New Mexico House Republicans requested a report this week on how many state employees are working remotely, and released a letter to the governor with their concerns.
“New Mexicans cannot get ahold of government employees to complete important business in a timely and efficient manner because too many people are not in their offices,” New Mexico House Republican Leader Jim Townsend said in a press release. “Our own legislative staff has tremendous trouble making direct contact with many agency staff. It is unacceptable that the people of this state still must make appointments to visit the MVD, wait days if not weeks for a returned phone call, or to simply give up acquiring the services their taxes pay for.”
House Republican Caucus Chair Rebecca Dow expressed similar sentiments.
“It has been 961 days since Lujan Grisham imposed her emergency control of New Mexico – 961 days of economic and educational turmoil, not to mention 961 days of New Mexicans being limited in reaching the government services their tax dollars pay for,” Dow said in a news release. “It is reasonable for a New Mexico taxpayer to expect that government agencies will answer their calls in a timely manner. I am disturbed by the many constituents who report that they simply cannot reach the government offices that will ultimately penalize the citizen for missing deadlines.”
It has been more than 960 days since the COVID-19 economic shutdowns, and it is speculated that only about 40% of the 22,000 or so state employees have returned to working in person full time, the New Mexico GOP said.
Offices within the government have reported that a common theme with constituent calls has been the inability for the public to reach people in government offices, the party said. The New Mexico state budget has increased by 34% since Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham took office in 2019, according to the GOP.
In the letter to Grisham, House Republican leaders pointed to these factors as well as the high COVID-19 vaccination rate among government employees and safe office practices as being reasons for employees to return to working in office. It also questions whether government money and resources are being effectively utilized.
According to the American Opportunity Survey, in the spring of 2022 it was reported that about 35% of Americans have the opportunity to work from home full time and 58% have the opportunity to work from home at least one day a week.
