Q & A with JOE

What prompted you to become a legislator?

I know from growing up Santa Rosa that it's crucial for every community to have an active voice in Santa Fe, including rural communities that can sometimes can be overlooked by the powers-that-be. As a business owner, I also discovered that the decisions made in the Capitol can have a huge impact on local employers around the state; my small business perspective helps me represent entrepreneurs and employees around the state. But probably my biggest motivation was that I realized that behind every issue are individual people doing their best to live right and live well. Behind every policy debate is a family affected by the outcome. Behind every employment or education statistic is a young person trying hard to find a good job. These people need someone who approaches politics on a personal level.

But how are you able to serve the needs of so many different people?

Good question. I explore each issue very carefully and decide what will do the most good for my district. Here's an example. When the Guadalupe County Correctional Facility was first proposed, I was skeptical, like a lot of people. But the more I looked into it and considered its economic effect on the area, the more I became convinced it was a good thing and being in favor of it wasn't necessarily a popular stance at the time. But a while after the jail was built, I was canvassing a neighborhood talking to people, and a woman living in a nice clean home with a newer car in the driveway came out and thanked me for standing up for the corrections project. She had been an opponent initially, but now she had family working there, and it was providing them an improved standard of living. I think of people like her as examples of the larger community I'm trying to do the best for.

What's the single biggest issue you see facing the state?

Without a doubt, the economy. I know people are concerned, and for good reason. In the future, New Mexico needs to look for more local ways to improve the economy in towns and cities across the state. A once-size-fits-all approach just doesn't work anymore. In my experience, there's a wide variety of potential in different communities but the state doesn't always do a great job helping communities meet that potential.