New coalition aims to promote economic growth in New Mexico

• Kyler Nerison serves as the nonprofit coalition’s executive director.
• The group's members include Four Corners Economic Development and the Farmington Chamber of Commerce.
• The coalition’s website, nm4ep.com, includes information about the state’s economy.

FARMINGTON — A new coalition of business groups including Four Corners Economic Development and the Farmington Chamber of Commerce hopes to lay the foundation for economic growth in the state.

New Mexicans for Economic Prosperity launched this week in response to the $1.2 billion to $2 billion surplus in revenue the state is anticipating following a surge in oil and gas production in the Permian Basin, according to Kyler Nerison, the nonprofit coalition’s executive director.

“There’s a lot of different groups that are focused locally, and we wanted to broaden that view out,” Nerison said.

He said the group is nonpartisan, and hopes to promote a positive message and bring people together to invest in the state.

“The whole state is in this together,” he said.

In addition to 4CED and the Farmington Chamber of Commerce, members include:

• Carlsbad Department of Development
• Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce
• Economic Development Corporation of Lea County
• Lovington Economic Development Corporation
• New Mexico Business Coalition
• Rio Grande Foundation
• New Mexico Oil and Gas Association
• National Association of Royalty Owners – Rockies
• Royalty Owners and Producers Educational Coalition
• Consumer Energy Alliance

The coalition’s website, nm4ep.com, includes information about the state’s economy, as well as such resources as fact sheets, infographics and economic reports.

The group is currently touting the recent success in the state's energy sector, which has created the surplus in the state’s budget.

“The Farmington Chamber of Commerce is represented by 500 businesses in San Juan County, and each one of these businesses has a tie to the energy industry in a direct or indirect way,” Audra Winters, president of the Farmington Chamber of Commerce, stated in a press release. “Energy production is key to a prosperous New Mexico, as it makes up more than 30 percent of the state budget.”