Lujan: Gov. trying to find solutions

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - State House Speaker Ben Lujan says Gov. Bill Richardson is trying to find solutions to the problems with the state's unemployment office.

Lujan said the governor is drawing up a number of ideas to help get unemployed New Mexicans their money faster.

A news conference was scheduled to discuss the new proposals to fix the backlog at Workforce Solutions, but it has been postponed until Wednesday afternoon, so the Governor's Office and Workforce Solutions can find a resolution.

The phone lines and the website of the department have been clogged for weeks, leaving unemployed New Mexicans unable to apply for benefits.

News 13 spoke with some powerful legislators and the labor secretary about the issues earlier in the week.

Labor Secretary Betty Sparrow Dorris advised New Mexicans to be patient with the process on Monday.

On Tuesday, Lujan called the situation "inexcusable."

"I thought she would for sure find a solution to it, and listening to her, she doesn’t seem to have any idea of how to resolve this problem that we have," Lujan said.

Lujan said that this is an issue of manpower. One proposal is to go to the board of finance for more money, so the state can hire more people.