Rio Grande Foundation and Power The Future Join Together To Launch “Fairly Open New Mexico”

Albuquerque – The Rio Grande Foundation and Power The Future New Mexico joined together to launch FairlyOpen.com on Thursday. “Fairly Open New Mexico” calls upon leaders in Santa Fe to take responsible actions to get New Mexicans back to work and restart our state’s lagging economy. Since “non-essential” businesses were shut down, more than 70,000 New Mexicans have filed to receive unemployment. Across the state, small business leaders are pleading with leaders in Santa Fe for help.

The two organizations that make up “Fairly Open New Mexico” are not asking for easing of regulations but asking for those regulations to be applied fairly. Specific actions include:

• Allow small businesses to reopen at the same standards applied to large box stores.
• A detailed plan for reopening, including required health criteria, to be used for businesses to reopen. This should be a public document.
• This plan should recognize not all counties are the same and should include scientific reasoning upon which restrictions are being based.
• Governor Lujan Grisham and her administration should immediately share the models upon which they are basing their quarantine/business restriction decisions.
• The Governor should hold virtual-meetings to answer questions with county commissions and local leaders across New Mexico.
• The Governor should outline her budget and economic policy recommendations for the upcoming special session as well as any cuts she has already made to the State government.

“New Mexicans want to halt the spread of the Covid 19 virus, but they also want to live their lives and get back to work. The Gov. needs to make planning for the future an open and fair process” said Paul Gessing, President of the Rio Grande Foundation.

“While we fight a public health emergency, the economic devastation across our state can’t continue to be ignored,” said Larry Behrens, Western States Director for Power The Future. “Families all across our state have more questions than answers from leaders in Santa Fe and they deserve better. New Mexicans can be trusted to know how to best protect themselves and their communities as they begin the long road back to recovery.”

New Mexicans who support this effort are encouraged to go to FairlyOpen.com and sign the petition.

Contact: Paul Gessing – 505-264-6090, pgessing@riograndefoundation.org

Larry Behrens – 505-699-2302, larry@powerthefuture.com