Republican lawmakers in New Mexico pitch budget alternatives

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in the New Mexico House of Representative are admonishing their colleagues in the Democratic majority for proposed tax increases designed to close a budget shortfall. Republican lawmakers including House Minority Leader Nate Gentry presented alternatives Wednesday that they say can avert spending cuts without outright tax increases. The GOP plan would combine Democrat-backed proposals to collect taxes on online sales by out-of-state retailers with other cost-saving measures such as construction-projects delays, temporarily reductions in tax credit payments to New Mexico's film industry and reduced subsidies to a state health insurance pool for the severely ill. Both parties want to raise money by recalibrating taxes on hospitals and other health care providers. Lawmakers are preparing for a House-floor debate on the budget for the fiscal year starting in July.