ALEC Helped Draft Some Bills for NM Legislature

Veritas New Mexico - New Mexico lawmakers introduced several bills drafted by ALEC during the regular 2011 legislative session, Veritas NM found. The bills included proposed laws to limit lawsuits against hospitals, reduce regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, and increase penalties for shoplifting. Corporations pay ALEC up to $25,000 apiece in annual membership fees and up to another $10,000 for their representatives to serve on issue-specific task forces. That buys them unfettered access to state legislators from across the U.S., according to critics like Center for Media and Democracy Director Lisa Graves. Lawmakers frequently introduce ALEC’s draft bills “without disclosing that corporations crafted and voted on the bills,” Graves said. Hundreds of the group’s bills have been passed into law by state legislatures across the U.S., Graves said. Read full story here: News New Mexico