocks.

Fresh fruits for students

New Mexico State Senator Pat Woods, a Republican from Broadview, is sponsoring a bill to ensure the freshest fruits and vegetables are served to New Mexico school children.  His bill calls for local fruits and vegetables to be served in meals in school districts, charter schools, and juvenile detention centers statewide.

“We don’t want our school children to turn their noses up to fruits and vegetables, we want a thumbs up,” Woods said. “Produce shipped into the state from Mexico or even South America are picked when they are still green and hard. They don’t tend to have the good flavor that the freshness of New Mexico grown produce can provide since they can be harvested when they are ripe and much more flavorful.  We want kids to know fruits and vegetables can taste good.”

The bill also would be good for New Mexico’s economy and vital to farmers, he said.

“Sometimes I think city folk just believe food miraculously appears on the supermarket shelves, without remember the hard working people in the fields,” he said. “We can help them with this bill.”

According to the legislative analysis, Senate Bill 379 appropriates $1.4 million from the general fund for the purchase and distribution of fruits and vegetables grown in New Mexico, to be used in meals in school districts, charter schools, and juvenile detention centers statewide. The bill also provides for the creation of one full-time equivalent position at the Public Education Department for the administration of the program.

The bill received a “do pass” from Senate Education Committee.