By Mary Alice Murphy

On Monday, Dec. 17, newly-elected Congresswoman Xochitl Torres-Small visited Silver City and met with different groups of individuals to find out the pulse of the area.

This meeting took place between Torres-Small and local government officials, who met her at the Western New Mexico University ABC rooms.

"I want to hear from you," Torres-Small said. "I deeply appreciate this chance to meet with you and look forward to learning from you."

Silver City Mayor Ken Ladner was the first to speak. "Silver City is the gateway to the Continental Divide Trail. We are working on grants and the possibility to tie Silver City into that trail system."

He also said the town wants to keep the Gila River free-flowing and they support the Wild and Scenic River designation for the Gila.

Javier Salas, Grant County District 2 commissioner-elect, said he represents the Mining Area. "I would love to see the county attract industries and businesses. I would also like to see a better highway corridor with four lanes from I-10 to Grant County. My pet project, especially in the Mining District, is to involve youth in activities before they get on drugs. I would like to see the project evolve, with recreation, counseling and keeping them off the streets. I will look for grants for a Boys and Girls Club. On water, we have many issues. Our new sewer plant sends its effluent to the mine. The mine will stop taking it. We have to do something about it. We have to capture it, reclaim it and use it."

Chris Ponce, Grant County District 1 commissioner-elect, said he represents Santa Clara, Fort Bayard and part of Silver City. "I've been listening to the people in the district. They have water concerns, about getting water to Hurley and on to Bayard and Santa Clara. A lot of the residents are on fixed incomes. Raising taxes to pay for water projects doesn't work for them. Those on fixed incomes are dear to my heart. We have to secure water. We should use the Gila National Forest for economic development. Mining is doing great right now, but we need to plan for the future. Eventually, mining will stop. Vo tech will help economic development. It's hard to find electricians, for example. Getting ready for the mines to go away doesn't happen overnight. Roads are also things we need to address. Listen to the public."

Sheila Hudman said she, as Santa Clara Village Clerk, was representing the village. "We adjoin Federal Reserve land that we want to annex. Congressman (Steve) Pearce tried to get legislation through for us to buy it from the federal government in 40-acre increments. The land is managed by the Gila National Forest, but it has to be purchased from the federal government. We have to get approval from Congress for the purchase. We would like to leave the Dragonfly trail in Gila National Forest hands. We want the land near the village for economic development. We also have two bridges in the village that need replacing. We have the bridges in storage, but not the funding to install them. We are land-locked when it is flooding, and it's hard to get emergency services into the village."

She continued by saying the village is trying to save Fort Bayard. "We've been trying to annex it. We've been mothballing the buildings to keep them from deteriorating further. We have donated about $500,000 in labor and materials for that purpose. We would like to see the state transfer it to us. We are also wanting to take the effluent from the regional wastewater treatment plan up to Fort Bayard to recharge our aquifer. On trails, we have students who walk to Bayard for high school. We were awarded a grant for a sidewalk/trail alongside the highway. We also want to use funding from that trails grant to go through Fort Bayard to the Gila National Forest."

District 5 County Commissioner Harry Browne said he would be talking about broader issues, not just county issues. "I say: 'No wall.' We are a corridor for wildlife. A wall would deprive ourselves from the wildlife we enjoy. Health care is another broader issue. We have a rural hospital. Medicare and Medicaid are difficult and cutting rates they pay would be a blow to the community. We ask you to shore up programs for rural hospitals. I want to see Congress restore the Affordable Care Act to get everyone insured. Keep the solar tax credit. It creates new jobs and keeps money from flowing out of the county."

He also advocated for Grant County to become a PACE (Property-Assessed Clean Energy) county with loans for lower credit borrowers to have property assessed to pay back county bonds to access solar energy for their homes.

"It's important to protect Colonias funding, too," Browne said. "And please protect the PILT (payment in lieu of taxes, which the federal government pays in lieu of property taxes on federal lands). About 60 percent of Grant County is federal land. Every year the payments are volatile, so it's hard to budget. Also protect the Secure Rural Schools funding."

He asked Torres-Small to continue funding the Forest Service to fight fires. "It is being transferred to Homeland Security. I would like to see it stable. And trails. The Forest Service doesn't have funding to maintain the trails. They should be there for all of us. The office you will fill has been used to pressure the Forest Service. For example, the Travel Management Plan. I want to see it stabilized and the continued attacks need to stop. On the Gila diversion – our state has shifted. I want to see the funding used in more productive ways. Use your congressional position to ask the Secretary of the Interior to honor the state's stand on the diversion."

"I would love to see the Fort Bayard project continue," Browne said. "The cemetery is a national treasure. I ask you to honor the request by the village to purchase smaller pieces of the federal land reserve. Let's limit it to where we can put affordable housing. I would love to see the wild and scenic designation for the Gila."

District 3 Commissioner Alicia Edwards said she, too, supports the wild and scenic designation for the Gila River. "I also support using Arizona Water Settlements Act funding for local water projects."

