Bills, constitutional amendments addressing regent appointments and training move forward

The Senate Education Committee unanimously advanced a proposal to overhaul oversight of university boards of regents in New Mexico Wednesday.

Co-sponsor Rep. Nathan Small (D-Las Cruces) presented House Joint Resolution 12 to members of the House Education Committee, who passed it unanimously. The resolution, supported by Attorney General Raúl Torrez, would ask voters to approve a constitutional amendment that codifies regents’ fiduciary duties; moves proceedings for removing regents from the state Supreme Court to district courts; and allows the attorney general or a majority of the board to initiate removal of a regent.

HJR 12 now heads to the House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee.

The resolution is one of four bills and resolutions introduced thus far addressing the role of regents, how they are chosen and how they are prepared for serving in their roles. The legislation follows Western New Mexico University board of regents’ authorization of a $1.9 million payout to outgoing university president Joseph Shepard, who is accused of wasteful  spending and improper use of university funds. Several regents resigned in the aftermath.

Senate Joint Resolution 7, co-sponsored by Sens. Jeff Steinborn (D-Las Cruces) and Harold Pope (D-Albuquerque), proposes an amendment to the New Mexico Constitution requiring the governor to select a regent for nomination from a list provided by a nominating committee for each university or community college. 

SJR 7 was passed unanimously through the Senate Rules Committee Friday, Feb. 7. Steinborn told Source that he thinks SJR 7 is the most important of his two regents bills because it gets to the crux of who is appointed to make decisions at universities and how. He said he has been working on this initiative for many years.

“Since my very first session, when I saw just how politicized these regent positions really were,” Steinborn said. “I felt like we needed a better system – of taking these jobs really seriously, to make it based on merit, of who actually had the most to offer our universities.”

Senate Bill 19, also sponsored by Steinborn, also passed through the Senate Rules Committee Friday with a unanimous vote and now heads to the Senate floor.