Dec. 4—SANTA FE — A panel of retired judges will hear arguments Wednesday in a case that hinges on the legality of a paid leave policy the New Mexico judiciary adopted for its roughly 2,000 employees.
A government agency stopped processing furlough payouts this year due to legal issues, prompting the justice system’s top administrator to file a lawsuit.
The Supreme Court case focuses specifically on whether Wayne Propst, the top budget official in Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s administration, overstepped his authority by blocking paid leave payments for judicial employees.
The Ministry of Finance and Administration, which Propst heads, stopped fully processing the payouts in June after a legal opinion from Attorney General Raúl Torrez’s office concluded that the judiciary’s policy likely violates the state law.
DFA officials have also claimed that the judiciary’s furlough program pays employees about 180% more than standard state benefits.
However, judiciary officials have argued that it is actually more cost-effective in the long run, as some government employees use their accrued sick leave before retiring to avoid losing it.
Although the Legislature has not officially intervened in the dispute between the judiciary and executive branches, Sen. George Muñoz, D-Gallup, said the judiciary has used savings from vacant positions to fund the furlough payouts.
“The big problem is that there is no way New Mexico can handle such a system statewide,” said Muñoz, chairman of the Legislative Finance Committee.
He estimated that implementing such a system would likely cost between $25 and $30 million per year.
Muñoz also suggested that some lawmakers might be reluctant to grant the judiciary’s request for money for new positions related to its handling of the paid leave policy.
“They will have their budget examined very thoroughly,” he told the Journal.
Meanwhile, all five New Mexico Supreme Court justices have recused themselves from the case after DFA attorneys argued that having sitting justices preside over the case could violate the state’s due process rights .
As a result, the panel of judges hearing the case will consist of retired Supreme Court Justices Richard Bosson, Edward Chávez, Petra Maes and Judith Nakamura. Former Court of Appeal Judge Michael Bustamente will join them as the fifth judge assigned to the case.
It is unclear whether the five-judge panel will rule immediately after oral arguments on Wednesday, or whether they will issue an opinion at a later date.
