Public Regulation Commissioner Jerome Block Jr. isn't expected to attend Thursday's commission meeting, during which fellow commissioners appear poised to remove him as vice chairman.

The absence of Northern New Mexico's elected representative on the regulatory body would continue a pattern of Block not showing up for about a third of commission meetings this year.

All four of Block's fellow commissioners have called on him to resign amid mounting scandals, including questions over charges made on his state-issued gasoline card, his lack of a valid driver's license while using a state vehicle and a Santa Fe police investigation into a car reported stolen weeks after Block took it from a local car dealership for a test-drive.

Block, 34, has remained largely unseen at the PRC offices in Santa Fe since news about the gas-card inquiry broke last week.

Bipartisan calls for the embattled Democrat to step down from his $90,000-a-year position have grown in recent days, but there was no sign of any response from him Wednesday. Block did not return a call seeking comment.

The New Mexican in May reported that from Jan. 1 to April 21, Block was absent from 11 of 33 meetings. Records reviewed on Wednesday show that from April 28 to July 28, Block missed seven of 28 meetings and showed up late to one. In some cases, he was marked absent; in others, he was excused. Meeting minutes for August were not immediately available.

Nothing in PRC policy sets a minimum number of days a commissioner has to be present at the office or at meetings, said Johnny Montoya, chief of staff for the commission that regulates utilities, insurance, transportation and other industries in New Mexico.

It is unclear when Block plans to return to work, Montoya said.

In the meantime, state House Minority Leader Tom Taylor, R-Farmington, is seeking appointment of a legislative committee to determine whether evidence exists to impeach Block.

Block's car was searched last week by officials from the Attorney General's Office, but there has been no word on what was found.

The Attorney General's Office on Wednesday turned into State District Court in Santa Fe a detailed inventory of what was taken from Block's state vehicle last week during a search at a state parking lot. The search-warrant affidavit, which was authorized by District Judge Barbara Vigil, and the inventory of the items seized have been placed under a court-ordered seal.

A written request to unseal the warrant was filed Wednesday by both The New Mexican and KOB-TV, the latter of which aired video showing investigators holding what the station said appeared to be a prescription pill bottle.

It is unclear on what grounds the attorney general's investigators based their request to have the documents sealed.

In addition to his recent troubles, Block faces charges that he misused public campaign cash while running for office in 2008. Block paid $21,700 in penalties to the Secretary of State's Office after lying on a campaign report.

Reporter Geoff Grammer contributed to this report.

Contact Kate Nash at 986-3036 or knash@sfnewmexican.com. Read her blog at www.greenchilechatter.com.