Like every other issue facing us today, the Holloman AFB issue is extremely complex. We can't really blame Otero County and Alamogordo for wanting to create 638 new jobs, and when I get to what I want to say about economic well being you'll understand why I say this.

But first let me say that this is a public lands issue. The Gila Wilderness Area, the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Area, the Gila National Forest belong to the public – that's us, all of us. The Native and Hispanic people who have been here for centuries, the many generations of ranchers and miners, the hunters and the hippies, the fishermen and hikers, the artists and the newbies and the people who travel from all over the country and all over the world to visit this pristine land.

I can't say it any better than Senator Udall recently said it in his announcement of the 2018 Antiquities Act – I'm paraphrasing for brevity…

"Plans to protect air and water, wilderness and wildlife are in fact plans to protect man. In New Mexico, our protected public lands…are beloved by thousands. They are a part of our cultural heritage and our way of life, and they drive our outdoor recreation and tourism economy, sustaining hundreds of good jobs. Across our country, national monuments and public lands help fuel an $887 billion outdoor recreation industry, which sustains 7.6 million jobs and creates $65.3 billion in federal tax revenue and $59.2 billion in local and state tax revenue.

Public lands belong in public hands - and should not be exploited by the highest-bidding special interests.

We must work to preserve New Mexico's public lands for future generations and help grow and sustain the local communities and economies built around these treasured places." Thank you Senator Udall.

This is also an economic well being issue. I have spent the last 13 years working with low income families here in Grant County and across the state and as a result of that work believe that we must have a significant shift in how we think about economic well-being – note that I am not saying economic development.

Recent studies show that every $1 billion spent on defense creates 8,555 jobs and adds $565 million to the economy. That same $1 billion given to us as a tax cut would stimulate enough demand to create 10,779 jobs and put $505 million into the economy as retail spending. $1 billion in education spending adds $1.3 billion to the economy and creates 17,687 jobs. The $2.1 trillion spent on the War on Terror created 18 million jobs. That same amount of money spent on education would have created 38 million jobs. When are we going to find a balance between the needs of people and defense ?

In New Mexico, we have seven Department of Defense (DOD) installations occupying 3.4 million acres of land plus all the airspace that goes along with that. It goes without saying that here in New Mexico; our economy is firmly reliant on DOD spending. And yet, we are consistently last or very close to last in child well being. Our economy is not working for many of our children and their families. I believe with every fiber of my being that Nelson Mandela was right when he said, "The true character of a society is revealed in how it treats its children." What does what we are doing today, say about our character?

I was curious to know how much better off children and their families were in Otero County than they are here in Grant County and I found some very interesting data in the Annie E. Casey Foundation 2017 Kids Count Report and the New Mexico Dept. of Health NM-IBIS website.

                                                                                                                  Grant County                                Otero County
Unemployment                                                                                                 6.6%                                           6.0%
HS Graduation Rates                                                                                       83%                                            68%
Children under 18 in poverty                                                                            32.4%                                         32.4%
Food insecurity                                                                                                 14.5%                                         18.9%

Children under 18 with persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness       35.2%                                         36.3%
Children living in high poverty areas                                                                  16%                                           39%   

The economic well being picture looks much the same in Otero County as it does in Grant County and across the state-you can't fault the folks over there for wanting to create jobs.

The Lt Gov. mentioned $2 billion in economic benefit for the state as a result of a permanent F-16 wing at Holloman AFB. Senators Bill Burt and Ron Griggs announced that it would create 638 new, permanent jobs in Otero County. I acknowledge that what I'm about to say is an oversimplification of a complex issue but a radically transformative shift in perspective happens when we break things down enough to see a new path forward.

Lets go back to the number of jobs created by education spending…what if we took destiny into our own hands and spent two billion dollars right now on education in New Mexico. According to the data, that would create nearly 36,000 jobs and add $4.6 billion to our economy. We have the means to do exactly this. What we don't have is the political will to do it.

If you take that idea and let your imagination run with it, you can see a brilliant future for our children, their children and beyond.
If our guiding principal were strategically planning for the health and well being of our children and grandchildren, we wouldn't be contemplating using our national treasures as sacrifice zones to attract 638 jobs to Otero County.

Alicia Edwards, Grant County Commissioner, District Three

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