Senate Rules Committee considering slew of ethics bills

**Keep refreshing this page for the most recent action from the committee. I'll update with action on each bill in the list below.**

Many of the attempts to reform ethics laws in the state are pending this morning in the Senate Rules Committee. The 8 a.m. meeting as of 8:25 hadn't started, however. More later.

Update, 8:26 a.m.
I spoke too soon. The committee has started, but has a few bills to consider before the ethics proposals.

Here are the ethics bills pending today.

SB 72 POST-ELECTION VOTING ACCURACY EVALUATION (McSORLEY)
SB 165 PUBLIC CAMPAIGN ACT
SB 94 PROHIBIT FORMER LEGISLATORS AS LOBBYISTS (BOITANO)
SB 116 LIMIT CONTRIBUTIONS TO CANDIDATES & PACS (FELDMAN)
SB 128 REQUIRE BIANNUAL CAMPAIGN REPORTS (WIRTH)
SB 163 PROHIBIT FORMER LEGISLATORS AS LOBBYISTS (GRIEGO E.)
SB 258 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM STATE CONTRACTORS (KELLER)
SB 262 POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO CANDIDATES (BEFFORT)
SB 263 CONTRACTOR DISCLOSURE OF CONTRIBUTIONS (BEFFORT)
SB 296 STATE CONTRACTOR CONTRIBUTION DISCLOSURE (FELDMAN)
SB 346 POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO CANDIDATES (SANCHEZ B.)
SB 521 CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS IN CERTAIN ELECTIONS (WIRTH)
Also, held over from earlier this week is
SB 261. RETIREMENT BENEFIT FORFEITURE FOR SOME CRIMES (BEFFORT) This bill was sent on to the Senate Judiciary Committee without a recommendation -- a way to move a bill on in the committee process without endorsing or opposing it.

Update, 8:44 a.m.
What I might do as the committee goes along is note what happened to each bill in the list above, under the bill title. They won't necessarily be heard in order, however. The committee is hearing a substitute for SB 261 at the moment.

Update, 9:08 a.m.
The committee has moved on to another non-ethics bill. At this pace, many of the ethics bills won't be heard this morning. The Senate is set to meet on the floor at 10:30 a.m.

Update, 9:16 a.m.
You can check out a live blog of this meeting from the New Mexico Independent here.

Update, 9:39 a.m.
Sen. Cisco McSorley is presenting SB 72, which he said would "create a more mathematcially precise system for determining how the vote counting machines are chosen to obtain a 90 percent accuracy in the vote tabulation." I put it on the list of ethics related measures, but it's more like an elections reform bill.
McSorley says the bill isn't a recount bill, but deals with the auditing of voting machines after an election.

Less than an hour until the floor session. . .

Update, 10:18 a.m.
The panel is starting on SB 165, sponsored by Sen. Eric Griego. Under the measure, candidates could tap into public financing for campaigns.

Supporters of the measure so far include the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce, Common Cause New Mexico and the AARP. No one spoke against the proposal. The committee is now on debate of the measure.

Sen. Dede Feldman is speaking in support of the bill.

"Until we enact something like what Senator Griego is proposing, until we go to some form of a public financing system, we are going to be continuing to backflips and summersaults and handstands and all kinds of gyrations to avert the perception that money buys influence and access in our political process," she said.

Update, 10:45
A motion to table the bill by Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle ended with a 3-3 tie, so the bill is left languishing on the table until another motion is made.

The committee adjourned and is off to the floor.