Several Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor who attended a forum Wednesday at the NEA building on Botulph Road said they'd like to repeal state personal income tax cuts for upper-income bracket taxpayers — a plan pushed at the outset of Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson's administration.

The tax cuts came up at the forum in a question from an audience member about solving the state budget shortfall that has prompted the need for a special legislative session next month.

The Legislature, at the urging of the governor, passed the tax cuts in 2003, Richardson's first year in office. The bill — which lowered the top personal income tax rate from 8.2 percent to 4.9 percent over five years — became one of the cornerstones of Richardson's administration. In subsequent years, personal income taxes were decreased for other income levels in the state.

Television commentators and several national news articles hailed Richardson as "a tax-cutting Democrat." Richardson frequently bragged about the tax cuts during his run for president.

Richardson has proposed cutting spending to cope with the budget shortfalls but does not favor raising taxes.

State Sen. Linda Lopez of Albuquerque said she will introduce a bill to repeal the tax breaks. "Many of us knew it was the wrong thing to do when we first did it," she said. "Some of us stood up against it and earned the ire of the governor." She said the amount of the projected budget gap is about the same as the revenues the state is missing out on because of the tax cuts.

State Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino, also of Albuquerque, agreed, saying there's only two ways to deal with the budget — trim spending or raise revenue. "Now is not the time to stop helping families," he said. "Our teachers are not overpaid. Our Medicaid is not lavish." Ortiz y Pino took another jab at Richardson, saying the state could save money by getting rid of some of the highly paid exempt employees hired by the governor.

Santa Fe County Sheriff Greg Solano also agreed that the 2003 tax cuts should be repealed and that the state should trim the exempt jobs. As of last year, the number of state exempt employees, who serve at the pleasure of the governor, rose by about 40 percent.

State Rep. Joe Campos of Santa Rosa said he thinks it's a shame that the state Senate in 2003 didn't go along with a House bill that would have established "automatic triggers" that would have delayed the tax cuts if the economy was weak. He didn't say if he would vote to repeal the tax cuts.

Also not touching the tax cuts issue were candidates Brian Colón, former state Democratic Party chairman — who said the state could save money by stopping "waste, fraud and abuse" — and Lawrence Rael, executive director of the Mid-Region Council of Governments, who said the state has to "live within our means."

In a question about ethics, several candidates criticized Lopez, chairwoman of the Senate Rules Committee, for not letting a bill establishing an ethics commission pass out of her committee.

Lopez said "you have to be careful" because such a group would have so much power. Ortiz y Pino said, "How long do we have to be careful? We could have passed this three years ago."

To "keep stalling," he said, makes it look like the Senate doesn't want an ethics commission.

All but one candidate, Sen. Tim Eichenberg of Albuquerque, who was campaigning in Las Cruces, attended the forum.

Contact Steve Terrell at 986-3037 or sterrell@sfnewmexican.com. Read his political blog at roundhouseroundup.com.