THey got
CAUGHT.
NOW THEY
WANT A RAISE.
Politicians caught red handed. but instead of accountability, they’re asking you for a huge pay raise to almost $70,000 a year.
They claim they’re unpaid. They don’t want you to know they already get per diem, mileage, and a state pension for life. and they can keep outside jobs.
New Mexico schools rank 50th. Instead of investing in our kids, they’re investing in themselves.
10TH-HIGHEST IN THE COUNTRY. HIGHEST IN THE SOUTHWEST.
At about $67,800, New Mexico’s part-time legislators would rank 10th-highest in base salary among the 50 states and highest in the Southwest, based on 2025 NCSL compensation data.
The amendment uses median household income — not what a typical New Mexican actually earns. Median per capita income in New Mexico is about $36,000. The proposed salary is nearly double that.
$67,800
PROPOSED SALARY
$36,000
NM PER CAPITA INCOME
10th
NATIONAL RANK
SANTA FE POLITICIANS ARE ASKING FOR MORE MONEY AND NO ACCOUNTABILITY.
With the corruption we’ve seen in state government, legislators have not earned a pay increase approaching $70,000 a year. Amendment 4 does not add accountability. It adds a salary.
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SHERYL WILLIAMS
STAPLETON
Former House Majority Leader. A federal jury convicted her in August 2026 of bribery, fraud, and money laundering. Prosecutors said she steered more than $3 million in school and federal career-tech money to a friend’s company, then took about $1.15 million back for herself. She later pleaded guilty to related state charges. That money was supposed to serve students.
ANDREA
ROMERO
Sitting Santa Fe representative. She steered $100,000 in capital outlay to the district attorney’s office — then took a paid job at that same office. The Attorney General said a legislator collecting that paycheck violated state law. She stepped down after it became public. Ethics complaints followed over the dual job, the money trail, and use of a taxpayer-funded PR firm.
