Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Local Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Grant County prospectors group details vetted capital‑outlay process and New Mexico Grow grants
Summary
Priscilla Lucero described the Grant County Prospectors’ regional vetting process for capital outlay and said she is administering New Mexico Grow grants for 33 counties, reporting the program is roughly 50% expended and has served an estimated 15,000 people in the region so far.
Priscilla Lucero, speaking for the Grant County Prospectors and the Southwest New Mexico Council of Governments, described a long‑standing local project vetting process and early‑childhood and community grant administration that lawmakers said has helped rural applicants access capital outlay and other state funds.
Lucero described the prospectors as a regional vetting and prioritization forum for capital outlay and related requests that began in 1975 and that she has worked with for roughly 25 years. She said the Prospectors process reduces duplicate requests to legislators by consolidating and prioritizing local governments’, education and nonprofit project proposals and by helping to craft accurate legislative language.
New Mexico Grow and grant administration Lucero said she administers New Mexico Grow funds and currently manages 37 grant agreements and that the program is about 50% expended in her region. “For the money that I got from New Mexico Grow, we have benefited in 1 year 15,000 individuals with your dollars,” she told legislators.
Lucero also said she now administers the Imagination Library program for 33 counties after securing an initial $100,000 allocation through CYFD years ago; she said the program has expanded and that a national appearance by the program’s founder is planned to visit New Mexico soon.
Why it matters Legislators praised the regional vetting process as an efficiency that helps elected officials allocate capital spending and ensure proposals are EO‑compliant and well drafted. Lawmakers said the prospectors’ screening reduces workload and improves the likelihood that projects the Legislature approves will be properly implemented.
No formal action followed the presentation; Lucero urged local and legislative staff to consult with Prospectors ahead of future capital‑outlay cycles.
This account draws only on testimony and figures presented to the committee by Priscilla Lucero at the Western New Mexico University meeting.
