PRC MEMBER BACA UNDER FIRE AFTER MARIJUANA ARREST

New Mexico Public Regulation Commission member E. Shirley Baca is facing
criticism after her arrest for marijuana possession.

And that includes a call for her resignation - if she's guilty - from one
Republican leader.

"Frankly if she is guilty of this, it seems to me it would be in her best
interest and the PRC's best interest and the state's best interest if she
resigned," said state Rep. Ted Hobbs, an Albuquerque Republican and House
minority leader.

Baca, 53, a Las Cruces Democrat, was arrested Wednesday morning at
Albuquerque International Sunport after baggage screeners found less than
an ounce of marijuana inside a pipe concealed in her checked baggage,
according to a Metro Court criminal complaint.

She was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of
drug paraphernalia and placed in Metropolitan Detention Center. She was
later released on $1,000 bond, according to jail records.

Baca didn't return repeated calls for comment.

The PRC is the government agency that regulates New Mexico's utilities,
transportation, communications and insurance businesses. If you pay a bill
for it in New Mexico, it's likely that the rate you pay was influenced by
the PRC.

Baca was elected in 2002 for a four-year term to the five-member
commission. Before that, she was a state representative from 1993 to 1996.
She also made unsuccessful bids against the late Joe Skeen for the 2nd
Congressional District seat in 1996 and 1998.

Federal Transportation Security Administration screeners said they were
examining Baca's luggage around 7 a.m. when a trace detector was alarmed
for explosives, according to the complaint.

Upon further inspection, a screener opened the bag and found a container
with a green leafy substance within a glass pipe that police said later was
confirmed to be marijuana, the complaint states.

Baca told police she packed her own bags yesterday. And when asked whether
she smoked marijuana, she replied: "Occasionally", the complaint states.

Police said Baca became angry when confronted by the container found in her
luggage.

I'm "not going to admit that that is mine," she told police, according to
the complaint.

"No one is above the law," Gov. Bill Richardson said in a statement
released yesterday. "This is a serious offense, which will carry serious
consequences and she will have to deal with that. All public officials must
abide by a higher standard of personal conduct and set a good example."

It's unclear what happens to Baca's position on the PRC should she be found
guilty.

Commissioner Herb W. Hughes of Albuquerque said he has asked staff to
research various commission and state policies, including those pertaining
to ethics.

"Basically, we need to get the facts first," Hughes said. "There's always
the judgment of whether you make a comment or not to comment. We've got to
go by the book in times like this. You've got to do some good research and
find out what supposedly happened before you do anything at all."

Should Baca's position become vacant, state law dictates that the governor
appoint someone to fill the position.

Hobbs, a vocal critic of the PRC who believes it's an agency overextended
by too many responsibilities, said he was reserving his overall judgment of
Baca until facts are confirmed.

Still, he took a moment to chastise anybody who uses drugs.

"I don't approve drug use by anybody, not just a PRC person, but anyone,"
he said. "I think it's too bad and shouldn't have happened."

And there was a time when Baca expressed similar sentiments.

In June 2003, Baca spoke harshly about substance abuse among PRC employees
when chief of staff Patrick Baca was charged with driving drunk.

She said at the time she would consider asking that Patrick Baca be
terminated or suspended regardless of the outcome of his case in court.

"Personally," she said at the time, "I think that top-ranking staff need to
set an example for the whole department, as well as elected officials."

Baca's arrest is the latest in a series of embarrassing busts for
high-profile officials in New Mexico.

Former state Chief District Judge W. John Brennan was arrested in May after
trying to duck a checkpoint for drunken drivers. He resigned from the bench
and pleaded guilty to aggravated driving while intoxicated and cocaine
possession and was sentenced to a year of unsupervised probation.

Former Rep. Joe Thompson, an Albuquerque Republican, called off a run for
the PRC in March after he was arrested on drunken driving charges.