She cited big picture things that she believes are important to look at. "It's important to look at how they all fit together in economic development, including recreation. I don't want a wall, because it will keep the wildlife out. We can't have economic revitalization without fully funding our schools. PILT and Secure Rural Schools federal funding are important to the county, because it's difficult to get traction when you can't plan or know whether the funding is coming in. By the time it gets here, it seems arbitrary. Specific to Congress, I would like to see SNAP and TFAP split from the Farm Bill. I heard from a person on a fixed income the other day, who told me she had $3.10 left at the end of the month. The senior commodity box offers inappropriate food and only enough for one week, not a month. Transportation, food and rural health care are all interconnected. The rate of senior poverty in Grant County is 35 percent. When we have issues like this, it puts pressure on the minimal resources we have. It's hard to get traction when you can't meet basic needs. The planning process is difficult and it's hard to have an overall plan. We find a tiny bit of money here and there. Think about fully funding a strategic plan to bring everything together. I support Fort Bayard going to Santa Clara. I want us to decide how to connect what the county has to Silver City and to the trails system. Enough thought has to go into the funding process to make the planning processes possible."

Grant County Regional Dispatch Authority Director Barbara Schalkofski said she would like to see funding strictly for dispatch, with dedicated funding for 911. "Nothing is dedicated to the dispatch centers around the state. It is expected of us to provide the service."

Cindy Blackman, Grant County DWI Prevention Coordinator, said each county in New Mexico has a DWI program for prevention. "Twelve years ago, the feds started cutting prevention funding. I would like to see it increase. We used to have other organizations who were doing programs. Now, it's just us."

County Planner and Economic Developer Michael "Mischa" Larisch said he searches out a lot of funding for county projects. "I ask that they stay funded, especially Colonias Infrastructure Fund and the Community Development Block Grant program. Please try not to put more stipulations on what it takes to get the funding because then the reporting required becomes overwhelming."

County Manager Charlene Webb said she looks at things from the financial point of view. "We need stable PILT and Secure Rural School funding. We try to plan and then we have to scramble to make up three-quarters of the funding. We see $2 million to $2.5 million in PILT as necessary, when we can't tax the federal land. It's nerve-wracking not to know how much we will get. It's critically important to counties like ours. There has been a little bit of talk about Essential Air Service. It is critical to the county, the schools, the hospital to bring in physicians, to mining, and to the people getting here for tourism. EAS is important to us. An issue I work on a lot is behavioral health and substance abuse. The statistics here are beyond alarming. We see it too much in the Detention Center. Out of 60 inmates, 38 have behavioral health issues, and 17 have substance abuse issues. That's 55 out of the 60. There needs to be a focus on behavioral health and substance abuse issues for rural areas."

Ed Stevens, Hurley mayor, said the town is in the middle of a major water project. "Through federal and state funding, we got some money, but we have burdened our residents with some. We have to stand on our own two feet. How the federal government can assist, I don't know. Our concern is when people get old. We are among the poorest of the poor. We want to bring forth opportunities for young people in our town. Without opportunities, the young ones will leave and not come back. How about a pilot project for rural communities? Instead of talking about the drug problem, because people just come in and talk about it, put money into it instead of talking. We have the Forest Service, the university, mining, the hospital and all that is positive, but whenever we want to hire people, they can't pass the drug test. We need help."

He also addressed the potential of flyovers for training purposes for Holloman Air Force Base. "They are talking about flying over the Gila at 300 flights a day. Start that somewhere else and leave us alone. Don't fly over our town. One thing if you can help this county solve the drug problem. Please put your effort behind it."

Jesse Watkins, a sheriff deputy, said the drug problem is major. "And from the law enforcement point of view, we have dead spots for communications. Anything you can help with, equipment-wise, would be appreciated."

Hugh Epping, resident, thanked Torres-Small for "being here. It would be nice to have an office to serve the southwest part of the district and to make routine visits."

Torres-Small said she had questions on projects, and she appreciated hearing about the clear work those present were doing. "I hear you talking about infrastructure, water and reusing effluent. How long before you have water to Hurley?"

Stevens said he hopes it will be completed within 18 months. "Freeport-McMoRan has renewed the contract to provide us water through 2022. The company has been very helpful."

Torres-Small said she had also heard about the need for better roads to get tourists to the area. "I hear, too, the need for reliable Internet service. Communication is important. I have requested to be on the transportation and infrastructure committees. I have advocated to be on it, because it includes cell phone towers. I talked with the chairman-to-be. I plan to look at bipartisan opportunities. I will be working across the aisle. I hear the call for economic development. I think the federal government can create a playing field for you to create jobs. Investing in infrastructure for the 21st Century will help us compete worldwide. We need good education to bring in jobs and the work force to fill them. Regulation needs to be right-sized for businesses. I'm looking at the aggregate of regulations. We need to identify what makes this place unique and build on it. It's a great place for senior citizens if you're investing in health care. I want to work on economic development and make it a safe place to live and work through prevention and supporting law enforcement, including community policing. I've heard a lot about the air space issue. I met with Holloman personnel. I know they are in the process of reviewing the proposed routes. They recognize it is an existential threat to this community. They are aware of the county's issue. It was at the top of their concerns. As for the wall, a few things have happened. We have to make sure to prioritize funding in the right place. We are unequipped to handle the type of people arriving. Single cells don't work for families. We see dramatic decreases in apprehensions and increases in those seeking asylum. A wall will not change it. They still have at least three days of crossing the desert. I'm getting this from the Border Patrol. We have to determine what it takes to have border protection along rural areas. It's the same for rural health care. We have people from the Hispanic Caucus coming from New York and Dallas to look at the situation on the ground. I'm interested in the federal nexus for Fort Bayard and how to address it. I have also put in for the Armed Services Committee. I am representing an enormously diverse district, which has two bases. I put in for the Homeland Security Committee. My long-term goal is the Appropriations Committee. We have an exciting freshman class of Democrats and Republicans. It's one of the most exciting classes, with a lot of new energy. Among other issues to address is drug pricing."