KOB-TV
updated 1/2/2012 9:15:12 PM ET



The New Mexico state legislature will convene for its 30 day session on January 17 - and for a change lawmakers don't have their hatchets sharpened up for another round of budget cutting.

The state is expected to have about $250 million dollars in new money for next fiscal year, the first increase in four recession-strangled years.

Lawmakers will haggle over restoring funding to state services and public schools, or cutting taxes, or a combination of both

. During the recession, the state budget ha shrunk from $6.3 billion to $5.2 billion.

" We've cut teachers, we've cut nurses, we've cut services," said Sen. Cisco McSorley, an Albuquerque Democrat. " Now's the time to regroup and try to replace those services."

" That's gonna make it good for us, in a way," said Republican Rep. Larry Larranaga, also from Albuquerque.

"We're not gonna be able to address all those issues that everybody thinks we should, but certainly we can cover the most critical services we provide for the people of New Mexico."

Public schools statewide are looking for more money - Albuquerque Public Schools alone has seen its budget slashed by more than $100 million over the past four years.

But the state is under intense pressure to increase spending on Medicaid, and to restore cuts in funding for pension plans for state employees and public school employees.

One thing that threatens to inject some controversy and conflict into the session is the governor's announced intention to put drivers licenses for illegal immigrants on the agenda. Governor Martinez wants to scrap the state law allowing those licenses, even though the legislature failed to pass it in last year's sixty day session and in the special session last October.

The issue takes hours, even days, of scarce legislative time for debates and public hearings. New Mexico is the only state with a wide-open policy on such licenses.

Two other states, Utah and Washington, offer restricted licenses.

" I think it's time to llok at that again," said Larranaga. "We know what the bill says, we know how we can take care of that. If you look at what the public discussion is on the drivers licenses, everybody wants to make sure that New Mexico is like the other 48 states, almost 49 states."

" We found that the people receiving these licenses are not committing crimes through the use of these licenses, number one," said McSorley. " Number two, it really is good for law enforcement to have drivers with drivers licenses."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45851332.../#.TwMDjoE_doE