Our state has been blessed with a surplus due to the oil and gas market place last year. Our legislators are working hard to figure out how to spend it. We have different idea.

• Resolve the unfunded liabilities facing the state;
  
• Put money aside for when the oil and gas market drops again;
• Give money back to the citizens of NM - it is our money, not yours.

Steve Pierce laid out an excellent summary of the unfunded liability issues:

• $430M     Address the court's decision on public school funding
• $250M    NM Film Tax Credit unpaid liability by the end of FY 2020
• $320M    Tax Protests still pending
• $65M      Maintain Medicaid services
• $46M      Minimum needed to address state pension funds' unfunded $12.5 B unfunded liability
• $21M      Fix problems at the Dept. of Youth and Family Services
• $18M      Ensure sufficient funds for the Dept. of Corrections
• $1.150B  Total

The ATP does not subscribe to just turning this money over, however, at this time these are obligations for which the state is responsible. For example, adding $430M to the schools without making serious changes to the education system and throwing $21M at CYFD without improving their department structure and overhauling their operations is just throwing good money down a rat hole. The same can be said for most of the other liabilities listed above. ATP wants to see requirements to improve performance of state run entities along with the money they are asking for.

Silvia Bokor was a tireless patriot who worked with all conservative organizations to expose those who would take away our freedoms. She relentlessly searched for the truth and if someone or some group in power was misbehaving, she didn't hold back. Her blog had subscribers all across the country. She helped the TEA Party from the beginning, lending us her knowledge of marketing and her tireless energy. She was instrumental in developing marketing materials that made the annual Constitution Day Dinner a yearly success.
Silvia is the third conservative woman we have lost this year. Marge Tapia, Maryanne Chiffele, and now Silvia will leave a hole in Albuquerque's efforts to bring freedom for all in our state and our city. These three women are models of decency, passion and dedication to conservatism and liberty for all. They will all be missed.

ACHE [Albuquerque for a Healthy Economy] provides the following copy of the paid sick leave ordinance on the upcoming Municipal Elections, October 3, 2017. ACHE has highlighted some of the most damaging elements of this ordinance. Read, share and vote No come October 3!

After six long years and endless appeals, the IRS has finally granted the Albuquerque Tea Party (ATP) its long-overdue status as a nonprofit 401c(4) organization!  ATP President Graham Bartlett states, "The decision by the IRS is a win for free speech for all parties."

ATP is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to educating the public on the importance of the core principles of constitutionally limited government and the free enterprise system. 

​As an example of ATP activities, on July 18 we are hosting a Mayoral Candidates' Forum at the UNM Continuing Education Building, 1634 University Blvd. NE, in which all eight of the mayoral candidates have promised to attend.  The event will be moderated by the League of Women Voters.  Refreshments will be provided at a "Meet and Greet" starting at 6:30 PM, with the Forum beginning at 7:00 PM. 

ATP hosted a similar event, also moderated by the League of Women Voters, for Albuquerque Public School Board candidates back in January of this year. 

These events illustrate just how unjustified the long delay in granting ATP's nonprofit status really was.  We hope the IRS will continue what appears to be its new and more balanced approach to evaluating applications for nonprofit status by conservative organizations interested in public affairs.

The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) represented the ATP pro bono before the IRS.

For more information, contact Graham Bartlett at gbartlett@abqteaparty.com.

How did we get to the state we are in today? Our elected officials are no longer working to provide 'we the people' with the things our state and national Constitutions require of them. Their time is exclusively spent gaining power, and lately gaining power by destroying anyone who is not on their side.

Destructive politics has become a well-organized process. Can you imagine what our nation and our state would be like if our elected officials spent even half the amount of time promoting the general welfare than they do trying to destroy the opposition? 

The relentless attacks on Trump by the media and the Democratic leadership are like a fine-tuned instrument. If at any time, you listen to the mass media, you will hear the same phrases repeated in every channel. Is that by accident or is someone providing the day's "talking points"?

But let's not limit it to the Democratic party - the Republicans are no angels. Depending on which way the political winds are blowing, they will throw anyone under the bus who does not fit their power agenda, including those members of their own party who are trying to be hardworking representatives of the electorate. 

I am not sure if the New Mexico party bosses have taught the national parties how to destroy their opponents or the other way around. But NM is up there with the best (or worst) of them. Their attacks on the Sonntags are a perfect example of destructive politics, a la New Mexico style. 

The current climate of destructive politics is disgusting. ATP will work to expose and defeat those politicians at the polls who practice that type of behavior. We will do this by seeking the truth on the issues and spreading the truth in all our education efforts. We believe in the Constitution and that governments exist to serve the people, not their own power ambitions. 

We welcome all New Mexicans who agree with bringing civility back into our society to join us in making New Mexico and the United States a place where liberty is more important than power politics.