Chris Cassidy

The meeting commenced with confirming that the closed meeting minutes accurately reflected discussions limited to the specified exemption for individual employee personnel matters and the formulation of public policy. A motion was subsequently passed to increase the State Investment Officer's annual salary by 2% effective immediately, and to ensure eligibility for any statewide state employee increases. The session concluded with a motion for adjournment.

The meeting included a roll call and approval of the agenda. Key discussion points focused heavily on the legislative session's outcomes, including appropriations to various trust funds such as the Workforce Development and Apprenticeship Trust Fund, the Behavioral Health Trust Fund, and the Rural Libraries Endowment Fund. There was an analysis of fund distributions for the Higher Education Trust Fund and considerations regarding asset allocation for the Opioid Crisis Restricted Fund due to direct legislative appropriations. Furthermore, the legislative authorization for transferring up to $110 million from the Tax Stabilization Reserve was noted. Discussions also covered several bills awaiting gubernatorial signature, specifically Senate Bill 241 regarding child care assistance and House Bill 7 impacting the distribution of the Workforce Development and Apprenticeship Trust Fund. A Senate Memorial regarding studying the purchase of utilities failed, with discussion centering on constitutional prohibitions and concentration risk related to such an acquisition. A significant portion of the briefing covered market reactions to recent tariff decisions, noting muted effects on debt markets but potential geopolitical impacts regarding trade deal adherence. Macroeconomic commentary included an analysis of rising consumer debt delinquency rates across mortgages, student loans, and credit cards, indicating a K-shaped economy. Finally, there was a positive report on the recent jobs report and updates on international portfolio performance, particularly concerning value managers outpacing growth stocks.

The New Mexico State Investment Council's strategic plan is dedicated to transforming non-renewable resources into a sustainable funding source to provide public benefits for current and future generations. The Council manages $68 billion across permanent, endowment, and reserve funds through strategic investments. Key objectives include generating substantial distributions for public services such as early childhood programs, K-12 education, and higher education, while simultaneously offsetting declining oil and gas revenues and ensuring the long-term stability of the state's general fund. Projections indicate that the Council's distributions will constitute a third of New Mexico's general fund revenue by 2050, contributing to long-term economic planning and safeguarding the state's future.

The conclusion of the meeting involved rectifying the record for the January 2026 open meeting minutes, specifically concerning the closed meeting. The discussion centered on ensuring that the matters discussed in the closed session were strictly limited to the individual employee limited personal matters exemption as provided by section 10151H2, and that no formulation of public policy occurred. Following this confirmation, a motion was made and seconded to come out of executive session, which passed with nine affirmative votes. Subsequently, a motion to adjourn the meeting was made and seconded, but a subsequent motion was introduced to table an unmentioned item until the February meeting, which also passed after a roll call vote.

The meeting commenced with roll call confirming a quorum. Key agenda items included the approval of the agenda and the approval of the minutes from the previous November meeting. The session featured a briefing on housing affordability, noting a presentation on leveraging private equity investment for manufacturing affordable homes. A significant discussion centered on budget and legislative matters, detailing a requested 50% increase in the staffing budget, with the Legislative Finance Committee recommending a 36.5% increase, ultimately projected to result in approximately a 43% increase for the next year. Further updates covered the 2025 Strategic Venture Capital Program report, which is receiving considerable attention and publicity, and its role in catalyzing other state investments. A subsequent presentation provided an update on public equity market performance for 2025, highlighting international stocks outperforming domestic stocks for the first time since 2022, and a rotation towards small caps in the late year rally. Macroeconomic factors discussed included improvements in CPI data, hovering unemployment rates, and the anticipated tailwind from tax cuts in 2026, contrasted with concerns regarding consumer debt and AI's impact on employment.