Sarah Silva

Affordability and jobs: Many families in southern New Mexico are struggling with the costs of housing, food, utilities and other necessities. What specific actions should the Legislature take to make living in New Mexico more affordable while creating more good-paying jobs?

People are struggling to pay their bills. The federal government’s recklessness has led to folks paying more for all sorts of things, from food to health care to gasoline. Democrats in the Legislature have worked to keep necessities affordable. I have successfully carried legislation that uses state oil and gas revenue – not tax dollars – to preserve funding for SNAP and health insurance that the feds cut.

Families should be able to afford what they need. Corporations manipulate our grocery bills all the time. I’ve proposed legislation to ban the use of artificial intelligence and digital price tags at grocery stores. I’ll keep pushing to stop this.

I’m also fighting for folks to get paid time off from work to recover from illness or care for sick family members. I’m pushing to eliminate the income tax for most New Mexicans. And I’m fighting to stop data centers like Project Jupiter from connecting to our power grid and making us pay for their electricity.

I’m also working to expand career technical education and union opportunities. Relief means helping you find good-paying jobs and keep as much of your hard-earned money as possible.

It also means supporting small businesses that employ New Mexicans. Enacting universal child-care creates jobs. Similarly, reforming our medical malpractice laws and taking other steps to support doctors will attract more to our state. They will employ New Mexicans in good-paying jobs. Increases in child-care and health-care access should encourage more businesses to locate in New Mexico, creating additional jobs.

Healthcare: Southern New Mexico continues to struggle with access to doctors and other health care providers. What changes should the Legislature make to attract and retain providers and ensure residents can get timely, affordable care?

I was uninsured for most of my childhood. I know the fear many New Mexicans face when it comes to health-care access and cost. That’s why I helped doctors and patients organize in the last legislative session to make their voices heard in support of medical malpractice reform. I was a primary sponsor of that legislation and am so pleased it became law.

That policy change was critical – but malpractice reform alone won’t address our provider shortage. We need to make it easier for New Mexicans to become doctors and practice here.

The state is working on this problem. We are funding a dramatic expansion of UNM Medical School, support for medical students who work in rural communities, and loan repayment assistance for doctors.

There’s more to do. I’ll keep sponsoring a tax credit for rural providers. And I’ll continue to work to pass the interstate compact for emergency medics. This is especially important in New Mexico communities that border El Paso, because it would help folks who are certified EMTs in Texas work here.

We must also ensure folks can afford insurance. We recently increased the percentage of insurance premiums the state covers for most public employees to 80 percent. I support an expansion to include public higher education employees in this policy.

And, in addition to preserving health-insurance subsidies, the state is strengthening Medicaid to prepare for the additional reauthorizations the federal government is mandating. We want folks to keep Medicaid – not lose it because of paperwork.

Water and economic development: Southern New Mexico faces limited water resources while also pursuing new housing, businesses and major economic-development projects. What standards should the state apply to large developments to ensure their economic benefits justify their demands on water, energy and public infrastructure?

The technology exists to ensure that big projects like data centers and power plants use far less water than they have in the past. Doña Ana County tried to place legal limits on Project Jupiter’s water use but, unfortunately, was not successful. A loophole in their agreements lets Jupiter use a massive amount of water through a private agreement with a well owner.

Though Project Jupiter promises very low water use, we have no way to hold them to that promise.

We cannot let local government agencies that are trying to contend with gigantic corporations and the billionaires behind them make that mistake again. I support enacting statewide rules for any future data centers that protect our communities and give businesses certainty about the rules they must follow.

New Mexicans are struggling. We need to grow businesses and strengthen our economy. We need more good-paying jobs with benefits. But we also cannot squander any more of our finite water. Our settlement in the lawsuit over use of the Rio Grande’s water already requires us to retire more than 18,000 acre feet of annual groundwater use.

This won’t be the last time we have to cut back. Climate change will unfortunately require more from us. We must protect New Mexicans by insisting that companies that want the privilege of extracting our resources are legally bound to keep their commitments on job creation, water use, pollution and infrastructure. Our state Legislature and governor must step up to meet this challenge.

Infrastructure and underserved communities: District 53 includes communities with significant needs involving roads, drainage, drinking water, wastewater and other basic infrastructure. What are the district’s most pressing infrastructure needs, and what would you do in the Legislature to get those projects funded?

Chaparral desperately needs a public safety facility. I’m excited to share that we’ve raised $5 million for construction and secured a donation of 7.5 acres of land.

When completed, this facility will include police and firefighters, an animal shelter and an ambulance bay. The need in Chaparral is great. I know one woman whose mother died waiting for an ambulance that was too far away to reach her. And we’ve all had to deal with the packs of stray dogs. I was bitten by one while campaigning on Election Day in 2024.

Addressing Chaparral’s need is a bipartisan effort I’ve spearheaded with Otero County Sheriff Black. I’m excited to break ground on the facility later this year! We’ve funded phase one; I’ll keep working to fund the second half.

We’re also in the process of a massive, years-long effort to connect homes to the wastewater system in Chaparral. We’re making progress, but there’s more to do.

Flood control is another significant need. I’ve contributed $1 million to extensive drainage improvements in Chaparral. I’ve also talked with the State Land Office and city about a dam on Las Cruces’ East Mesa. We need to ensure neighborhoods there are adequately protected.

September’s floods highlighted the fact that our region has many dams in need of repair. I’m a member of the House Appropriations and Finance Committee, which is responsible for drafting the annual state budget. I’ll be working with Chairman Nathan Small and others to direct funding to this effort.

The Bulletin asked each Dona Ana County candidate four questions to allow voters to assess where the candidates stands on important issues heading into the election. The questions vary for each office, but are the same for every candidate running for the same office.

We attempted to wait to publish until we heard from all candidates for a race, but in this race, we have not received a response from Ben Luna, Jr., the Republican candidate for House District 53. If we can get a response from his campaign this week, we will run his answers in the Oct. 30 edition of the Bulletin.